Bullying in schools: Rates, correlates and impact on mental health

Abstract

School-based bullying is a concern in many countries around the world due to the potential severe negative mental health impacts of bullying. This chapter provides an overview of the international research on bullying in schools with a particular focus on the negative mental health effects. In this chapter, three main groups of students are recognized: students who bully others, students who are bullied by others, and students who do both. We begin by defining bullying as it occurs in schools and note challenges in defining bullying, especially with the emergence of cyber-bullying (which itself has implications for schools). Next, we review the research literature for each of the student groups (students who bully others, students who are bullied and students who do both). For each group, the rates of these behaviors are described, along with the factors that predict whether a student engages in these behaviors and the effects of these behaviors with a focus on mental health. The methodological limitations of the research to date are also noted. Next, theoretical frameworks for bullying in school, and in particular, the links between bullying and mental health are described and it is noted that this is an area for further development in the literature. Then, prevention and early intervention programs which are designed to promote mental health and reduce bullying are reviewed. In the concluding section, the issues confronting the bullying in schools research literature are summarized and some areas where future research is likely to be particularly illuminating are highlighted.