Exploring the perspectives of Turkish adolescents on bullying: A qualitative study

Abstract

Bullying is a global problem affecting many adolescents. Evidence on bullying is growing, mostly generated in Minority World countries. Our objective is to develop our understanding of bullying in Majority World contexts, like Turkey. We highlight the voices of 20 Turkish adolescents from reflective interviews. Using Reflexive Organic Thematic Analysis, we identified three themes: definitions of bullying, conceptualizations of the character of bullies and victims, and proposed educational solutions, highlighting cultural issues of honor and respect, and roles of the family. As bullying research in Turkey is relatively new, we conclude that the ideology of adolescent-centered education, children′s rights, and the value of qualitative research are important in this cultural context.