title: School social cohesion, student-school connectedness, and bullying in Colombian adolescents.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Student-school connectedness is inversely associated with multiple health risk behaviors, yet research is limited on the relative contributions of a student's connectedness with school and an overall context of school social cohesion to peer victimization/bullying.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  We examined associations of perceived school cohesion and student-school connectedness with physical victimization, verbal victimization, and social exclusion in the past six months in adolescents in grades 6-11 (N = 774) attending 11 public and private urban schools in Colombia.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional data were collected via a self-administered questionnaire and analyzed using mixed-effects linear regression models.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Higher perceived school cohesion was inversely related with exposure to three bullying types examined (p < 0.05); student-school connectedness was negatively related to verbal victimization among girls only (p < 0.01). In full models, school cohesion maintained inverse associations with three bullying types after controlling for student-school connectedness (p ≤ 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Enhancing school cohesion may hold benefits for bullying prevention beyond a student's individual school connectedness.
authors: Michael & Susan Dell Center for Healthy Living, University of Texas School of Public Health-Austin Regional Campus, Austin, TX United States. Andrew.E.Springer@uth.tmc.edu.
authors: Andrew E
authors: AE
authors: Springer
authors: Department of Social Sciences, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana-Cali, Cali, Colombia.
authors: Maria Clara
authors: MC
authors: Cuevas Jaramillo
authors: Grupo de Investigación Salud y Calidad de Vida, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana-Cali, Cali, Colombia.
authors: Yamileth
authors: Y
authors: Ortiz Gómez
authors: Michael & Susan Dell Center for Healthy Living, University of Texas School of Public Health-Austin Regional Campus, Austin, TX United States.
authors: Katie
authors: K
authors: Case
authors: Michael & Susan Dell Center for Healthy Living, University of Texas School of Public Health-Austin Regional Campus, Austin, TX United States.
authors: Anna
authors: A
authors: Wilkinson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D058445:Bullying / Q000502:physiology*; D003105:Colombia; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D012574:Schools; D057566:Self Report; D012931:Social Environment; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology*
keywords: Latin America; adolescents and youth; assets/protective factors; resilience; school setting; social networks; social support; violence prevention