Estefanía Estévez

Psychological adjustment in bullies and victims of school violence

The present study examined psychosocial adjustment in the following four groups of students: victims, bullies, bully/victims and a control group of adolescents not involved in bullying or victimization problems. Psychosocial adjustment was measured considering as indicators: level of self-esteem, depressive symptomatology, perceived stress, feeling of loneliness, and a general measure of satisfaction with life. Participants (N=1319) were aged from 11 to 16 (47% male) and drawn from seven state secondary schools in Valencia (Spain). ANOVAs revealed significant differences among groups, reporting adolescents not involved a general better psychosocial adjustment; they had higher levels of self-esteem and satisfaction with life, and lower levels of depressive symptomatology, perceived stress and feeling of loneliness. The scores for this group were equivalent to those of bullies with respect to self-esteem, depressive symptomatology and loneliness. However, bullies perceived more stress and expressed less satisfaction with life, as did the other two groups, namely victims and bully/victims. Victims reported the strongest feelings of loneliness. Bully/victims seemed to share characteristics with both bullies and victims, though showing more similarities with the latter and a general poor psychosocial profile.RésuméCette étude examine l’ajustement psychosocial de quatre groupes d’étudiants: victimes, bullies, bully/victimes et un groupe control d’adolescents non impliqués dans de problèmes de bullying ou victimisation. Les indicateurs qu’on a utilisés pour mesurer l’ajustement psychosocial sont: le niveau d’estime de soi, la symptomatologie dépressive, le stress perçu, le sentiment de solitude, et une mesuregénérale de satisfaction avec la propre vie. Les participants (n=1319), âgés de 11 à 16 ans (47% sont des garçons), étaient scolarisés dans sept établissements publics d’éducation secondaire de la Communauté de Valence (Espagne). Des analyses ANOVA ont montré des différences significatives entre les différents groupes. C’est le groupe d’adolescents non impliqués qui a montré le meilleur ajustement psychosocial, avec le plus haut niveau d’estime de soi et de satisfaction avec la propre vie, ainsi que le plus bas niveau de symptomatologie dépressive, de stress perçu et de sentiment de solitude. Les ponctuations en estime de soi, symptomatologie dépressive et solitude de ce dernier groupe sont très proches à celles obtenues par le groupe de bullies. Pourtant, les bullies, et aussi les deux groupes de victimes, ont montré plus de stress et une satisfaction mineur avec la propre vie. Les victimes en général ont informé des plus grands niveaux de solitude. Finalement, les bully/victimes ont montré des caractéristiques partagées avec les bullies et les victimes, bien qu’elles ont présenté plus de similitudes avec les dernières et un pauvre profil psychosocial en général.

Un perfil psicosocial de adolescentes agresores y víctimas en la escuela: análisis de las diferencias de género

Resumen El presente estudio tiene como objetivo analizar un perfil psicosocial de adolescentes agresores, víctimas, agresores/víctimas y estudiantes no implicados, considerando las diferencias de género. El perfil psicosocial del adolescente se define en el presente estudio de acuerdo con los siguientes indicadores de ajuste: autoestima general, satisfacción con la vida, sintomatología depresiva, reputación ideal no conformista e implicación en la comunidad. Los participantes del estudio fueron 1884 estudiantes españoles (52% chicos y 48% chicas) con un rango de edad comprendido entre los 11 y los 17 años (M = 13.7, DT = 1.4). Los resultados del análisis de varianza señalan que los adolescentes implicados como agresores/víctimas muestran el perfil psicosocial menos adaptativo y los alumnos no implicados el perfil más saludable de los cuatro grupos analizados. Además, se encontraron diferencias significativas entre chicos y chicas dentro del perfil psicosocial de agresor, víctima y no implicado. Sin embargo, los adolescentes clasificados como agresores/víctimas no muestran diferencias significativas entre los géneros en ninguna de las variables analizadas. Se discuten las implicaciones prácticas de estos resultados.

An analysis of the relationship between victimization and violent behavior at school

Previous studies have identified two subgroups of school violence victims: submissive and aggressive. Submissive victims are characterized by their withdrawal in violent situations, while aggressive victims combine hostile behavior with victimization. This study focuses on the second subgroup and aims to analyze possible factors influencing the transition from passive victimization to involvement in aggressive behaviors within the school context. To test these relationships, 1319 adolescents between 12 and 16 years of age were recruited from seven secondary schools in various Spanish provinces. Structural equation modeling techniques were used to analyze the data. Results supported Emlers theory, which posits that the victims helplessness in situations of intimidation, along with disappointment resulting from a lack of expected protection from adult authority figures, may result in adolescents searching and developing an antisocial and non-conformist reputation that helps them defend themselves against future attacks. Practical implications of these results are further discussed.

School Anxiety Inventory–Short Version Factorial Invariance and Latent Mean Differences Across Gender and Age in Spanish Adolescents

This study examined the factorial invariance and latent mean differences of the School Anxiety Inventory–Short Version across gender and age groups for 2,367 Spanish students, ranging in age from 12 to 18 years. Configural and measurement invariance were found across gender and age samples for all dimensions of the School Anxiety Inventory–Short Version.

Relationship between sociometric types and academic achievement in a sample of compulsory secondary education students / Relación entre tipos sociométricos y rendimiento académico en una muestra de estudiantes de Educación Secundaria Obligatoria

Abstract The aim of this study was to analyse the relationship between sociometric types, behavioural categories and academic achievement in a sample of 1,349 compulsory secondary education students (51.7% boys), ranging in age from 12 to 16 years. The students’ sociometric identification was performed by using the Programa Socio and academic performance was measured by school marks provided by teachers in the subjects of Spanish language, mathematics and average academic performance. The results show that sociometric types were significant predictors of academic achievement, as students who were rated positively by their peers (popular, leaders, collaborators and good students) were more likely to have high academic achievement (in mathematics, Spanish language and average academic achievement) than students rated negatively by peers (rejected-aggressive, rejected-shy, neglected and bullies).

A Cross-Cultural Study in Spain and Mexico on School Aggression in Adolescence Examining the Role of Individual, Family, and School Variables

The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationships between family and classroom environments and the development of particular individual characteristics, including level of empathy, attitude to institutional authority, and perceived social reputation, and the role these characteristics may in turn play in aggressive behavior. These factors and associations were analyzed by gender and in two different Latin contexts, Spain and Mexico, from a cross-cultural perspective. Participants in the study were 1,319 Spanish adolescents and 1,494 Mexican adolescents drawn from secondary schools. Structural equation models were calculated to test mediational effects among variables. Results obtained indicated, in general terms, that the level of empathy, the social reputation, and the attitude to authority partly mediated the relationship between the environment perceived by boys and girls at home and school, and their aggressive behavior, in both samples. Other similarities and differences between genders and samples were also found and are discussed.

Academic goals and learning strategies in secondary education Spanish students with social anxiety / Metas académicas y estrategias de aprendizaje en estudiantes españoles de Educación Secundaria Obligatoria con ansiedad social

Abstract The purpose of this study was to analyse the relationship between high social anxiety, academic goals and learning strategies in a sample of 2,022 (51.1% male) Spanish adolescents aged 12–16. The Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory (SPAI), Achievement Goal Tendencies Questionnaire (AGTQ) and Learning and Studies Skills Strategies Inventory — High School Version (LASSI-HS) were used to assess the variables. The results showed no statistically significant differences in goal orientations between students with and without high social anxiety. However, students with high social anxiety used learning strategies significantly less. In addition, the logistic regression results indicated that high social anxiety acts as a significant predictor for setting social reinforcement goals and learning and study strategies.

School aggression in adolescence: examining the role of individual, family and school variables

Background/Objective: The purpose of the present study was to analyse the role of family and classroom environments on the development of particular individual characteristics including level of empathy, attitude to institutional authority and perceived social reputation, and the mediational role these characteristics may play in school aggression. Relationships among variables were analysed by gender. Method: Participants in the study were 1,494 Mexican adolescents aged 12 to 18, 45% male, and drawn from six secondary schools. Structural equation models were calculated to test mediational effects among variables. Results: Findings obtained indicated that the level of empathy, the social reputation, and the attitude to authority mediated the relationship between the environment perceived by boys at home and school, and their aggressive behaviour at school. This mediation was partial for girls. Conclusions: Differences between genders and the importance of the adolescent-context interrelations in the explanation of their aggressive behaviour at school were discussed.

Emotional intelligence and empathy in aggressors and victims of school violence.

The present study was organized around 2 main objectives: first, to analyze emotional intelligence (EI) both in aggressors and victims of school violence, considering 3 dimensions of EI—emotional attention, emotional clarity, and emotion regulation—and second, to analyze empathy in aggressors and victims of school violence, taking into consideration 2 dimensions—cognitive and affective empathy. Participants were 1,318 Spanish adolescents, aged between 11 and 17 years (47% boys) enrolled in 4 secondary schools, and who completed self-report measures. Analyses of variance were conducted to analyze the data. The results indicated that, regarding EI, victims of school violence scored significantly higher in the dimension of emotional attention, but significantly lower in emotional clarity and emotion regulation; aggressors showed differences only in emotion regulation, with significantly lower scores. With regard to empathy, victims showed less empathetic joy, a subdimension of affective empathy, which indicated that they are, at the moment, unable to feel happiness for others’ successes; aggressors obtained lower scores both in cognitive and affective empathy. These results underscore the importance of managing emotions in the main school violence roles in adolescent students and help us to understand differences between aggressors and victims in the managing of affect.