Moral courage and defending behaviors in the face of bullying: A longitudinal study with primary and secondary school students

Abstract

While defending victims is recognized as a key behavior in anti-bullying interventions, the specific role of moral courage in its activation needs to be explored using a longitudinal approach. This study analyzes the association of moral courage with different forms of defense against peer harassment, as well as the possible moderating effect of gender and educational stage. The sample was composed of 540 schoolchildren in grades 5 and 6 (primary education) and grades 7 through 9 (lower secondary education) (53% girls; Mage = 12.6, SD = 1.5), who reported having witnessed situations of bullying in recent months. Using a structural equation model with multigroup analysis, the relationship between moral courage and four forms of defensive behavior were examined: comforting the victim, reporting to authority, employing solution-focused strategies, and aggressively defending the victim. Moral courage showed positive and significant associations with prosocial behaviors (comforting, reporting, and problem-solving), but not with aggressive defense in the overall model. However, the multigroup analysis revealed differential effects: moral courage was associated with aggressive defense by boys and students in primary education, and its influence on comforting the victim was greater in primary education than at the secondary level. These findings underscore the relevance of moral courage as an engine of prosocial action, shaped by developmental and contextual variables.