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Childhood Risk and Protective Factors as Predictors of Adolescent Bullying Roles

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Abstract

This study shows longitudinal predictors of involvement in different bullying roles, including mental health, individual, family, peer and school predictors. The analyses were based on a longitudinal prospective study with 916 students followed up from ages 7 to 17 with 7 waves of data. Participants were selected through random sampling and were enrolled in 56 schools. Predictors were measured from ages 7 to 11 and involvement in bullying roles and trajectories from ages 11 to 17. Predictors of bullying perpetration were gender, substance use, truancy, ADHD, moral neutralization, self-control, parental monitoring, corporal punishment, liking school, and bonding with the teacher and classmates. Predictors of victimization were gender, substance use, truancy, internalizing problems, self-control, ADHD, bonding to classmates, and social activities. Predictors of bully/victims were gender, divorced parents, substance use, internalizing problems, ADHD, sensation seeking, moral neutralization, self-control, corporal punishment, parental monitoring, liking school, bonding to classmates, and social activities. Truancy was a risk factor for perpetration mostly in girls; low self-control was a risk factor for perpetration especially in boys. Truant children with high classmates bonding were at high risk of perpetration. Low parental monitoring was a risk factor for perpetration in children who did not like school. Low social activities with peers were a risk factor for victimization in boys and substance use was a risk factor for victimization especially in children with low self-control. High classmates bonding was protective against victimization in non-truant children and against being a bully/victim in children with high sensation seeking. Early interventions focused on risk and protective factors could possibly protect children from bullying.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to the youths, parents, and teachers who provided data for the z-proso study.

Funding

The authors received financial support from the Swiss National Science Foundation, the Jacobs Foundation, and the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health for the z-proso study during the period 2009–2015.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Universidad de Córdoba, Avda. San Alberto Magno S/N, 14004, Cordoba, Spain

    Izabela Zych & Vicente J. Llorent

  2. Institute of Criminology, Cambridge University, Sidgwick Avenue, Cambridge, CB3 9DA, UK

    David P. Farrington & Manuel P. Eisner

  3. Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, University of Zurich, Andreasstrasse 15, CH-8050, Zürich, Switzerland

    Denis Ribeaud & Manuel P. Eisner

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  1. Izabela Zych
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  2. David P. Farrington
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  3. Vicente J. Llorent
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  5. Manuel P. Eisner
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Correspondence to Izabela Zych.

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Zych, I., Farrington, D.P., Llorent, V.J. et al. Childhood Risk and Protective Factors as Predictors of Adolescent Bullying Roles. Int Journal of Bullying Prevention 3, 138–146 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42380-020-00068-1

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