Resilience and self-concept as mediating factors in the relationship between bullying victimization and sense of well-being among adolescents

The Resilience Factor: Examining its Potential to Alleviate Shame and Guilt in School Bullying

School violence, in particular bullying by peers, has become a problem on the public agenda. In the context of bullying, children exposed report high levels of shame and guilt which increase victimization since involves a humiliating experience associated with the lack of acceptance by the peer group and can negatively affect mental health. Both emotions have been previously studied in peer violence context. Now we aim to examine resilience as a potential factor to alleviate shame and guilt in school bullying. We conducted a study to test if resilience mediates the feeling of shame and guilt effect of being exposed to bullying; that is, if resilience entails protective behaviors that favour the dissipation of the risk of feeling shame and guilt when exposed to direct violence in school. First, we adapted to Mexican Spanish the research instrument Short Version of the State Shame and Guilt Scale (SSGS-8, Cavalera et al., 2017)-; then we conducted a quantitative, explanatory, cross-sectional approach study; both were carried out in two different non-urban high schools near the city of Monterrey, Mexico, randomizing groups. We found through a moderated mediation analysis that resilience is a key piece to transform shame and practically alleviate negative school violence consequences the indirect effect of resilience on the relationship between direct violence in school and shame was moderated by gender, better for boys than for girls. As its presence restrain shame in those who have been exposed to direct violence in school, it is important to strengthen resilience in adolescents. Promoting the development of shame resilience in adolescents is crucial to prevent them from questioning whether something is wrong with them when exposed to violence. We must continue making efforts to eradicate violence in schools through prevention programs and public policies.

Bullying and Self-Concept, Factors Affecting the Mental Health of School Adolescents

Bullying is an aggressive and repetitive behavior, where one person or several people physically, socially, or emotionally harm a vulnerable person and provokean imbalance of power in a school setting. Several factors such as age, sex, school performance, psychological factors, and ethnicity have been associated with bullying and more are being sought. Thus, the objectives of this study were as follows: (1) analyze the differences in bullying (victimization and aggression) and self-concept (academic, social, emotional, family, and physical) with respect to sex, school location, and educational level among Spanish adolescents; (2) explore the associations of bullying and self-concept with these sociodemographic dimensions. A cross-sectional study was designed with a total of 1155 participants (between 12 and 18 years old); there were 48.8% boys and 51.2% girls, where 75.9% studied compulsory secondary education (CSE) and 24.1% Baccalaureate, and 31.9% were students from rural schools and 68.1% were from urban schools. Medium and inverse correlations were shown between victimization and self-concept at the general level, for both sexes, both types of school, and both educational stages. For the aggression dimension, the correlations with self-concept were inverse at the general level (low), in girls (low), in rural students (medium), and in compulsory secondary education students (medium). For academic self-concept and family self-concept, the associations were medium and inverse with bullying in all variables. For emotional self-concept the correlation with bullying was direct and medium in all variables; in physical self-concept, the correlations with bullying were inverse in almost all variables except in boys. Self-concept may be a protective factor for bullying and interventions should aim at adolescents building a positive multidimensional self-concept that prevents and protects them from bullying either as aggressor or victim.

Adolescent Victimization during COVID-19 Lockdowns and Its Influence on Mental Health Problems in Seven Countries: The Mediation Effect of Resilience

The objective of this study was to test the differences between the mean scores of victimization, an indicator of depression, stress, and anxiety (DASS), across seven countries (Australia, Chile, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Poland, and the Russian Federation) during the COVID-19 lockdowns. In addition, this study sought to analyze the mediator role of resilience in these relationships in the different countries. To this end, a structural equation model (SEM) was tested and differences across countries were considered through a multigroup analysis. Data for adolescent students from seven countries (n = 7241) collected by the Global Research Alliance showed that levels of anxiety, depression, and stress among adolescents were different in the countries assessed; all of them presented values above the mean of the indicator, with Chile and Russia having the highest values. Regarding the prevalence of exposure to violence, the mean across all countries studied was 34%, with the highest prevalence in Russia and India. At the global level, an adequate adjustment was observed in the SEM mediation model considering all countries. However, a mediator effect of resilience was only observed in the relationship between victimization and the indicator of DASS in Chile, Indonesia, and Russia. The results are discussed, analyzing the relevance of resilience as a protective factor for mental health during COVID-19 lockdowns.

An Explanatory Model of Violent Behavior, Self-Concept, and Alcohol, Tobacco, and Cannabis Consumption in Secondary Education Students

Background

Current scientific evidence establishes that regular physical activity engagement provides numerous physical and mental benefits. Thus, the present research aims at examining the relationships between violent behavior, self-concept, and consumption of alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis. Specifically, two objectives were defined: (a) analyze and establish the relationships between violent behaviors, the different dimensions of self-concept, and the consumption of alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis as a function of physical activity engagement, (b) define and examine a proposed explanatory model, and (c) analyze the effect of self-concept on alcohol and tobacco consumption and physical activity engagement based on the explanatory model developed.

Methods

For this purpose, a nonexperimental (ex post facto), descriptive, and cross-sectional study was conducted. For data collection, a sociodemographic questionnaire was administered alongside the Self-Concept Form 5 and the School Victimization Scale.

Results

It was shown that individuals engaging in more than three hours of physical exercise per week scored more highly on the social, family, physical, and emotional aspects of self-concept, whilst those who do not meet this criterion scored more highly on the academic aspect and on physical and verbal victimization.

Conclusions

The present research concludes that engagement in more than 3 hours of physical activity per week led to benefits in a number of domains of self-concept whilst, at the same time, increasing levels of violence.

Bullying Victimization and Mental Health among Migrant Children in Urban China: A Moderated Mediation Model of School Belonging and Resilience

School bullying victimization among children is a significant public health issue that may negatively influence their mental health. However, few studies have been conducted on the bullying of migrant children in urban China. A positive psychological perspective has rarely been adopted in examining the mechanisms through which bullying victimization influences mental health, and the protective factors remain understudied. This research investigates the factors that may contribute to reducing the negative effects of bullying victimization on mental health, focusing on the protective roles of school belonging and resilience in the association between bullying victimization and mental health. Data were collected from 1087 school-aged migrant children in Shanghai and Nanjing, China. The PROCESS macro was used to conduct moderated mediation analyses to test the hypothesized models. The results of moderated mediation modeling revealed that bullying victimization (β = −0.386, p < 0.001) was negatively linked with mental health through decreased school belonging (β = 0.398, p < 0.001). Moreover, resilience buffered the indirect negative effects of bullying victimization on migrant children’s mental health via school belonging (β = −0.460, p < 0.01). Specifically, lower resilience was clearly associated with stronger indirect effects. Our findings suggest that school belonging and resilience must be incorporated into mental health prevention and intervention programs targeting migrant children with bullying victimization experiences.