Bullying as a social process: The role of group membership in students' perception of inter-group aggression at school

Bullying is a widespread social phenomenon involving both individual and group variables. The present study was aimed at analyzing how students' perception of a bullying episode might be influenced by group and context variables. A convenience sample of 455 adolescents read a short story, in wh...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of school psychology 2006-02, Vol.44 (1), p.51-65
Main Author: Gini, Gianluca
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescents
Aggression
Bullying
Context Effect
Dependent Variables
Foreign Countries
Gender Differences
Group Dynamics
Group Membership
Intergroup Relations
Italy
Predictor Variables
Punishment
School bullying
School Psychology
Social rules
Story Reading
Student Attitudes
Teacher Role
Victimization
Victims of Crime
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Summary:Bullying is a widespread social phenomenon involving both individual and group variables. The present study was aimed at analyzing how students' perception of a bullying episode might be influenced by group and context variables. A convenience sample of 455 adolescents read a short story, in which the in-group role (bully vs. victim) and level of teacher likeability (high vs. low) were manipulated. Participants were asked to evaluate their own group and an out-group, in terms of four dependent variables: liking, right to use the basketball court, attribution of blame, and attribution of punishment. Data showed a strong participant in-group bias and a generalized tendency to favor the in-group, especially when it was the victimized group. Conversely, the manipulation of teacher likeability did not affect students' perception of bullying, except for girls' attribution of punishment. Lastly, a clear gender effect emerged, in that boys accepted physical bullying more readily than girls did. Results are discussed in terms of group dynamics and preadolescent social identity concerns.
ISSN:0022-4405
1873-3506
DOI:10.1016/j.jsp.2005.12.002