The Examination of Key Definitional Components of Bullying: Implication for Estimates of Bullying Prevalence and Youth Wellbeing

Much is known about the impact of bullying victimization on the well-being of children and adolescents. However, inconsistencies in the measurement and conceptualization of bullying hinder understanding of the unique impact of bullying behavior, relative to other types of aggressive behavior, on the psychosocial development of victims. This dissertation sought to identify whether measuring the key definitional components of bullying (i.e., chronicity, intentionality, power imbalance) results in identifying distinct groups of victimized youth. This study also examined whether victimization groups, created by assessing levels of victimization frequency, intentionality, and power differentials, confer differential risk for youth well-being, including internalizing distress, aggressive behavior, suicidal thoughts and behaviors, and disruptions in social functioning. Additionally, the current study examined if the relationships between victimization groups and all criterion variables varied as a function of two cognitive attributions, self-blame and other-blame, as well as gender. Participants were 151 adolescents recruited from middle schools in the southeastern United States. Three groups of victimized youth were identified including non-victims, peer victimized participants, and bullied youth. Statistically significant differences were observed across victimization group comparisons. Self-blame moderated the relationship between non-victims and bullied victims on depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation. Self-blame moderated the relationship between peer victimized participants and bullied victims on depression and peer relationship quality. Other-blame moderated the relationship between non-victims and bullied victims on depression. Implications for assessment of bullying as well as the impact of cognitive attributions and gender in the context of bullying are discussed.