Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Do Research Definitions of Bullying Capture the Experiences and Understandings of Young People? A Qualitative Investigation into the Characteristics of Bullying Behaviour

  • Original Article
  • Published:
International Journal of Bullying Prevention Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

A set of criteria defining bullying behaviour (an intention to harm, repetition, and power imbalance) has been applied to enable generalisation of research findings. However, few studies have examined whether this fits with the experiences and understandings of young people. This qualitative study investigated 20 youth’s (14–17 years old) conceptualisations of bullying. Results indicate that young people have distinct understandings of bullying; participants cited the victim’s reaction, the publicity of the interaction, and the role of friendship as critical considerations instrumental to their definition of bullying. These results yield important implications for the development and efficacy of intervention programmes.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Arora, C. M. (1996). Defining bullying: towards a clearer general understanding and more effective intervention strategies. School Psychology International, 17(4), 317–329.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boulton, M. J., Trueman, M., & Flemington, I. (2002). Associations between secondary school pupils’ definitions of bullying, attitudes towards bullying, and tendencies to engage in bullying: age and sex differences. Educational Studies, 28(4), 353–370. https://doi.org/10.1080/0305569022000042390.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2013). Successful qualitative research: a practical guide for beginners. LA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Canty, J., Stubbe, M., Steers, D., & Collings, S. (2014). The trouble with bullying - deconstructing the conventional definition of bullying for a child-centred investigation into children’s use of social media. Children & Society, 30, 48–58. https://doi.org/10.1111/chso.12103.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carroll-Lind, J. (2009). School safety: an inquiry into the safety of students at school. New Zealand: Wellington.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clarke, V., Braun, V., & Hayfield, N. (2015). Thematic analysis. In J. A. Smith (Ed.), Qualitative psychology: a practical guide to research methods (pp. 222–248). LA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Corcoran, L., Guckin, C., & Prentice, G. (2015). Cyberbullying or cyber aggression?: A review of existing definitions of cyber-based peer-to-peer aggression. Societies, 5(2), 245–255.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Espelage, D. L., & Swearer, S. M. (2003). Research on school bullying and victimization: what have we learned and where do we go from here? School Psychology Review, 32(3), 365–383.

    Google Scholar 

  • Frisén, A., Holmqvist, K., & Oscarsson, D. (2008). 13-year-olds’ perception of bullying: definitions, reasons for victimisation and experience of adults’ response. Educational Studies, 34(2), 105–117.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gladden, R. M., Vivolo-Kantor, A. M., Hamburger, M. E., & Lumpkin, C. D. (2014). Bullying surveillance among youths: uniform definitions for public health and recommended data elements, version 1.0. Atlanta: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and U.S. Department of Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grigg, D. W. (2010). Cyber-aggression: definition and concept of cyberbullying. Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools, 20(2), 143–156.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hawker, D. S. J., & Boulton, M. J. (2000). Twenty years’ research on peer victimization and psychosocial maladjustment: a meta-analytic review of cross-sectional studies. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 41(1), 441–455.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hellström, L., Persson, L., & Hagquist, C. (2015). Understanding and defining bullying–adolescents’ own views. Archives of Public Health, 73(1), 1–9.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Huang, F. L., & Cornell, D. G. (2015). The impact of definition and question order on the prevalence of bullying victimization using student self-reports. Psychological Assessment, 27(4), 1484–1493.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Land, D. (2003). Teasing apart secondary students’ conceptualizations of peer teasing, bullying and sexual harassment. School Psychology International, 24(2), 147–165.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Langos, C. (2012). Cyberbullying: the challenge to define. Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking, 15(6), 285–289.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Martin, R. A., Puhlik-Doris, P., Larsen, G., Gray, J., & Weir, K. (2003). Individual differences in uses of humor and their relation to psychological well-being: development of the Humor Styles Questionnaire. Journal of Research in Personality, 37(1), 48–75.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maunder, R. E., Harrop, A., & Tattersall, A. J. (2010). Pupil and staff perceptions of bullying in secondary schools: comparing behavioural definitions and their perceived seriousness. Educational Research, 52(3), 263–282.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Menesini, E., Nocentini, A., Palladino, B. E., Frisén, A., Berne, S., Ortega-Ruiz, R., ... & Naruskov, K. (2012). Cyberbullying definition among adolescents: a comparison across six European countries. Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking, 15(9), 455–463.

  • Merrell, K. W., Gueldner, B. a., Ross, S. W., & Isava, D. M. (2008). How effective are school bullying intervention programs? A meta-analysis of intervention research. School Psychology Quarterly, 23(1), 26–42. https://doi.org/10.1037/1045-3830.23.1.26.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mishna, F., Saini, M., & Solomon, S. (2009). Ongoing and online: children and youth’s perceptions of cyber bullying. Children and Youth Services Review, 31(12), 1222–1228.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Modecki, K. L., Minchin, J., Harbaugh, A. G., Guerra, N. G., & Runions, K. C. (2014). Bullying prevalence across contexts: a meta-analysis measuring cyber and traditional bullying. Journal of Adolescent Health, 55(5), 602–611.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Monks, C. P., Smith, P. K., Naylor, P., Barter, C., Ireland, J. L., & Coyne, I. (2009). Bullying in different contexts: commonalities, differences and the role of theory. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 14(2), 146–156. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2009.01.004.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Naylor, P., Cowie, H., Cossin, F., de Bettencourt, R., & Lemme, F. (2006). Teachers’ and pupils’ definitions of bullying. The British Journal of Educational Psychology, 76, 553–576. https://doi.org/10.1348/000709905X52229.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Olweus, D. (1979). Stability of aggressive reaction patterns in males: a review. Psychological Bulletin, 86(4), 852–875. https://doi.org/10.1037//0033-2909.86.4.852.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Olweus, D. (1993). Bullying at school: what we know and what we can do. Malden: Blackwell Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Olweus, D. (1995). Bullying or peer abuse at school: facts and intervention. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 4(6), 196–200.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raskauskas, J. L., Gregory, J., Harvey, S. T., Rifshana, F., & Evans, I. M. (2010). Bullying among primary school children in New Zealand: relationships with prosocial behaviour and classroom climate. Educational Research, 52(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131881003588097.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rivers, I., & Smith, P. K. (1994). Types of bullying behaviour and their correlates. Aggressive Behavior, 20(5), 359–368. https://doi.org/10.1002/1098-2337(1994)20:5<359::AID-AB2480200503>3.0.CO;2-J.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salmivalli, C. (1999). Participant role approach to school bullying: implications for interventions. Journal of Adolescence, 22, 453–459.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Scottish Government (2017). Respect for all: The national approach to Anti-Bullying for Scotland’s children and young people. https://www.gov.scot/publications/respect-national-approach-anti-bullying-scotlands-children-young-people/. Accessed 28 May 2019.

  • Sebastian, C., Burnett, S., & Blakemore, S. J. (2008). Development of the self-concept during adolescence. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 12(11), 441–446.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Slonje, R., & Smith, P. K. (2008). Cyberbullying: another main type of bullying? Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 49, 147–154.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Slonje, R., Smith, P. K., & Frisén, A. (2013). The nature of cyberbullying, and strategies for prevention. Computers in Human Behavior, 29(1), 26–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2012.05.024.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, P. K., Cowie, H., Olafsson, R. F., Liefooghe, A. P. D., Araki, H., Barrio, C., … Almeida, A. (2002). Definitions of bullying: a comparison of terms used, and age and gender differences, in a fourteen-country international comparison. Child Development, 73(4), 1119–1133.

  • Somerville, L. H. (2013). The teenage brain: sensitivity to social evaluation. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 22(2), 121–127.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Stassen Berger, K. (2007). Update on bullying at school: science forgotten? Developmental Review, 27(1), 90–126. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dr.2006.08.002.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stevens, V., De Bourdeaudhuij, I., & Van Oost, P. (2001). Anti-bullying interventions at school: aspects of programme adaptation and critical. Health Promotion International, 16(155–167), 155–167.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sticca, F., & Perren, S. (2013). Is cyberbullying worse than traditional bullying? Examining the differential roles of medium, publicity, and anonymity for the perceived severity of bullying. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 42, 739–750. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-012-9867-3.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tokunaga, R. S. (2010). Following you home from school: a critical review and synthesis of research on cyberbullying victimization. Computers in Human Behavior, 26(3), 277–287.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ttofi, M. M., & Farrington, D. P. (2010). Effectiveness of school-based programs to reduce bullying: a systematic and meta-analytic review. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 7(1), 27–56. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11292-010-9109-1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vaillancourt, T., McDougall, P., Hymel, S., Krygsman, A., Miller, J., Stiver, K., & Davis, C. (2008). Bullying: are researchers and children/youth talking about the same thing? International Journal of Behavioral Development, 32(6), 486–495. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025408095553.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van der Wal, M. F., de Wit, C. A. M., & Hirasing, R. A. (2003). Psychosocial health among young victims and offenders of direct and indirect bullying. Pediatrics, 111(6), 1312–1317. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.111.6.1312.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Vandebosch, H., & Van Cleemput, K. (2008). Defining cyberbullying: a qualitative research into the perceptions of youngsters. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 11(4), 499–503.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vivolo-Kantor, A. M., Martell, B. N., Holland, K. M., & Westby, R. (2014). A systematic review and content analysis of bullying and cyber-bullying measurement strategies. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 19(4), 423–434.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Wolke, D., Copeland, W. E., Angold, A., & Costello, E. J. (2013). Impact of bullying in childhood on adult health, wealth, crime, and social outcomes. Psychological Science, 24(10), 1958–1970. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797613481608.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Yip, J. A., & Martin, R. A. (2006). Sense of humour, emotional intelligence, and social competence. Journal of Research in Personality, 40, 1202–1208.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand

    Jenny Jeffrey

  2. School of Applied Psychology, Griffith University, Mount Gravatt, Brisbane, QLD, 4111, Australia

    Jaimee Stuart

Authors
  1. Jenny Jeffrey
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jaimee Stuart
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jaimee Stuart.

Ethics declarations

The study was approved by Victoria University of Wellington’s Psychological Human Ethics Committee.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Jeffrey, J., Stuart, J. Do Research Definitions of Bullying Capture the Experiences and Understandings of Young People? A Qualitative Investigation into the Characteristics of Bullying Behaviour. Int Journal of Bullying Prevention 2, 180–189 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42380-019-00026-6

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42380-019-00026-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation