Bullying among school children in postwar Bosnia and Herzegovina: Cross-sectional study

Abstract

Aim: To compare the prevalence and characteristics of bullying between two towns in Bosnia and Herzegovina - Stolac, which was exposed to firearm conflict during the 1992-1995 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Posušje, which was outside of the active combat zone. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we included 484 primary school pupils attending 4th-8th grade of elementary school, 217 (44.8%) of them from Stolac and 267 (55.2%) from Posušje. The pupils were interviewed using a standardized questionnaire on the experience of bullying. Results: Every sixth pupil (16.4%) experienced at least one form of bullying almost every day, while 34 (7.0%) pupils constantly bullied other children. Sixth-eighth graders were more often bullies than 4th-5th graders (P = 0.044). Girls were most often victims of bullying, while boys were most often bullies (P = 0.036). The expected difference in bullying between the two towns was not observed, except for older pupils in Posušje, who were more violent than their peers in Stolac (P = 0.044). Among the analyzed variables of sex, age, town, and school achievement, only male sex was significant predictor of bullying (P = 0.010), increasing the relative risk by 3.005 times. Conclusion: Bullying among primary school pupils did not differ between areas that experienced war activities in 1992-1995. Our results could be useful in the introduction of specific prevention measures against bullying in postwar situation.