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Reports a cross-sectional investigation of the behavioral and academic correlates of victimization in Chinese children's peer groups. Structural equation models indicated that peer victimization was associated with poor academic functioning, submissive-withdrawn behavior, aggression, and low levels of assertive-prosocial behavior. Findings suggest considerable similarity in the social processes underlying peer group victimization across Chinese and Western cultural settings. (Author/KB)

As a common form of negative interpersonal interaction in childhood, school bullying is closely related to individual negative cognition. Few studies have assessed whether there is an interaction between different kinds of school bullying roles and negative cognition. The present study administered four questionnaire follow-up tests among Chinese children over two years to explore the bidirectional relation and underlying mechanisms between bullying/victimization and negative automatic thoughts (about self/others). A total of 993 children with MT1age = 9.66 ± 0.72 participated in the study, including 647(65.16%) boys and 346(34.84%) girls. Results indicated a bidirectional relation between victimization and negative automatic thoughts (about self/others); negative automatic thoughts (about self/others) predicting bullying; negative automatic thoughts (about self/others) form two vicious cycles with victimization separately, in which victimization plays a mediating role. The findings suggest that considering improving children's negative cognition of self and others is an important pathway to reduce the occurrence of bullying and victimization in children and to stop children from falling into the cycle of victimization, which is crucial for children to have healthy relationships later in adolescence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

School transitions provide contexts for adolescents to reconstruct peer relationships and re-establish social positions. Scarce research has captured the transition of aggressor and victim roles during this period and examined associated factors. To investigate the stability and shifts of aggressor and victim roles following the transition to middle school, this study conducted latent transition analysis with 1261 Chinese adolescents (32.6% female, Mage in Grade 6 = 12.1 years, SD = 0.7). Three subgroups were identified across Grades 5 to 8: aggressive–victims, victims and uninvolved. Adolescents were more likely to transition from aggressive–victim and victim roles to the uninvolved group during the transition to middle school compared to the transitions within the same educational phase. Males and those with insecure parental attachment were at higher risk of being and remaining in the involved groups. The findings underscore the dynamic nature of adolescent aggression and victimization and highlight the transition to middle school as a critical window for interventions aimed at helping adolescents disengage from aggression and victimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Group-based situations are common settings for cyberbullying, making bystander responses crucial in combating this issue. This study investigated how adolescent bystanders respond to various victims, including family members, friends, teachers, and celebrities. This study also examined how different parenting styles influenced children's cyber bystander involvement. Methods: This study employed data from a cross-sectional school survey covering 1,716 adolescents aged 13–18 years from public and vocational schools in China collected in 2022. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to measure demographic characteristics, cyberbullying experiences, and parental rearing behaviors in predicting bystander reactions. Results: The findings showed that middle school students preferred to "ask for help" while high school students tended to choose "call the police" when witnessing cyberbullying incidents. Bystanders growing up with parental rejection and overprotection, having previous cyberbullying victimization experiences, where the victims were disliked by them, exhibited fewer defensive reactions. Conclusions: This study has implications for future research and practices involving parental involvement in cyber bystander interventions, which could provide implications for future practice in designing specific intervention programs for cyberbullying bystander behavior. Future research and interventions against cyberbullying may provide individualized training including parents' positive parenting skills and parent-child interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a robust association between friendship quality and victimization in adolescence; yet, it remains unclear whether friendship quality may be linked causally with different forms of victimization in middle adolescence. To fill this gap, this study examines the bidirectional associations of friendship quality and relational/verbal victimization with data collected at two time points, 6 months apart, in a sample of 671 middle Chinese adolescents (M age = 15.63, SD age = 0.73, 49% males). Cross-lagged panel analyses revealed a two-way relationship between friendship quality and victimization, which existed in both verbal and relational victimization. Multi-group panel analyses observed that the cross-lagged associations between friendship quality and relational/verbal victimization were only found for males, but not for females. This result suggests that adolescent males' victimization is both affected by and a predictor of friendship quality, with implications for youth prevention programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing use of social networks makes online interactions more accessible and increases the risks of cyberbullying. There is a lack of research comparing the role of online and offline social capitals in facilitating positive bystander behaviours in cyberbullying. This study aims to investigate the relationships among cyberbullying victimization experiences, social capitals and bystander behaviours among adolescents. A total of 1207 students in grades 7–9 from boarding schools in China were recruited for this study. Multiphase regressions are used to explore the associations of social capitals and bystander behaviours. Results showed that cyberbullying victims reported more frequent residential mobility and less frequent communication with parents compared with non‐victims. Participants with more offline capitals and less online capital reported fewer experiences as cyberbullying victims. Participants' defending bystander reactions were related to more offline social capitals and higher academic achievement. The findings from this study may contribute to our understanding of bystander reactions to cyberbullying and its relationship with online and offline social capitals among boarding school adolescents. The discussion could also provide implications for proactive and individualized intervention to improve online and offline social capitals to cyberbullying bystander behaviours in schools and communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Past research has failed to find consistent relationships between criminal victimization and fear of crime. Except for neighborhood disorder and crime rate, few studies have examined whether other neighborhood conditions matter the victimization—fear relationship. Using survey data in Guangzhou neighborhoods, the present analysis employs multinomial logistic regression models to examine whether neighborhood characteristics moderate the relationship between violent victimization and fear of violence, and between burglary victimization and fear of burglary, separately. Some aspects of the neighborhood environment do differentially influence victims' and non-victims' fear levels. Besides verifying the interaction effect of neighborhood disorder and victimization, the present study finds that neighborhood policing alleviates the harmful effect of violent victimization on fear, while collective efficacy fosters the harmful effect of burglary victimization on fear. This paper underscores the significance of the social context of urban China in explaining the interplay of neighborhood characteristics and victimization on fear of crime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adolescents use various strategies to help their victimized peers during bullying episodes. However, prior research has primarily adopted a variable-centered approach that examines the effect of each defending strategies separately and does not address whether there were different types of defenders who exhibit specific combinations of defending strategies and how these profiles related to youth's adjustment outcomes. Using latent profile analysis, this study identified defending profiles among a sample of Chinese adolescents (N = 1618, Mage = 13.81, SDage = 0.94, 42% girls) and examined whether these profiles differ on victimization experiences and depressive symptoms. The results yielded four defending profiles: nonaggressive defenders (15%), aggressive defenders (7%), average defenders (54%), and infrequent defenders (24%). Aggressive defenders and infrequent defenders exhibited the highest levels of self-reported victimization and depressive symptoms, whereas nonaggressive defenders demonstrated the lowest. There were no statistical profile differences in peer-reported victimization. Findings suggest that investigating the heterogeneity of youth using defending strategies is important for understanding whether defending actually puts youth at increased risk for negative adjustment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adolescence is a critical period of high-risk behaviors and core self-evaluation. Victimization and nonsuicidal self-injury, as other-inflicted and self-inflicted harm, may be closely related to core self-evaluation. This study used a cross-lagged design, we used a community-based sample of adolescents recruited from a public high school in central China. Total of 1214 high school students (58.9% male, T1 Mage = 15.46 ± 0.71) completed this research. The results showed that there is a bidirectional cycle between victimization and NSSI. In addition, core self-evaluation had a stable predictive effect on victimization and nonsuicidal self-injury, but the prediction of victimization and nonsuicidal self-injury on core self-evaluation was not stable. There is a cyclic relationship between victimization and core self-evaluation over time. And core self-evaluation mediates the association of victimization and nonsuicidal self-injury. This result helps to clarify the mechanism by which core self-evaluation is associated with external and internal harm, which can help inform future interventions to more effectively avoid the risk of harm and its adverse effects in adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Victimization could cause cognitive dysfunction like negative cognitive bias. While there are studies of contemporaneous consequences, there is insufficient research on whether and how early victimization will affect adult negative cognitive bias. This study examined the dual role of resilience (i.e., whether resilience would moderate the relationship between early victimization and negative cognitive bias, and/or whether resilience would mediate the same relationship). A total of 972 college students (40% were males, Mage = 19.25, SD = 1.17, range = 16-25) from three universities in Central China completed a series of anonymous questionnaires on early victimization, resilience, and negative cognitive bias. After controlling for demographic variables, the results indicated that early victimization was positively correlated with negative cognitive bias of college students. Moderation analysis indicated that resilience moderated the relationship between early victimization and negative cognitive bias. Mediation analysis revealed that resilience partially mediated the same relationship. Specifically, the effect of early victimization on negative cognitive bias was stronger for college students with high level of resilience than those with low level of resilience. Meanwhile, early victimization affected negative cognitive bias partially through resilience. The findings elucidate the dual role of resilience in the relationship between early victimization and negative cognitive bias. On the one hand, negative cognitive bias can be reduced by enhancing resilience among victims, on the other hand, the protective role of resilience may be weakened with the increase of victimization, reminding us to pay more attention to victims with high level of resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The high incidence of online fraud in China poses a great threat to the social stability and property security of society. Victimity is the state or mindset of victims, referring to the various conditions related to being victims of crimes. Examining the association between the inherent and extrinsic factors of victimity and victimization of online fraud is of great importance for revealing the psychological mechanism of victimization and drawing up preventative measures. Methods: Through the questionnaire survey of 504 online fraud victims and 523 non-victims, univariate analysis and logistic regression analysis were used to investigate the risk factors correlated with victimization. Results: Age, education, and social support are positively correlated with fraud victimization, while impulsiveness, trust tendency, smartphone usage, and negative life experiences are negatively correlated with fraud victimization. Subsequent regression analyses showed that all the factors above, except for smartphone usage, are significant predictors for online fraud victimization. Discussion: Our conceptual model and empirical results demonstrate the important role of victimity in making an individual become a victim and help clarify the mixed findings of previous studies on the risk factors for online fraud. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The widespread use of digital technology and devices has fundamentally transformed people's social life in recent decades, particularly in interpersonal relationships. Two popular social phenomena elucidate how social connections and interactions have dramatically evolved due to technological advancement. Sexting has surfaced as a popular way of getting attention or flirting among young populations over the past decade. Online dating also has emerged as a viable avenue for people to seek interpersonal romantic and/or sexual relationships. Based on survey data collected from two Chinese universities and one U.S. university, this study links sexting and online dating by comparatively assessing the prevalence of sexting victimization and factors influencing such victimization among young online daters. Bivariate and multiple analyses reveal that American college students are more inclined than their Chinese counterparts to be victims of receiving sexts. Chinese students with higher degrees of rape myth acceptance are more likely to experience sexting victimization, but such an association does not exist among U.S. students. Internet-related activities were only weakly connected to sexting victimization among college students. LGBT young adults, regardless of their country affiliation, are at a higher risk for sexting misconduct. Female and younger American students were more likely to experience sexting victimization, whereas Chinese students in a romantic relationship were more inclined to experience sexting victimization. If possible, future research should employ a random sampling strategy to draw a larger number of college students from different types of universities in different regions. Future studies should include other theoretically relevant variables, such as self-control and opportunity variables, into the sexting victimization research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is limited information available on the phenomenon of stalking in the Asian context, especially in mainland China. This study investigated individuals' perceptions of stalking behavior, the motives of stalkers, and the effective strategies for coping with stalking victimization in a sample of 985 young adults (aged 18–33 years) from Liaoning province in mainland China. The influence of specific demographic (i.e., age, sex, religiosity, and education) and psychosocial (i.e., social bonds and self‐control) characteristics on individuals' perceptions of effective coping strategies for stalking victimization were also examined. In general, men and women held significantly different perceptions of stalking behavior, stalkers' motives, and strategies that were considered effective for coping with stalking. Multivariate analyses indicated that a low educational level was significantly associated with the perception that avoidant tactics constituted an effective strategy for coping with stalking victimization. Moreover, individuals with lower educational levels and stronger social bonds tended to perceive proactive and aggressive tactics to constitute an effective strategy for coping with stalking victimization. Finally, individuals with lower self‐control tended to endorse compliance tactics when coping with stalking victimization. In view of the devastating nature and consequences of stalking, the findings of this study highlight the need for anti‐stalking legislation in mainland China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The topic of school bullying has become an important issue over the world. Being in disadvantaged situations of fathers' absence, prior research suggested that left-behind children (LBC) with absent fathers in China are more vulnerable to get involved in school bullying (bullying or being bullied). In addition, fathers' absence brings much pressure to single stay-at-home mothers, leading to more maternal psychologically controlling parenting. Following a three-wave longitudinal design, this study aimed to examine the developmental relationship between maternal psychological control and father-absent LBC's bullying/victimization as well as its mechanism. A total of 348 father-absent LBC aged 7-11 years in China completed a battery of questionnaires at three-time points. The results indicated that there are reciprocal effects between maternal psychological control and father-absent LBC's bullying/victimization. Specifically, maternal psychological control at T1 predicted father-absent LBC's victimization at T2; children's victimization at T2 predicted maternal psychological control at T3; maternal psychological control predicted later children's bullying perpetration stably from T1 to T2 and from T2 to T3; children's bullying at T2 predicted maternal psychological control at T3. Two vicious circles happened in the above relationships. Current findings highlight the stronger effects of mothers' negative parenting on children's school bullying, which bring inspiration for future family education and school intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bullying among adolescents is a significant public health concern worldwide. While child maltreatment (CM) is a known risk factor, few studies explore whether abused adolescents become bullies or victims and how CM affects day-to-day bullying/victimization. Existing research often uses cross-sectional and longitudinal designs with long intervals, failing to capture the dynamic nature of adolescence and bullying behaviors., Objective: Based on personality solidification theory, the study used a weekly diary method to examine the relationship between adolescents' CM and weekly bullying/victimization, as well as the mediating mechanisms of the Big Five personality traits., Participants and Setting: 452 students (167 girls, M age  = 12.90, SD age  = 0.48) from a junior high school in southern China participated in a 7-week diary study., Methods: After participants finished all questionnaires, multilevel models were constructed to analyze weekly diary data., Results: The findings indicated that CM positively predicted adolescents' weekly bullying/victimization, both directly and indirectly, through personality traits. Specifically, CM predicted weekly bullying through openness, conscientiousness, and neuroticism, while it also forecasted weekly victimization through neuroticism., Conclusions: CM had long-term adverse effects on adolescents' day-to-day bullying and victimization through the solidification of personality, which may provide significant theoretical and empirical foundations for the prevention of bullying in schools., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Previous studies have shown that bullying and victimization can be experienced simultaneously by an individual and can change over time. Understanding the joint longitudinal development of the two is of great significance. We conducted a 4-year longitudinal study to examine the joint developmental trajectories of bullying and victimization, gender and grade differences in trajectory group membership, and changes in specific forms of bullying and victimization (verbal, relational, and physical bullying /victimization) in each trajectory group. A total of 775 children from China participated in our study. The average age of participants at the first wave was 10.90 years (SD = 1.12), and boys accounted for 69.5% of the sample. Based on mean scores, four distinct joint developmental trajectories of bullying and victimization were found: the involvement group (both bullying and victimization increased from low to high over time, accounting for 7.6% of the total), the desisted group (both bullying and victimization decreased from high to low over time, 6.1%), the victimization group (victimization remained at a high level, whereas bullying remained at a low level for 3 years, 13.2%), and the noninvolved group (bullying and victimization remained at a stable low level, 73.1%). Boys were more likely than girls to belong to the involvement group, desisted group, and victimization group, whereas girls were more likely than boys to belong to the noninvolved group. There was no significant grade difference in the trajectory group. All forms of bullying/victimization were consistent with the overall trend and showed similar levels. These results have important implications for the prevention of and interventions for school bullying. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Victimization as an inducing factor of depressive symptoms has been confirmed in previous studies. However, little is known about how and when it induces depressive symptoms in adolescents.Methods: In total, 1174 Chinese adolescents were recruited to complete the Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire, Security Questionnaire, Positive Psychological Capital Questionnaire, and the Chinese version of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale.Results: After controlling for gender and school type, the sense of security partially mediated the association between victimization and depressive symptoms. Moreover, direct association and the mediating effect of the sense of security were moderated by psychological capital. The moderating effect occurred in the second half of the mediating effect.Limitations: Causal conclusions cannot be drawn based on cross-sectional research design. All measures were based on participant self-report.Conclusions: The mediating model constructed in this study emphasized the important influence of stress, emotion, and psychological diathesis on adolescent depressive symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This cross-sectional study aimed to identify adverse childhood experience (ACE) subtypes using variable- and person-centered approaches and examine the possible sex-differentiated associations with violence involvement as victim, perpetrator, and victim-perpetrator.Methods: Adolescents aged 10-14 years in three junior high schools in Shanghai, China, were selected using a cluster sampling method in November and December 2017. Participants were surveyed anonymously using a computer-assisted self-interview approach via tablets. Thirteen items modified from the CDC-Kaiser ACE study were used to measure the ACEs. Results show subtypes as neglect, abuse, and household dysfunction by developing cumulative index score from the variable perspective and subgroups identified through the latent class analysis (LCA) from the person perspective. Logistic regression analyses were used to test the association between each ACE subtype and violence victimization and perpetration after adjusting for some demographic characteristics.Results: A total of 1,700 participants were included in the final analysis. Approximately 1,322 (77.76 %) participants reported experiencing at least one ACE. The prevalence of neglect, abuse, and household dysfunction was 64.12 % (n = 1090), 61.29 % (n = 1042), and 18.24 % (n = 310), respectively. Three classes were identified through the LCA: low exposure to all ACEs (n = 854, 50.23 %), high exposure to emotional and physical abuse and neglect (n = 715, 42.06 %), and high exposure to all ACEs (n = 131,7.71 %). After controlling the covariates, experiencing abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction was significantly related to violence victimization (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 3.19, 3.29, 2.37, P < 0.001) and victim-perpetrator (aOR = 3.48, 4.41, 5.16, P < 0.001). Adolescent violence perpetration was only found to be associated with being neglected (aOR = 2.37, P = 0.003) and suffering household dysfunction (aOR = 3.25, P < 0.001). LCA revealed the cumulative effects of ACEs on adolescent violence victimization and perpetration. Sex-stratified analysis indicate that girls were more vulnerable to the negative effects of ACEs, with a higher risk of perpetration among girls exposed to distinctive subtypes or multiple ACEs.Conclusions: ACEs were ubiquitous and significantly associated with an elevated risk of violence victimization and perpetration during early adolescence. Future research should examine whether these associations persist over time and the intermediating mechanism from the perspectives of individual neurodevelopment, cognition and resilience ability, and social support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Literature shows a link between adverse childhood experiences and subsequent depression, but there is a lack of concrete evidence on whether victimization of intimate partner violence (IPV) in adulthood plays significant roles in that link. This study aimed to test the mediating effect of adulthood IPV victimization in the associations between exposure to family violence in childhood and adulthood depression. Exposure to family violence in childhood was operationalized as one's experiences of child abuse and witnessing parental IPV in childhood. This study also tested the effects of other violence-related factors from the Personal and Relationships Profile, including one's antisocial personality, borderline personality, dominance, posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms, and violence approval, on the associations. A path analysis was conducted a cross-sectional survey study sample recruited between 2009 and 2010. The sample was 8,807 adults selected with a multistage stratified sampling procedure from six cities in China (43.4% male; M age = 40.61 years, SD = 8.93). The main outcome was participants' depressive symptoms during the past 2 weeks. As predicted, the path model suggests that IPV victimization significantly mediated the associations between exposure to family violence in childhood and adulthood depression. Violence approval and PTS symptoms, but not the other violence-related factors, significantly mediated the above associations. Findings warrant the need to identify individuals with exposure to family violence in early stages, and to provide them with suitable intervention programs to prevent subsequent IPV as well as to minimize the negative impacts of the exposure to family violence in childhood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Few studies exist on sibling bullying or even sibling aggression more generally in the past 30 years. Studies of sibling bullying have shown that sibling bullying may associate with depression, anxiety, self-harm, suicide ideation in early adulthood. Nevertheless, few studies have explored the relationship between sibling victimization types and the occurrence of psychosis, not to mention that psychotic-like experiences (PLEs) always occur before psychotic disorders. Therefore, the current study aims to examine the association between sibling bullying and PLEs among children age 11-16 years in China.Method: This is a cross-sectional study which included 3231 students from eight junior middle schools in three cities of Hunan Province, China. Frequency and types of sibling bullying was assessed with Sibling Bullying Questionnaire and PLEs was assessed with Community Assessment Psychic Experiences-42.Results: The percentage of sibling bullying were 12.9% for victimization and 10.8% for perpetration. Sibling bullying plays as an independent influence factor for all subtypes of PLEs, and verbal victimization was the most important risk factor in developing different subtypes of PLEs followed by physical victimization and verbal perpetration.Conclusion: The current study found that sibling bullying is associated with PLEs. Intervention programs should be conducted to focus on those children and adolescents who are involved in multiple types of sibling victimization or perpetration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When it comes to online populations and markets, China has some of the largest in the world. As a result, Chinese cybercriminals have more opportunities to target and access victims. While extant research in Western countries has examined online fraud victimization and offenses in virtual communities, a relatively small body of research on these phenomena has been conducted in non-Western societies. This study attempts to address this gap by analyzing online fraud victimization in Chinese online communities. Routine activity theory is applied to understand the patterns and dynamics of victimization. Data were collected from Baidu Tieba (a Chinese version of Craigslist), a prominent Chinese online platform for reporting victimization. This study highlights the range of services, types, and methods along which victimization occurs. The results, which reflect China's rapid pace of technological development, show that different types of fraud are perpetrated online and that victimization methods are associated with particular types of media. This study also identifies implications for China and other countries where similar crimes and instances in cyberspace occur. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Researchers have focused on identifying factors that may mitigate the negative consequences associated with cyberbullying victimization. A significant factor that has received considerable attention is perceived social support from parents and friends and its potential to reduce the risk of cyberbullying victimization and the associated negative mental health issues. However, the buffering effects of perceived social support from parents and friends on the longitudinal relationships among cyberbullying victimization, depression, subjective health complaints, and self-harm have been less explored, particularly in cross-cultural contexts. To address this gap, the present study examined the role of perceived social support from parents and friends in buffering against depression, subjective health complaints, and self-harm, measured one year later, associated with cyberbullying victimization among 463 Chinese (49% female) and 445 American (52% female) eighth graders (ages 13-15). They completed self-report questionnaires on cyberbullying victimization, perceived social support from parents and friends, and mental health (i.e., depression, subjective health complaints, self-harm). One year later, they completed the same mental health questionnaires. The findings revealed no differences in reports of perceived support from parents, but greater reports of social support from friends for American adolescents when compared to Chinese adolescents. High levels of perceived social support from parents were associated with a stronger negative relationship between cyberbullying victimization, depression, subjective health complaints, and self-harm for both Chinese and American adolescents, with these effects being more pronounced for Chinese adolescents, while opposite patterns were found for American adolescents and perceived social support from friends. These results are discussed in the context of cultural values and how these values shape the role of adults in adolescents' lives.

Background: Group-based situations are common settings for cyberbullying, making bystander responses crucial in combating this issue. This study investigated how adolescent bystanders respond to various victims, including family members, friends, teachers, and celebrities. This study also examined how different parenting styles influenced children's cyber bystander involvement., Methods: This study employed data from a cross-sectional school survey covering 1,716 adolescents aged 13-18 years from public and vocational schools in China collected in 2022. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to measure demographic characteristics, cyberbullying experiences, and parental rearing behaviors in predicting bystander reactions., Results: The findings showed that middle school students preferred to "ask for help" while high school students tended to choose "call the police" when witnessing cyberbullying incidents. Bystanders growing up with parental rejection and overprotection, having previous cyberbullying victimization experiences, where the victims were disliked by them, exhibited fewer defensive reactions., Conclusions: This study has implications for future research and practices involving parental involvement in cyber bystander interventions, which could provide implications for future practice in designing specific intervention programs for cyberbullying bystander behavior. Future research and interventions against cyberbullying may provide individualized training including parents' positive parenting skills and parent-child interactions., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: Poly-victimization is more detrimental to adolescents' physical and mental health than is a single type of victimization. However, there has been limited research on the trajectory of poly-victimization among Chinese adolescents., Objective: Identify the different developmental trajectories of poly-victimization among Chinese adolescents over time and examine the influencing factors of poly-victimization trajectories., Methods: Data from four surveys conducted between 2020 and 2022, encompassing a cohort of 319 adolescents who had experienced poly-victimization, were utilized to identify their developmental trajectories via group-based trajectory modeling. Potential influencing factors were screened and compared using ANOVA or chi-square tests, while factors affecting the developmental trajectories of poly-victimization were analyzed through multinomial logistic regression., Results: We identified three poly-victimization trajectories among adolescents: increasing poly-victimization (n = 39, 12.2 %), relieved poly-victimization (n = 228, 71.5 %), and fluctuating poly-victimization (n = 52, 16.3 %). Our findings indicate that boys, and those with poor class grade ranking, a lower level of parental education, lower household economy, smoking, drinking, suicide attempts, and suicide ideation, constitute the primary focus for the prevention and treatment of poly-victimization., Conclusion: We identified three poly-victimization trajectories, highlighting a significant heterogeneity in poly-victimization development. Understanding the characteristics of these developmental trajectories is crucial for realizing the dynamics of different poly-victimization subgroups and informing effective interventions., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Violence against patients with schizophrenia is very common, however it is rarely studied in China, especially in primary health care institutions of rural areas. Therefore, we investigated the frequency of violence against patients with community-living schizophrenia in rural China and examined its associated factors and impact on quality of life (QoL) and social function. Method: A survey was conducted among 487 patients with schizophrenia living in rural communities. Data about violent victimization experiences in the past 6 months, demographic information, and clinical characteristics were collected by questionnaires. Results: We found that 92 (18.9%) of 487 subjects experienced at least one type of violent event in the past 6 months. Logistic regression analysis suggested that a history of conducting dangerous behaviors(OR = 1.702, P = 0.02, 95%CI: 1.05–2.73), higher Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (anxiety domain) score (OR = 1.15, P = 0.02, 95%CI: 1.01–1.304) and lower hospitalization rates (OR = 0.89, P = 0.04, 95%CI: 0.81–0.99) were significantly associated with violent victimization in patients with schizophrenia. Analysis of covariance showed the victims of violence tended to have worse social function in patients with schizophrenia living in rural communities of China (P = 0.04). Conclusions: Individuals with schizophrenia living in rural China had a high risk of being exposed to violence and violent victimization of patients with schizophrenia had adverse consequences for social function. More attention is needed for those patients experiencing violent events, because they are simultaneously possible to conduct dangerous behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although existing research has advanced our understanding of participant roles in bullying, it is limited by its focus on a single participant role and reliance on samples of children or adolescents in Western nations. Under a "multiple participant roles" perspective based on adaptive strategy hypothesis, the current study used a modified version of the Participant Role Scale approach to identify participant roles in 523 Chinese eighth graders (47.0% boys; M = 14.43) based on peer ratings using two role classification methods: single participant role (using standardized scores) and multiple participant role (using raw scores). First, the single-role method was used. Second, primary, secondary, and tertiary roles were assigned to each adolescent according to his or her three highest scores; they also were assigned to various combinations of roles. Associations between variation in bullying roles and peer social preference (i.e., peer acceptance and rejection) were examined. Overall, the results regarding single-role classification showed that the distribution of and gender differences in roles were consistent with previous studies of Western adolescents. Results regarding multiple-role classification revealed wide variation: primary roles, 85.3% of the sample; secondary roles, 54.2%; tertiary roles, 43.2%. Girls tended to occupy only one role, whereas boys occupied multiple roles. Furthermore, 11 role combinations were identified (e.g., probully-defender; probully-defender-outsider) that were dominated by boys, but also included some girls. Youth whose combination included the role of defender had higher peer acceptance and lower rejection, compared with those without the defender role—a "defender protective effect." The findings have important implications for understanding and reducing bullying. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although gender has become a key dimension in migration research, previous scholarship has largely focused on adult rather than child migrants. Even less attention has been paid to the role of gender in migration-related child health. By comparing rural migrant and urban-born adolescents in the largest city in south China, this study assessed gender differences in psychological health and whether such differences were informed by socially induced victimization stressors and stress-moderation mechanisms related to the social relationships that link migrants to their host cities (local ties) and home villages (translocal ties). Victimization was more strongly correlated with suboptimal psychological health in girls versus boys across the migrant and urban-born samples. Local and translocal ties directly increased the psychological health and buffered the deleterious effect of victimization for migrant girls; yet, the roles of these ties were less notable in migrant boys. These results indicate gendered susceptibility to social stress in migrant adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The incidence of bullying is high among adolescents. Adolescents who were victims of bullying have a higher risk of self-harm and suicidal behavior than adolescents who were non-victims. However, research on suicide and both traditional and cyber bullying was limited in China. Therefore, this study examined the associations between Chinese adolescents who were the victims of traditional and cyber bullying and the prevalence of suicidal ideation, self-harm and suicide attempts. Methods: This was a population-based study of 2647 students (51.2% girls) with a mean age of 13.6 ± 1.1 years from 10 junior high schools in Shantou, China. Information on bullying victimization, suicidal ideation, self-harm and suicide attempts were collected using a self-administered questionnaire and the psychopathology of the students was assessed using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). The associations were examined with multinomial logistic regression, adjusted for covariates. Results: Traditional bullying victimization was reported by 16.7% of the adolescents, cyber bullying victimization by 9.0% and both by 3.5%. The prevalence of suicidal ideation was 23.5%, self-harm was 6.2% and suicide attempts was 4.2%. Psychopathology symptoms were risk factors for suicide ideation only, ideation plus self-harm, self-harm only and suicide attempts. Victims of both traditional and cyber bullying had the highest risk of suicidal ideation only, ideation plus self-harm and suicide attempts, compared to those reporting one form of bullying. Victims of cyber bullying only had the second highest risk of suicidal ideation only and suicidal ideation plus self-harm compared to non-victims. Conclusions: Adolescents who were victims of both traditional and cyber bullying had greater risks of adverse outcomes of suicidal ideation only, suicidal ideation plus self-harm and suicide attempts. The results of the current study suggest that those exposed to both forms of bullying should be routinely screened for suicidal risk. In addition, school-based anti-bully interventions should also target cyber bullying. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A rapid growing number of cases on victimization among left-behind children were reported and child victimization has become an important social issue in China. The frequent victimization events, together with its negative impact, lead the Chinese government to actively embark on innovation in protection service against victimization for left-behind children, especially at school and community levels. Drawing on representative data from Survey on Children and Old Adults Left-behind in Rural China, this study aims to test whether school-based and community-based protection service innovations have significant association with left-behind children's victimization incidence in China. According to the regression results, this study found that there was significantly negative association between protection service and victimization incidence among left-behind children in China. To be specific, school-based protection service was significantly associated with left-behind children's lower victimization incidence, and furthermore, combined protection service (both school-based and community-based protection services), which has significantly negative association with victimization incidence as well, achieved a more pronounced effect than school-based protection service only. Protection service innovations launched by Chinese government were proved to be effective in protecting left-behind children from victimization. The government shall lay more emphasis on innovation in protection service, as well as speed up the implementation of protection service policy nationwide. • The prevalence of victimization was 27.35% among left-behind children in China. • There was significantly negative association between protection service and left-behind children's victimization risk. • Left-behind children covered with school-based protection service only were less likely to experience victimization. • Combined protection service had a more pronounced effect in victimization protection of left-behind children. • Protection service system innovation should be implemented nationwide to cover all the left-behind children in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although school climate has been identified as a protective factor for youth development in the United States, few longitudinal studies have examined the relationship between school climate and student outcomes in China. This study explored the relationship between school climate, victimization, covitality, internalizing symptoms, and academic achievement, and whether school climate moderated the relationship between victimization and mental health outcomes using longitudinal data. Survey data were collected from 1150 Chinese 3rd to 6th grade students (Mage = 10.27 years, SD = 1.03 years, 55% boys) from five elementary schools at two time points. Regression results showed that school climate factors, including student-teacher relationships, clear expectations, respect for diversity and fairness of rules, predicted victimization, mental health (both internalizing symptoms and covitality), and academic grades six months later. School climate did not moderate the relationship between victimization and mental health. Our results suggest that it is important to foster positive school climate in order to prevent bullying and promote positive youth development among elementary students in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the impacts of the school context on victimization in adolescents are well researched in Western societies, empirical testing of the contextual impacts are lacking in China. The present study examines both violent and property victimization in adolescents in the Chinese setting from a lifestyle/routine activity perspective using a multilevel approach. These data are collected from a sample of 3,628 high school students in a southern city of China. The results of a hierarchical logistic regression model reveal that school contextual variables including school type, level of bonding to school, and school history are significant predictors of violent victimization while student-staff ratio is significant in predicting property victimization in adolescents. At the student level, a higher level of perceived school disorder and delinquency with friends is related with higher odds of both violent and property victimizations; bonding to parents and schools tends to reduce the odds of both violent and property victimizations, net of demographic factors. The results lend support to lifestyle/routine activity theories. Implications of the findings are highlighted in the section “Discussion and Conclusion.” [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We explored the bidirectional relationship between school victimization, psychological resilience, and suicidal ideation through a cross lagged model. • School victimization has a bidirectional longitudinal relationship with adolescent suicidal ideation and psychological resilience respectively. • Psychological resilience can predict adolescent suicidal ideation, while suicidal ideation, in turn, cannot significantly predict adolescent resilience. • There may be vicious and virtuous cycles in dynamic processes. Suicidal ideation has become a frequent problem for teenagers. In recent years, the increase in victimization is closely related to adolescents' suicidal ideation. At the same time, psychological resilience plays an important role in maintaining mental health in clinical practice, which has also attracted extensive attention from researchers. However, the relationship between victimization, resilience and suicidal ideation of adolescents and its mechanisms are unclear. This study aimed to explore the developmental relationship among adolescents' victimization, resilience and suicidal ideation. A total of 1214 Chinese high school students (M age= 15.46, SD = 0.71) completed the measures of victimization, resilience and suicidal ideation.They provided data in three waves (T1, T2 and T3, 6 months apart). The results showed that there are reciprocal effects between adolescents' victimization, suicidal ideation and resilience. Specifically, resilience can positively predict adolescents' suicidal ideation, while suicidal ideation can not significantly predict adolescents' resilience. The research results support the Developmental Contextualism, and also suggest that there may be a vicious circle between school victimization and adolescents' suicidal ideation. By cultivating teenagers' psychological resilience and playing its positive driving role, we can prevent adolescents' victimization and suicidal ideation problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of publicity (private, public) and medium (face-to-face, cyber) on the associations between attributions (i.e., self-blame, aggressor-blame) and coping strategies (i.e., social support, retaliation, ignoring, helplessness) for hypothetical victimization scenarios among 3,442 adolescents (age range 11-15 years; 49% girls) from China, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, India, Japan, and the United States. When Indian and Czech adolescents made more of the aggressor-blame attribution, they used retaliation more for public face-to-face victimization when compared to private face-to-face victimization and public and private cyber victimization. In addition, helplessness was used more for public face-to-face victimization when Chinese adolescents utilized more of the aggressor-blame attribution and the self-blame attribution. Similar patterns were found for Cypriot adolescents, the self-blame attribution, and ignoring. The results have implications for the development of prevention and intervention programs that take into account the various contexts of peer victimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: This article applies a multidimensional social exclusion framework to examine Chinese rural-to-urban migrant victimization. Method: Data from the 2012 China Labor Dynamics Survey is used to examine whether Chinese migrants are more likely to be victimized compared to urban residents and to what extent the prior findings on the meditating roles of social exclusion between immigration and victimization can be applied to understand Chinese migrants’ victimization. Results: Findings reveal the elevated victimization risks among nationwide rural-to-urban migrants. Logistic regression models find that social exclusion mediates the link between migrant status and victimization and that social exclusion predicts victimization. Conclusions: The discriminative institutional arrangements in China are a major force of the universal disadvantages of Chinese migrants. That is, it is not the migrant status itself, but the social exclusion suffered by individuals that increase the likelihood of being criminally victimized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Examine the relationship between parental rural-to-urban migration, caretaking arrangement, and left-behind children’s self-reported victimization in rural China. The direct effect of parental migration on children’s victimization as well as the indirect effect through positive caretaking and children’s delinquent/problem behavior involvement is explored. Methods: The study uses data from the Parental Migration and Children’s Well-being Survey, which collected information on parental migration and children’s experience of victimization from a probability sample of 800 middle school students in southern China. Structural equation modeling is used to evaluate hypothesized models by simultaneously assessing direct and indirect effects. Results: Compared with children living with both parents in rural China, children left behind by their fathers have an elevated level of victimization. In addition, the chronic absence of fathers leads to a higher level of delinquent and problem behavior among left-behind children, which in turn leads to further victimization. Conclusion: Left-behind children living with mothers, grandparents, or other relatives are an “at-risk” population for victimization. Local programs such as parenting lessons for left-behind parents and grandparents are needed. In addition, the importance of father’s chronic absence on left-behind children’s healthy physical and mental development needs to be further examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

COVID-19 has had a range of adverse effects on the behavior and mental health of adolescents globally, including bullying, anxiety and depression. However, there is a lack of comparative studies on the changes of school bullying before and during COVID-19 pandemic. To examine the changes in traditional bullying before and during COVID-19 pandemic and reveal the related risk factors in Shantou, China. Two samples of secondary school students were collected in 2018 and 2021 in Shantou, respectively. Bullying history and risk behaviors of students were measured in the past six months. The χ 2 test was used to analyze differences in baseline information and bullying types. The binary logistic regression with Forward LR method was used to analyze factors that affect the risk of bullying victimization and perpetration before and during COVID-19. A total of 5782 secondary school students were included, 3071 before COVID-19 pandemic and 2711 during COVID-19. The prevalence of different types of victimization and perpetration all increased during COVID-19 (P < 0.001). Boarding, being a lower secondary school student (as opposed to upper secondary school), being male (as opposed to female), drinking, and playing violent video games were shared risk factors for bullying victimization and perpetration. Living in an urban (as opposed to rural and island) was a risk factor for perpetration. Smoking was a risk factor for perpetration. All differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). We found that the prevalence of bullying victimization as well as perpetration increased during COVID-19. It suggests that we need to pay more attention to traditional school bullying prevention and control in China in the pandemic context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social disorganization theory has been tested for several decades in different countries, especially in the United States and Britain. With rapid urbanization, China is facing the similar issue of disruption of neighborhood organization in transitional zones as other countries have experienced. To test the applicability of social disorganization theory in China, this study examined the impact of both neighborhood structural characteristics and organizational characteristics of communities on victimization, utilizing a sample from a small rural-urban town in Zhejiang Province, China. The findings indicated that local dialect competence, residential mobility, and attitude toward the police were significantly associated with individual victimization. Therefore, social disorganization theory is supported based upon the current sample. Limitations and future studies are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Relatively little is known about the etiology of bullying perpetration and victimization among Macanese adolescents. This study examines the effect of self-control on these behaviors in 365 participants aged between 10 and 17, from two male-only schools (a boarding and a non-boarding school) in Macau. Their bullying perpetration and victimization are measured using the Illinois Bully Scale; their self-control level is assessed by the Self-Control Scale. Bullying perpetration (bullying behaviors and fighting) and victimization are negatively associated with the participants' self-control level. Participants residing in a school dormitory are found to manifest more bullying behaviors, to exhibit more risk-seeking behaviors, and to be more self-centered than their non-boarding counterparts. Regression analyses indicate that the participants' living arrangements are significantly related to their involvement in bullying perpetration, whereas their age and their father's criminal history are significantly associated with their experience of being bullied at school. After controlling for the participants' demographics, their risk-seeking behavior, self-centeredness, and volatile temper, as indicators for low self-control, are found to have significant effects on their bullying perpetration. These findings provide further support for the importance of self-control in bullying perpetration. Suggestions are offered for fostering adolescents' self-control as a way to reduce their propensity to engage in bullying perpetration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Since the end of 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic has had serious wide-ranging effects on academic, occupational and other daily activities. Like other types of institutions, schools are facing unprecedented challenges. Students may face a variety of adverse consequences, including sleep disturbances and school bullying, if they are unable to adjust to the current learning and living environment. This study explored the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on school bullying., Methods: A total of 5782 middle school students were enrolled in this multi-stage, cross-sectional study (3071 before and 2711 during the pandemic). The pre-pandemic group had a mean age of 14.9 ± 1.73, the pandemic group of 14.75 ± 1.47. Three models were set up using binary logistic regression to adjust for confounding variables (gender, school type, alcohol consumption, smoking, playing violent video games)., Results: All types of bullying victimization and perpetration (physical, verbal, social and property bullying) were more common during the pandemic than before the pandemic. In terms of bullying victimization, property bullying victimization (crude odds ratio [OR]: 2.398, 95% CI: 2.014-2.854, p < 0.001; model 2 adjusted OR: 2.344, 95% CI: 1.966-2.795, p < 0.001; model 3 adjusted OR: 2.818, 95% CI: 2.292-3.464, p < 0.001) increased the most. In terms of bullying perpetration, verbal bullying perpetration (crude OR: 3.007, 95% CI: 2.448-3.693, p <0.001; model 2 adjusted OR: 2.954, 95% CI: 2.399-3.637, p < 0.001; model 3 adjusted OR:3.345, 95% CI: 2.703-4.139, p < 0.001) increased the most., Conclusion: This study corroborate the significance of the pandemic on traditional school bullying and suggests that we should further consider other types of bullying and establish and improve the response and prevention mechanisms during public health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Despite the emerging literature on the health of rural-to-urban migrant children in China, few studies have addressed victimization stressors and stress-buffering mechanisms related to the social relationships that link migrants to their host cities (local ties) and home communities (trans-local ties). This study compared rural-to-urban migrant adolescents and urban native adolescents to examine the relationships between victimization, local and trans-local ties, and mental well-being that might be unique to migrants. Participants were 482 migrant students and 838 urban native students in the eighth grade in Guangzhou who completed a school-based survey in spring 2011. Victimization was associated with suboptimal psychological health in both the migrant and urban native samples. Social ties directly boosted psychological health in both samples, with the effects of trans-local and local ties proving equally important among migrant adolescents. While both local and trans-local ties moderated the effect of victimization on migrant adolescents, that moderation mattered less for urban native youth. These results highlight that a better understanding of victimization stress and how it is affected by the locality of social ties as a coping resource could help to protect the health of young migrants in urban China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the research on youth gangs in the United States has been around for generations, relatively little research on Chinese youth gangs has been published in Western journals. The purpose of this study is to examine the prevalence of the gang involvement of school-age youth in China and to explore whether or not some of the correlates associated with gang participation in the West, such as patterns of offending and victimization, are found in China. The data were collected from 7th, 8th, and 9th graders in both China and the United States using the same survey instrument, namely, the second International Self-Report Delinquency (ISRD-2). The results suggest that the U.S. sample has higher prevalence of self-nominated gang membership than the Chinese sample. In addition, the lifetime and last year participation rates in various criminal acts among the gang members in the Chinese sample were much lower than those in the U.S. sample. Last year prevalence of victimization was also examined between the gang members and nongang members in both samples. Finally, the definition of gang member identification was further explored to probe how culture, language, and social context can affect the understanding of a gang among the survey respondents. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Objective: To examine relationships between weight status and different forms of bullying victimization among adolescents aged 11-18 years. Methods: The relationships between weight status and bullying victimization (physical, verbal, and relational) were examined utilizing data from the Guangdong Provincial Youth Health Behavior Survey. Data on height, weight, and victimization behaviors were collected by self-reporting from 12 439 subjects. (χ2 test and logistic regression were used to analyze relationships between weight and bullying victimization. Results: The incidence of victimization for adolescents aged 11-18 years was 8.6%, with higher rates for boys (12.4%) than for girls (4.7%). For children with normal, overweight and obese body mass index (BMI), the incidence rates of victimization were 8.2%, 17.3%, and 11.5%, respectively. Compared to normal weight, overweight was a risk factor for bullying victimization (OR=1.60, 95% CI:1.18-2.17), and it also increased children''s risk of being teased in a hurtful way (OR=2.13, 95% CI: 1.41-3.24) and being made fun of due to physical appearance (OR=3.58, 95% CI: 2.27-5.67). Obesity only increased the risk for children of being made fun of due to physical appearance (OR=2.45, 95% CI: 1.44-4.15). Conclusions: The victimization for children at school is common in Guangdong province, China. Overweight and obese children are more likely to be victims of bullying behaviors, especially verbal victimization. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This study examines the relation between maternal physical discipline and victimization by peers, as moderated by child aggression. The sample consisted of 211 Hong Kong Chinese children (98 boys, 113 girls; average age of 11.9). Physical discipline was assessed with a questionnaire completed by mothers, and victimization by peers and aggression were measured using a peer nomination inventory. Latent variable models revealed a moderately strong link between children’s experiences with maternal physical discipline and peer victimization, but this effect held only for children who were also high on aggression. These results highlight the interplay between harsh home environments and child aggression and their contributions to the child’s adjustment in the peer group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bullying victimization is a robust predictor of mental distress among lesbian/gay, bisexual, and questioning (LGBQ) adolescents. However, few research accounted bullying victimization within the context of both sibling and peer relationships., Objective: To examine the effect of sibling and peer bullying victimization on depression and anxiety between heterosexual adolescents and LGBQ adolescents., Method: This was a cross-sectional study with a random sample of 3062 Chinese senior high school students (56.0% female) aged 14 to 18. Related information was collected through a self-reported questionnaire. The associations were examined via a set of logistic regression analysis., Results: Of the participants, 12.5% were victims of sibling bullying only, 10.1% reported peer victimization only, and 4.7% were involved in both sibling and peer victimization. Compared to heterosexuals, LGBQ adolescents had increased risks of sibling victimization only, peer victimization only, and both sibling and peer victimization. The prevalence of major depression and generalized anxiety disorder were 24.9% and 18.7% respectively. Bullying victimization and sexual orientation were independently associated with depression and anxiety. Furthermore, the stratified analysis indicated that sibling victimization only was significantly associated with depression and anxiety for heterosexual adolescents, while the associations were not significant for LGBQ adolescents., Conclusions: Sexual orientation and bullying victimization are predictive factors of depression and anxiety. In particular, bullying victimization shows the different effects on depression and anxiety between heterosexual and LGBQ adolescents. Anti-bullying intervention could take distinct strategies based on different sexual orientation to reduce risks of adolescents' mental health problems., (Copyright © 2022. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Many studies of stalking and intrusive behaviors are conducted with samples from individualist Western cultures, and limited information is available on such behavior in collectivist cultures. By using a sample of 1143 adults (440 males and 703 females) from Hong Kong ( n = 305), mainland China ( n = 464), and Ghana ( n = 374), this study compares perceptions and experiences of stalking and intrusive behaviors as well as the frequency and duration of the participants' worst experiences with such behaviors. The lifetime prevalence rate of stalking victimization for the overall sample was 34.6%, 22.3% for the Hong Kongers, 32.3% for the mainland Chinese, and 47.3% for the Ghanaians. Relative to the Hong Kongers and Ghanaians, the mainland Chinese were more likely to judge most intrusive activities as unacceptable. However, the mainland Chinese were generally less likely to have experienced the listed intrusive activities than their counterparts. The Ghanaians, in contrast, reported significantly more victimization experiences than the Hong Kongers and the mainland Chinese, especially with aggression and surveillance, unwanted attention, and persistent courtship and imposition types of behaviors. Furthermore, the mainland Chinese and Ghanaians generally reported significantly higher frequencies of stalking and intrusive behavior in their worst experiences than did the Hong Kongers. Conversely, the Hong Kongers and Ghanaians reported significantly more persistent types of stalking and intrusive behaviors than the mainland Chinese. The results of this study indicate the need for anti-stalking legislation in Hong Kong, mainland China, and Ghana, given the devastating nature and consequences of stalking and intrusive behaviors there.

• The first nationwide survey for left-behind children (LBC) in China. • LBC aged 3–6 years have poor interactions with primary caregivers than non-LBC. • School-age LBC experienced more victimization and emotional distress than non-LBC. The problems of left-behind children in China have attracted widespread attention from researchers. However, previous empirical studies on left-behind children have mostly been based on small samples and small-scale surveys and have not covered all age groups. Whether left-behind children fare worse than their non-left-behind counterparts remains unknown. We conducted the first nationwide survey to examine whether left-behind children aged 0–6 years old have poorer interactions with primary caregivers and whether left-behind school-age children experience higher levels of victimization and emotional distress than their non-left-behind counterparts. A total of 25,297 children or primary caregivers from 27 counties in 12 provinces of China participated in our survey. The results indicated that left-behind children aged 3–6 years old had poorer interactions with primary caregivers and that left-behind school-age children experienced higher levels of victimization and emotional distress than their non-left-behind counterparts. Multiple linear regression analyses further found that being left behind was a significant predictor of interaction status, victimization and emotional distress. The present study provides important perspectives for improving the well-being of left-behind children, particularly regarding the need to focus on the quality of care, victimization and emotional distress of left-behind children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the rise of child victimization in different societies, few researchers have examined its consequences in terms of psychological morbidity (such as depression and anxiety) and problematic online behavior (such as Internet addiction and cyberbullying) in a single study. Moreover, no study has investigated the role of psychological morbidity in mediating the impact of victimization on problematic online behavior (indexed by Internet addiction and cyberbullying) in a single model. Based on a survey of 2843 Chinese secondary students (49.3% male; Mage = 13.97) from six public secondary schools in Fujian, China, we found that experience of victimization was positively associated with depression and anxiety, as well as Internet addiction and cyberbullying. Depression mediated the links between victimization and both Internet addiction and cyberbullying, with the mediating effect on Internet addiction found to be stronger for girls. While anxiety did not mediate the association between victimization and cyberbullying, it mediated the relationship between victimization and Internet addiction in boys. These findings enrich our understanding of the negative outcomes of victimization, as well as directions for intervention.

Bullying and victimization (BAV) have been widely studied, but the potential mechanism of parental behavioral control (PBC) on bullying and victimization in Chinese adolescents has not been explored. This study aimed to examine a moderated mediation model for the association between PBC and BAV mediated by deviant peer affiliation (DPA) and moderated by gender. A total of 3779 adolescents ( N boy = 1679, M age = 14.98 years, SD = 0.95) from southwest China has completed the Peer Bullying, Peer Victimization, PBC, and DPA questionnaires. The results indicated that: (1) PBC significantly predicted adolescents' BAV (-12%); (2) DPA mediated the effect of PBC on BAV only for those adolescents who were both bullies and victims; (3) the mediating role of DPA was moderated by gender only in the relationship between PBC and victimization, with a relatively stronger effect in girls than in boys.

In China, researchers have translated and validated several scales to measure victimization behavior. The aim of the present study was to validate the Chinese version of the victimization subscale of the Revised Peer Experiences Questionnaire (RPEQ) among primary school students. Primary school students aged between 8 and 13 years old ( n = 1048) were asked to complete the Chinese version of the victimization subscale of the RPEQ and related scales. We examined internal consistency and the factor structure using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Depression, peer relationship, and sleep scales were used to measure construct validity. The CFA results suggested that the four-factor model had a good model fit. The results indicated that internal reliability was good (Cronbach's α = 0.83). Construct validity was mostly supported by scores on the Chinese version of the victimization subscale of the RPEQ that strongly and positively correlated with depression and negatively correlated with peer relationship and sleep quality. The present study indicated that the Chinese version of the victimization subscale of the RPEQ has adequate reliability and validity for measuring bullying problems among Chinese primary school students.

Background: Non-consensual sex (NCS) among young people, an important subject with public health and human rights implications, was less studied in China. This study is to investigate the NCS awareness and victimization of university students in Shanghai, China and whether they were associated with adolescent gender-role attitudes. Methods: Gender-role attitudes, awareness and victimization of different forms of NCS were examined among 1099 undergraduates (430 males and 669 females) in four universities in Shanghai using computer-assisted self-interview approach. Results: University students held relatively egalitarian attitude to gender roles. Gender difference existed that girls desired to be more equal in social status and resource sharing while more endorsed the submissiveness for women in sexual interaction than boys. They held low vigilance on the risk of various forms of NCS, with the mean score on perception of NCS among boys (5.67) lower than that among girls (6.37). Boys who adhered to traditional gender norms were less likely to aware the nature of NCS (β = − 0.6107, p = 0.0389). Compared with boys, higher proportion of girls had been the victims of verbal harassment, unwanted touch, fondling, and penetrative sexual intercourse. Multivariable analysis revealed that girls who held more traditional gender-role attitudes were more vulnerable to physical NCS (OR = 1.41, p = 0.0558). Conclusions: The weakening but still existing traditional gender norms had contributions in explaining the gender difference on the low vigilance of NCS and higher prevalence of victimization among university students in Shanghai, China. Interventions should be taken to challenge the traditional gender norms in individual and structural level, and promote the society to understand the nature of NCS better as well as enhance negotiation skills of adolescents and young people that prevent them from potentially risky situations or relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]