The longitudinal role of classroom defending norms in victims' psychological adjustment, causal attributions, and social comparisons.

Frequent exposure to victimization by peers is related to greater psychological problems. It is often assumed that peer victimization is associated with fewer psychological problems in classrooms where defending victims of bullying is common (i.e., a norm). The few studies testing this claim have been cross-sectional and have produced mixed findings. The current preregistered study examined whether the prospective link between victimization and psychological adjustment (i.e., depressive symptoms and self-esteem) was moderated by classroom defending norms. Moreover, we aimed to explain why defending norms may have either beneficial or adverse effects on victims' adjustment, by focusing on two cognitive processes: victims' causal attributions and social comparisons. Three waves of data were collected among 3,470 Finnish fourth- to ninth-grade students from 227 classrooms (Mage = 13.04, 50.1% girls). Multilevel regression analyses showed that nonvictimized youth benefited from high defending norms, whereas victims' psychological adjustment did not vary as a function of defending norms. Therefore, no mediation analyses were conducted. Nonpreregistered additional analyses indicated that stable victims had greater psychological problems and higher self-blame over time in classrooms with higher defending norms. Thus, even though the majority of students seem to profit from defending norms, this might not be true for those who most urgently need help. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Improving the implementation of KiVa antibullying program with tailored support: Study protocol for a cluster randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: There are no evidence-based models to support the implementation of school-based bullying prevention programs. Our primary objective is to examine the impact of tailored support on the implementation of the KiVa antibullying program. Our second objective is to evaluate whether the offered support influences student outcomes (e.g., victimization, bullying perpetration). We also assess the cost-effectiveness of the provided support and conduct a process evaluation. METHODS: In a cluster randomized control trial (cRCT), we compare program fidelity between schools that receive implementation support and those that do not. Twenty-four (N = 24) schools in Finland were randomized to either the IMPRES condition (receiving support, n = 12) or the control group (KiVa as usual, n = 12). In the IMPRES condition, pre-assessment and staff training were organized, and a selected team of staff members received four mentoring sessions during one academic year. Staff and students answer questionnaires at the end of school year 0, at post-intervention (year 1) and again at the 1-year follow-up (year 2). Our primary outcomes concern two main program components - universal and indicated actions - reflecting program fidelity. As secondary outcomes, we examine the level of bullying victimization and perpetration as well as students' perception of several program fidelity indicators. Finally, we assess several tertiary outcomes, collect resource data and conduct qualitative interviews to perform additional analyses. CONCLUSION: This trial will inform us of whether implementation support can boost program fidelity and have a distal impact on bullying prevalence. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN15558617 https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN15558617.

Is there really a healthy context paradox for victims of bullying? A longitudinal test of bidirectional within-and between-person associations between victimization and psychological problems.

The finding that victims' psychological problems tend to be exacerbated in lower-victimization classrooms has been referred to as the "healthy context paradox." The current study has put the healthy context paradox to a strict test by examining whether classroom-level victimization moderates bidirectional within- and between-person associations between victimization and psychological adjustment. Across one school year, 3,470 Finnish 4th to 9th graders (Mage = 13.16, 46.1% boys) reported their victimization, depressive symptoms, anxiety, and self-esteem. Three types of multilevel models (cross-lagged panel, latent change score, and random-intercept cross-lagged panel) were estimated for each indicator of psychological adjustment. Findings indicated that the healthy context paradox emerges because classroom-level victimization moderates the prospective effect of victimization on psychological problems, rather than the effect of psychological problems on victimization. In classrooms with lower victimization, victims not only experience worse psychological maladjustment over time compared to others (between-person changes), but also higher maladjustment than before (absolute within-person changes).

Early maladaptive schemas are associated with self-injury thoughts and behavior in adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Early maladaptive schemas (EMSs) and self-harm have been firmly linked in adults, but research on these associations in adolescents remains scarce. Additionally, the links between EMSs and functions of self-injury has not been previously studied in this age group. Thus, the aim of the present study was to investigate the associations of EMSs with self-harm thoughts and behavior, as well as with self-harm functions, among adolescents in specialized health care. METHODS: The participants were recruited from first-visit 12-22-year-old adolescent patients entering specialized mental health care or pediatric care. For 118 participants, complete data were available for the Young Schema Questionnaire Short Form 2-Extended (YSQ) when entering care and the Ottawa Self-Injury Inventory Functions scale (OSI-F) one year later. YSQ was used to measure the participants' EMSs and OSI-F their self-harm thoughts and behavior. The associations of EMSs and self-harm were investigated in three groups: no self-harm, self-harm thoughts only, and both self-harm thoughts and behavior. The associations of EMSs with self-injury behavior functions were assessed in four categories: Internal Emotional Regulation, External Emotional Regulation, Social Influence, and Sensation Seeking. Additionally, EMSs' associations with addictive features of self-injury behavior were assessed. The magnitudes of effect sizes of differences between the self-harm groups were evaluated with Cliff's Delta. The associations of EMSs with self-injury functions were analyzed with general linear modeling and with self-injury addictive features using logistic regression. RESULTS: The differences between the self-harm groups were significant for the majority of the EMSs. The stronger the EMSs were, the more severe the manifestations of self-harm. The effect sizes ranged from small to large depending on the EMS. Considering self-injury functions, Internal Emotional Regulation was associated with Self-Sacrifice EMS (p = 0.021), and External Emotional Regulation both with Abandonment (p = 0.040) and Unrelenting Standards (p = 0.012) EMSs. Being addicted to self-injury was associated with Abandonment (p = 0.043) and Dependence (p = 0.025) EMSs. CONCLUSIONS: The present study shows that significant associations between EMSs and both self-harm thoughts and behavior exist also in adolescents. Stronger EMSs are linked to more severe self-harm. Knowledge of these associations may help to improve the understanding and treatment of adolescents suffering from self-harm.

Effects of the KiVa anti-bullying program on defending behavior: Investigating individual-level mechanisms of change.

Given that defending victimized peers might help discourage bullying behavior and prevent its harmful consequences, various anti-bullying programs have attempted to increase defending behavior among participating children. However, the cognitions that underlie the effectiveness of interventions in increasing defending remain unknown. Data for this randomized controlled trial (RCT) of the KiVa anti-bullying program were collected in Finnish primary schools at baseline, after 5 months of implementation, and after 9 months of implementation and were used to examine the possible mediating role of seven psychological factors (empathy for the victim, feelings of responsibility to intervene, self-efficacy for defending, negative attitudes towards victims, and outcome expectations that defending would decrease or stop the bullying, be beneficial for one's status, and not increase one's risk of being victimized). Analyses conducted on a sample of 5731 children (baseline Mage = 11 years; 51% girls) revealed that the positive effects of KiVa on defending behavior after 9 months of implementation could partly be explained by the positive effects of the program on two factors (i.e., feelings of responsibility to intervene and expectations that the defending would make the bullying decrease or stop) after 5 months of implementation. This study provides information regarding the individual-level factors that anti-bullying interventions can target to successfully promote defending of victimized peers in primary schools.

Adolescent victimization predicts adult depression and aggression: The role of rumination.

Victimization during school years can have detrimental effects on individuals' adjustment, lasting even into adulthood. In the current study, we examine whether there is an indirect effect of victimization on adult depression and aggression, via sad and angry rumination about past victimization. Participants included 1,319 Finnish individuals (59.5% identified as women; 97.4 native Finns) who were followed from adolescence into adulthood (Mage = 25.78, SD = 1.35). Victimization was indirectly associated with adult depression and aggression, through sad and angry ruminations, respectively. The findings suggest that intervention efforts targeting rumination could help victimized individuals avoid lasting ill effects from their experiences. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Does defending affect adolescents' peer status, or vice versa? Testing the moderating effects of empathy, gender, and anti-bullying norms.

This study examined bidirectional associations between students' bully-directed defending behavior and their peer status (being liked or popular) and tested for the moderating role of empathy, gender, and classroom anti-bullying norms. Three waves of data were collected at 4-5-month time intervals among 3680 Finnish adolescents (Mage = 13.94, 53.0% girls). Cross-lagged panel analyses showed that defending positively predicted popularity and, to a larger degree, being liked over time. No moderating effect of empathy was found. Popularity was more strongly predictive of defending, and defending was more strongly predictive of status among girls than among boys. Moreover, the positive effects of both types of status on defending were-albeit to a limited extent-stronger in classrooms with higher anti-bullying norms.

Does defending victimized peers put youth at risk of being victimized?

Defending peers who have been bullied is often thought to put defenders at risk of becoming victimized themselves. The study investigated the concurrent and prospective associations between defending and (peer- and self-reported) victimization, and examined popularity and classroom norms as potential moderators. Participants included 4085 Finnish youth (43.9% boys; Mage  = 14.56, SD = .75; 97% born in Finland). Concurrently, defending was positively associated with self-reported victimization in classrooms with high bullying-popularity norms (b = .28, SE = .16). Defending was negatively associated with peer-reported victimization in classrooms with high defending-popularity norms (b = -.07, SE = .03). Defending was not significantly associated with future victimization, suggesting that it is generally not a risk factor for victimization.

Bullying Interrupted: Victimized Students in Remote Schooling During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

We investigated how the transition to remote schooling during the COVID-19 pandemic affected the rates of bullying victimization among students in primary and lower secondary education and analyzed how a specific group of students, namely previously victimized students experienced remote schooling. The 2-month school lockdown offered a unique setting to explore the association between increasing Internet use and cyberbullying and reflect on the overlap between traditional bullying and cyberbullying in a new context. The main sample (n = 34 771) consisted of 10-16-year-old Finnish students who responded to an online survey during the remote schooling period in spring 2020. The sample was supplemented with data from two previous surveys conducted in the same schools in 2019 (n = 43,216) and in 2017 (n = 24,727). The prevalence of bullying victimization decreased substantially in all grade levels during the school lockdown. Physical isolation and surge in students' Internet use did not seem to lead to an increase in cyberbullying. Before-lockdown victimized students evaluated the time in remote schooling more positively than expected: they reported relatively high school liking and more teacher support than other students. The pre-existing gap in school adjustment between victimized and non-victimized students did not increase, but surprisingly, decreased. Our results highlight the notion that the main arena to fight bullying is within in-person interactions in schools.

Bidirectional Associations of Prosocial Behavior with Peer Acceptance and Rejection in Adolescence.

As most studies on the link between peer status and prosocial behavior are cross-sectional, conducted with children, and operationalize status as the difference between acceptance and rejection, it remains unclear whether peer acceptance and rejection are consequences or prerequisites of prosocial behavior in adolescence. To fill this gap, this study examines the bidirectional associations of prosocial behavior with peer acceptance and peer rejection with data collected at 3 time points, 6 months apart, in a sample of 660 early Chilean adolescents (M = 12.94, SD = 0.62; 55.1% boys). Cross-lagged panel analyses showed that prosocial behavior positively predicted future peer acceptance, whereas peer acceptance had no significant effect on future prosocial behavior. The association between rejection and prosocial behavior was negative and bidirectional between Time 1 and Time 2. When a new academic year began, between Time 2 and Time 3, prosocial behavior negatively predicted rejection, whereas rejection in the previous grade level was positively associated with prosocial behavior at the beginning of the next grade. Multi-group panel analyses did not detect significant differences between boys and girls in the cross-lagged associations of prosociality with peer acceptance and peer rejection. The results suggest that acting prosocially can make adolescents better liked by their peers and highlight the possible importance of the transition to a new academic year for the prosocial behavior of previously rejected students. Implications for future research on peer relations are discussed.

Effectiveness of the KiVa Antibullying Program with and without the Online Game in Chile: a Three-Arm Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial.

Bullying is a major health problem. The KiVa antibullying program has been evaluated in Finland and other European countries, showing preventive effects on self-reported bullying victimization and perpetration. No evaluations of this program have been conducted in Latin America. A cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted at socially vulnerable schools in Santiago, Chile, to assess the effectiveness of the KiVa antibullying program in grades 5 and 6 (aged 10-12 years). Schools were randomly assigned (1:1:1) to three groups: the full KiVa group (including the online game), the partial KiVa group (did not include the online game), and the control group in which the regular school curriculum was implemented. The primary outcome was self-reported bullying victimization, assessed before the intervention (baseline) at the end of the academic year (November 2016) and post-intervention, 12 months after the baseline assessment (November 2017). This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02898324. A total of 39 schools (13 in each group) were included; no schools withdrew. The baseline survey included 5923 participants, and the endpoint survey included 3968 participants. Participants in the partial KiVa group had lower bullying victimization at the endpoint survey than those in the control group (OBVQ-R adjusted mean difference - 0.14; 95% CI, - 0.26 to - 0.01; effect size - 0.13, 95% CI - 0.24 to - 0.01, p = 0.035). There was no effect of the full KiVa group for bullying victimization compared with the control and partial KiVa groups. Compared to the control group, participants in the partial KiVa group had lower witnessing bullying at school (adjusted mean difference = - 0.25; 95% CI - 0.45 to - 0.05; effect size - 0.18, 95% CI, - 0.32 to - 0.04, p = 0.013). No effects were found for other secondary outcomes, including bullying perpetration in any comparisons between arms. The implementation of the KiVa antibullying program had mixed results in Chile. There was only a small effect on bullying victimization and witnessing when KiVa was delivered without the online game.

Intention to Stop Bullying following a Condemning, Empathy-Raising, or Combined Message from a Teacher - Do Students' Empathy and Callous-Unemotional Traits Matter?

Knowing which intervention strategies work best and for which student is essential for teachers when they intervene in cases of bullying. The effects of teachers' (1) condemning, (2) empathy-raising, and (3) combined (including elements of both) messages on students' intention to stop bullying were tested in a between-subject experimental design. A total of 277 seventh grade students (Mage = 12.93, SD = 0.49; 47% female) were asked to imagine they had bullied a peer and were invited to a discussion with a teacher. They saw a video vignette with one of the above messages. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that students' intention to stop bullying was highest among those who saw the combined message. Callous-unemotional traits were negatively, and affective and cognitive empathy positively associated with intention to stop bullying. Students' level of cognitive empathy moderated the relative effect of the condemning message on intention to stop bullying. At low levels of cognitive empathy, the condemning message was the least effective, whereas among those with high cognitive empathy, all messages were equally likely to lead to intention to stop bullying. Together, the findings suggest that for educators intervening in bullying among adolescents, an approach involving both condemning and empathy-raising messages is the 'best bet', most likely to lead to intention to stop bullying.

Facilitators and Barriers to the Sustainability of a School-Based Bullying Prevention Program.

The long-term sustainment of bullying prevention programs has rarely been investigated. This study addresses this gap by identifying facilitators and barriers to the systematic implementation of KiVa antibullying program in real-life conditions, after an evaluation trial. The study is based on focus group interviews with teachers from 15 Finnish primary schools implementing the KiVa program. The schools were selected based on the annual KiVa survey data, with the criteria of long-term involvement in delivering the program and reaching successful outcomes in terms of decreasing trends in bullying and victimization. By utilizing thematic analysis, we identified program-related, organizational, and contextual facilitators and barriers to sustainability. The results stress the importance of organizational factors in promoting program sustainability.

Heritability of Bullying and Victimization in Children and Adolescents: Moderation by the KiVa Antibullying Program.

OBJECTIVE: Bullying affects approximately a quarter of schoolchildren and is associated with numerous adverse outcomes. Although distinct risk factors for bullying and victimization have been identified, few studies have investigated the genetic and environmental underpinnings of bullying and victimization. The aims of this study were twofold: first, to examine the contributions of genetic and environmental factors to bullying and victimization, and second, to analyze whether the KiVa antibullying program moderated the magnitude of these contributions by comparing estimates derived from the KiVa versus control groups. METHOD: The sample comprised students from schools that participated in the evaluation of the KiVa antibullying program in Finland during 2007-2009. Bullying and victimization were measured using peer nominations by classmates. The sample for the twin analyses comprised of 447 twins (107 monozygotic and 340 dizygotic twins) aged 7-15. RESULTS: Genetic contributions accounted for 62% and 77% of the variance in bullying and in victimization at pre-intervention, respectively. There was a post-intervention difference in the overall role of genetic and environmental contributions between the intervention and the control group for bullying and victimization, with non-shared environmental effects playing a lesser role (and genes a larger role) in the intervention than in the control group context. CONCLUSIONS: This study replicates previous findings on the genetic underpinnings of both bullying and victimization, and indicates that a school-based antibullying program reduces the role of non-shared environmental factors in bullying and victimization. The results indicate that prevention and intervention efforts need to target both environmental and (heritable) individual level factors to maximize effectiveness.

Rumination Mediates the Longitudinal Associations Between Elementary-School Victimization and Adolescents' Internalizing Problems.

Identifying potential mechanisms responsible for victimized children's maladjustment over time is a crucial step in our efforts to alleviate negative consequences of victimization. In this study, we examined whether rumination would serve as a potential mediator of the prospective links between victimization in late childhood and symptoms of depression and anxiety in adolescence. The sample included 552 Finnish students (238 boys; Mage in third grade = 9.85 years, SD = .71) who participated in a longitudinal study. Participants filled out several measures where they were asked about the frequency of different forms of victimization (in third and fourth grade), how much they ruminated about their past victimization and whether it elicited sadness and anger (in seventh grade), and the degree to which they experienced depressive and anxiety symptoms (in third and seventh grade). We found that greater frequency of victimization in elementary school led to increases in symptoms of depression and anxiety through rumination. These findings suggest that at least some victimization-related negative consequences can be minimized if we are able to help young people to stop reliving their painful memories.

Effects of the KiVa Anti-Bullying Program on Affective and Cognitive Empathy in Children and Adolescents.

OBJECTIVE: As empathy is an important predictor of both bullying and defending behavior, many anti-bullying interventions aim to increase empathy among students. However, little is known on whether these interventions enhance both affective and cognitive empathy, and whether some students are more responsive than others to empathy-raising efforts. This study examined the effects of the Finnish anti-bullying program KiVa on changes in self-reported affective and cognitive empathy and tested whether these effects varied depending on students' gender, initial levels of empathy, peer-reported bullying, and peer-perceived popularity, as well as school type (primary versus secondary school) and classroom bullying norms. METHOD: Multilevel structural equation modeling analyses were conducted on pretest and posttest (1 year later) data from a sample of 15,403 children and adolescents (Mage = 13.4; 51.5% girls) in 399 control and 462 intervention classrooms from 140 schools participating in the evaluation of KiVa in 2007-2009. RESULTS: KiVa had a positive effect on affective empathy, but not cognitive empathy. The effects of the program on both types of empathy did not depend on students' gender, initial levels of empathy, bullying, or popularity, nor on school type or classroom bullying norms. CONCLUSION: Findings suggest that KiVa can raise students' affective empathy regardless of students' gender, status, initial empathy, or levels of bullying, and regardless of school type or classroom bullying norms.

Bullying Prevention in Adolescence: Solutions and New Challenges from the Past Decade.

Bullying among youth at school continues to be a global challenge. Being exposed to bullying may be especially hurtful in adolescence, a vulnerable period during which both peer group belonging and status become key concerns. In the current review, we first summarize the effectiveness of the solutions that were offered a decade ago in the form of anti-bullying programs. We proceed by highlighting some intriguing challenges concomitant to, or emerging from these solutions, focusing especially on their relevance during adolescence. These challenges are related to (1) the relatively weak, and highly variable effects of anti-bullying programs, (2) the complex associations among bullying, victimization, and social status, (3) the questions raised regarding the beneficial (or possibly iatrogenic) effects of peer defending, and (4) the healthy context paradox, that is, the phenomenon of remaining or emerging victims being worse off in contexts where the average levels of victimization decrease. We end by providing some suggestions for the next decade of research in the area of bullying prevention among adolescents.

Introduction: A Decade Review of Adolescence Research.

This paper provides an introduction to the Special Issue, A Decade Review of Adolescence Research. In this paper, we describe the goals of the special issue and the process of planning and reviewing reviews. We describe other special issues of JRA in the past decade, and preview upcoming changes and special issues in the journal.

Why Does Classroom-Level Victimization Moderate the Association Between Victimization and Depressive Symptoms? The "Healthy Context Paradox" and Two Explanations.

The present longitudinal study examined how and why classroom-level victimization moderates the prospective association between peer victimization and depressive symptoms with 2,643 third- and fourth-graders (Mage  = 10.01 years) in China. Multilevel modeling revealed that peer victimization was more strongly associated with increasing depressive symptoms in classrooms with lower classroom-level victimization. Moreover, two mechanisms were identified to explain the moderating effect of classroom-level victimization. First, low classroom-level victimization reduced victimized children's received friendship nominations from peers, thereby leading to increases in depressive affect. Second, low classroom-level victimization affected victimized children's depressive symptoms through damage to their social self-concept. These findings provide support for the "healthy context paradox" in the Chinese culture, and highlight the mechanisms of this phenomenon.

Examining the Potential Mental Health Costs of Defending Victims of Bullying: a Longitudinal Analysis.

It has been speculated that defending victims of bullying is stressful for youth, and may contribute to poor mental health among those who regularly intervene to defend their victimized peers. However, the extant literature is thus far primarily limited to correlational, single-informant studies. The current study examined the concurrent and prospective mental health costs (e.g., social anxiety, depressive symptoms) of peer-reported defending among 4085 youth (43.9% boys; Mage = 14.56, SD = 0.75). Moreover, we examined two potential moderators (victimization and popularity) of the association between defending and internalizing problems. Analyses revealed that there was no evidence of a direct, positive relationship between defending and internalizing symptoms. However, a positive, concurrent association was found between defending and social anxiety, but only among youth who reported that they were also victims - the association was negative among non-victimized youth. In addition, both peer-reported victimization and social status were found to moderate the longitudinal relationship between defending and later symptoms of depression. Specifically, among low-status highly victimized youth, defending was associated with an increased risk of experiencing symptoms of depression, whereas high-status youth who were rarely seen as victims reported decreased symptoms of depression at T2 if they also had a reputation for defending others. The findings suggest that defending others is likely not a risk factor for youth who are not already vulnerable and/or have the protection of high status, and may actually have a protective effect for these youth.