Bullying among Australian school children: reported behavior and attitudes toward victims.
The extent of bullying among Australian school children and attitudes toward victims of bullying were investigated in a survey of Australian school children between the ages of 6 and 16 years (n = 685) and their teachers (n = 32). Approximately 1 child in 10 was subjected to peer group bullying. Boys reported being bullied more often than girls, who tended to be more supportive of victims. With increasing age, there was a slight but significant decline in reported bullying; notably, however, attitudes toward victims became less supportive. Attitudes toward victims were examined in detail by using a reliable and validated 20-item Likert scale. Factor analyses of the children's responses yielded three interpretable factors: a tendency to despise the victims of bullies; general admiration for school bullies; and avowed support for intervention to assist the victim. An understanding of such attitudes is desirable for designing effective intervention programs.
Rigby
K
K
School of Social Studies, University of South Australia, Adelaide.
Slee
P T
PT
D000293:Adolescent; D000374:Aggression / Q000523:psychology*; D001290:Attitude; D002648:Child; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D004291:Dominance-Subordination; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012931:Social Environment; D012963:Sociometric Techniques; D013021:South Australia