Peer relations of bullies, bully-victims, and victims: The two social worlds of bullying in second-grade classrooms

Abstract

This study examined the social relations of bullies, victims, and bully-victims in second-grade classrooms. Bully-victims are identified as both bullies and victims. The sample consisted of 537 ethnically diverse second-grade students (247 boys, 290 girls) from 37 classrooms across 11 participating schools. Bullies, bully-victims, and victims tended to have somewhat distinct sociometric status and peer-assessed behavioral characteristics. Furthermore, bullies and bullyvictims had distinct affiliation patterns. Bullies tended to be members of peer groups that contained few victims and most were in groups in which more than 50% of the members were not involved in bullying. In contrast, bully-victims tended to be members of groups that were composed primarily of bullies (i.e., bullies and bullyvictims) and victims (i.e., victims and bullyvictims). Implications for understanding the social dynamics of bullying in elementary school are discussed. Copyright © 2010 by The History of Science Society.