María Ángeles de la Caba Collado

La agresión entre iguales en la era digital : estrategias de afrontamiento de los estudiantes del último ciclo de Primaria y del primero de Secundaria

Abstract. The influence of age and, particularly, gender is a topic of much debate in research on aggression between peers. The emergence of new types of attack also raises important questions regarding attitudes to different forms of aggression and the role of peers. This study explores the coping strategies adopted by students in the last two years of primary school and the first two years of secondary school in response to direct, relational and technology-mediated aggression, from the perspective of both victim and observer. It also analyzes the possible association between personal confidence in one’s ability to respond in a positive way to challenging or threatening situations, and preferred strategy in response to aggression. Participants were 1,018 students from 12 schools in the Autonomous Region of the Basque Country in Spain, and the data were collected using two instruments: a situational questionnaire, which presents prototypical cases of three types of aggression and a proactive coping questionnaire (PCS). From among the results obtained, based on the SPSS analyses (Pearson’s chi squared, standardized residuals, Student’s t test and ANOVAS), the following findings are of particular interest: 1) a statistically significant relationship was found between gender and coping strategy in all types of aggression analyzed, although particularly in assertiveness and negative reciprocity; 2) the association between educational stage and chosen strategy was only significant for some types of aggression and 3) no significant differences were found between boys and girls in relation to proactive coping, although a difference of this kind was observed between primary and secondary school students. Also, an association was found between proactive coping and response to aggression for the position of victim. These data indicate that the percentage distribution of strategies chosen by students varies in accordance with whether they put themselves in the position of victim or classmate, the context and the type of aggression involved.

Tareas de responsabilidad social en la escuela y agresión entre iguales

citizens who are sensitive to what happens around them and are capable of exercising their rights in a responsible way, the aim of this study was twofold. Firstly, the objective was to define responsibilities in the school environment and analyze their relationship with educational stage and gender. Secondly, the study aimed to explore the relationship between responsibilities and coping strategies in situations of peer aggression. Participants were 1018 students aged between 10 and 14 from 12 schools in the Autonomous Region of the Basque Country, Spain. The study design was descriptive and cross-cutting, and two instruments were used: a Likert-type scale of responsibilities and a questionnaire outlining different scenarios involving different types of aggression. The statistical analyses were conducted with SPSS and revealed two responsibility factors. Significant differences were found between Primary and Secondary school students (participation: p<.001; civic response: p<.01) and between boys and girls, with girls scoring higher in both participation ( p<.001) and civic response ( p<.001). A significant relationship was found between participation in the classroom and response to direct aggression (H1: p<.001; H2: p< .001; H5: p<.001), relational aggression (H4: p<.05; H6: p<.001) and cyber-aggression (H3: p<.05; H6: p<.001). A significant relationship was observed also between the civic response factor and direct aggression (H1: p<.001; H2: p< .001; H5: p<.001), relational aggression (H4: p<.001; H6: p<.001) and cyber-aggression: H3: p<.01; H8: p<.001). The results suggest that engaging in tasks designed to promote responsibility at school encourages children to opt for strategies that show more solidarity with the victims of aggression, thus fostering the development of more supportive, ethical citizens. In this sense the data indicate that the implication in participatory activities in the classroom (establishing rules together, proposing improvements, etc.) is related to more positive attitudes in situations of aggression between peers and is a key element in preventing bullying in schools.