Longitudinal investigation of the relationship between bullying and psychosocial adjustment

摘要

The aim of the present study was to test the direction of effects in the relationship between bullying, victimization, adjustment difficulties, and school achievement. The participants were 238 fifth and sixth-grade children (mean age 11.4 years) and their teachers in a six-month two-timepoint longitudinal study. The results of this study showed that bullying and victimization at Time 1 were related to an increase of adjustment problems and a decrease of school achievement at Time 2. Conversely, adjustment problems at Time 1 were related to an increase in bullying and victimization at Time 2. School achievement at Time 1, however, was not related to bullying and victimization at Time 2. The results of this study provide evidence towards a reciprocal relationship between bullying, victimization, and adjustment difficulties.