Unraveling the direct and indirect effects of interpersonal mindfulness on school-age bullying perpetration and victimization: The mediating role of emotional intelligence

Abstract

Importance: As interpersonal mindfulness is a relatively recently developed concept, there is limited research on how it relates to school-age bullying perpetration/victimization (BP/BV). Objective: To assess the direct and indirect effects of interpersonal mindfulness on school-age BP and victimization while focusing on the mediating role of emotional intelligence. Methods: Our study utilized a cross-sectional design between May and September 2024, and recruited 451 adolescents in schools aged between 12 and 18 years. Applying the snowball technique, a questionnaire was sent via Google Forms to the principal of each school, who redirected the questionnaire to the students after obtaining consent from their parents. Results: Emotional intelligence mediated the associations between interpersonal mindfulness and BV and BP. Higher interpersonal mindfulness was significantly associated with higher emotional intelligence. Higher emotional intelligence was significantly associated with lower BV and BP (r = −0.52, P < 0.001; r = −0.50, P < 0.001, respectively). Interpersonal mindfulness was directly associated with BP. However, no significant direct association was found with BV. Interpretation: Our results underscore the importance of promoting emotional intelligence as a core intermediate factor linking interpersonal mindfulness to bullying. Given that emotional intelligence can be regarded as a skill that can be trained, our findings can offer a potential target for prevention and intervention.