Perpetration of bullying and depression in children and adolescents: a scoping review

Abstract

This study represents a scoping review conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) protocol. The aim of this research was to explore the relationship between bullying perpetration and depression among children and adolescents in the school context. Searches were conducted in the PsycInfo, Medline, PsycArticles, and Scopus databases, with a temporal scope of the last five years. A total of 315 publications were initially identified, and after screening, 26 were included. Among the findings, a bidirectional and correlational predictive relationship between perpetration and depression was identified. Furthermore, other intra- and interindividual variables appear to be related to this context. It is suggested that antibullying interventions for perpetrators should include strategies for the identification and mitigation of psychological distress, specifically depression.