ABSTRACT
Immigrant and minority youth are at risk of ethnic victimization. Despite an increasing number of studies that aim to understand the consequences of such negativity, relatively little attention has been paid to understanding who the perpetrators of ethnic victimization are. To address this gap in knowledge, the present study examined whether youth who victimize their peers due to their ethnic background are also those who engage in non-ethnicity-based victimization. The study also investigated the underlying factors, i.e., impulsivity, empathy, moral disengagement, and attitudes toward immigrants, that are common or specific to groups of youth. The sample included 949 adolescents residing in Sweden (Mage = 13.11, SD = 0.41; range: 12-15; 46% girls). Cluster analysis revealed four distinct groups of adolescents, based on their reports of ethnic and non-ethnicity-based victimization: (1) low on both forms of victimization, (2) high on ethnic victimization only, (3) high on non-ethnicity-based victimization only, and (4) high on both forms of victimization. The results showed that being morally disengaged is a common denominator of ethnic and non-ethnicity-based victimizers. Difficulties in regulating impulses and lack of perspective-taking skills trigger youth's engagement in non-ethnicity-based victimization. Lack of empathic concerns and low levels of positive attitudes toward immigrants are the bases of ethnic victimization. Together, these findings suggest that the precursors of ethnic and non-ethnicity-based victimization have similarities as well as differences, which require further attention in developing programs aimed at preventing different forms of peer victimization.
Subject(s)
Bullying , Crime Victims , Adolescent , Ethnicity , Female , Humans , Peer Group , SwedenABSTRACT
Despite research on anti-bullying interventions, there is no systemic approach or resources for teachers to address ethnic and race-related bullying in schools. In this article, we selectively reviewed theories and programs to help teachers identify and address ethnic bullying in their classrooms. We provide recommendations for workshops (e.g., cultural awareness training, empathy-building activities, bystander intervention, and stigma-based intervention). These anti-ethnic bullying workshops should promote understanding of different cultures, strengthen empathy for those who are different, encourage bystanders to take action, and reduce stigma and stereotypes. Through the sharing of diverse perspectives, expertise, and experiences, we hope this article can cultivate interactive dialogues and collaborations between educators and researchers to effectively address ethnic and race-related bullying.
ABSTRACT
Research has underlined that moral disengagement processes, by which people switch off their moral values and act aggressively without experiencing guilt, are highly connected with contextual factors. However, research on situational variations in moral disengagement is limited, especially considering the associations with characteristics such as the ethnic origin of potential victims. The general aim of the present study was to develop a brief, specific measure of ethnic moral disengagement able to catch individual justification used in the case of ethnic bullying and cyberbullying, and test its validity and reliability. An eight items scale was developed and administered in study 1, in a sample of 961students attending several Italian high schools (53.5% female; Mage 15 years). Considering the results of the CFA, we modified one of the items and the scale was administered again, in a second sample of 1,229 students (49.9% female; Mage 15.62 years) in study 2. A one-factor model of ethnic moral disengagement fit the data well and internal consistency showed to be good. As an additional step, we found that the model was invariant across Italian adolescents and youths with a different ethnic or culture of origin (having at least one parent born abroad) strengthened our confidence regarding the factorial integrity of the scale. Last, the scale showed to be positively associated with ethnic bullying and cyberbullying. Generally, findings suggested that the Ethnic Moral Disengagement scale can be a useful tool for those interested in measuring moral disengagement and evaluating how it impacts bullying and cyberbullying of minority groups.
ABSTRACT
The identification of factors associated with ethnic bullying within multiethnic schools is a timely social issue. Up to now, ethnic prejudice has been found to facilitate aggression triggered by schoolmates' cultural background. Yet, there is still a dearth of research about the mechanisms underlying this relation among children. In order to fill this gap, by adopting a social-cognitive developmental perspective on prejudice and morality, this paper investigated the mediating role of moral disengagement in the association between ethnic prejudice and ethnic bullying, as well as the moderating role of closeness with the teacher. A mediation model and a moderated mediation model were applied to data collected from 552 primary school children aged 8-10years. Ethnic prejudice, ethnic bullying, and moral disengagement were assessed through self-reported questionnaires, whereas a questionnaire was administered to teachers to assess the level of closeness with their pupils. Results indicated that ethnic prejudice was directly and positively related to ethnic bullying and that moral disengagement partially mediated this association. This indirect link was particularly strong for children with low levels of closeness with their teachers, whereas it resulted not significant for pupils with high levels of closeness, suggesting that closeness with the teacher might restrain morally disengaged children from enacting ethnic bullying. Implications for research and practice aimed at reducing prejudice and moral disengagement, as well as at promoting positive relationships among children and between pupils and teachers, are discussed.
ABSTRACT
This study examines the role of acculturation orientation toward home and host countries in ethnic bullying victimization, by considering citizenship status and taking into account social withdrawal. Within a larger school project with middle and high school students, we analyzed data on 252 adolescents from immigrant backgrounds: 71 born abroad without Italian citizenship (Males = 71.4%; mean age = 13.98, SD = 1.7); 96 born in Italy to immigrant parents and without Italian citizenship (Males = 58.3%; mean age = 13.26, SD = 1.6); and 85 Italian citizens born in Italy with an immigrant parent (Males = 54.7%; mean age = 13.12, SD = 1.5). At the univariate level we found that the group of adolescents born abroad with foreign parents showed significantly higher levels of ethnic victimization compared to the group of adolescents born in Italy with an Italian parent. The latter also reported a significantly higher mean in Acculturation Orientation toward their Host Country (i.e., Italy) compared to the other two groups. Looking at the processes working within each group, we found differences in the patterns of association between acculturation orientation and ethnic bullying victimization. Specifically, we found a significant and positive association between acculturation orientation toward the home country and ethnic victimization in the two groups of adolescents born in Italy, while acculturation orientation toward the host country seems to be a protective factor only for adolescents with Italian citizenship. Acculturation orientation does not play any role in ethnic victimization for the first generation of immigrants, while for this group we found a stronger positive effect of Social Withdrawal. Citizenship status appears to be a good indicator of belonging to an ethnic minority group with a background of immigration: it seems to catch specific processes in ethnic bullying victimization.