School Belongingness and Family Support as Predictors of School Bullying Perpetration and Victimization in Adolescents: Are Relations the Same for Students with an Immigrant Background?

Abstract

The aim of the study was to examine school belongingness and family support as predictors of bullying behavior and victimization, and the moderating role of students’ gender and immigrant background in a large representative sample of Slovenian adolescents (N = 1925; 42.50% male). The results indicated that school belongingness significantly predicted both bullying and victimization. Family support did not contribute to the incremental validity beyond school belongingness in predicting victimization. Gender was found to moderate the relationship between school belongingness and both bullying outcomes. The relationship between school belongingness and victimization was stronger for students with an immigrant background.