Abstract
Objective:
Bullying is a form of aggressive behavior that is intentionally and repeatedly performed by one or more students against another student and characterized by power imbalance. Bullying has many negative consequences for both bullies and victims. This article first presents the definition, types and negative effects of bullying as well as the characteristics of bullies and victims. Afterwards, based on the ‘Ecological Systems Theory’, the mutual relationships between individual characteristics of bullies and victims and the family, peer group, school, socio-cultural values and media systems as well as the unique contribution of each system on bullying will be discussed.
Method:
Studies on bullying were searched by using main databases (PsychInfo, PubMed, Ebscohost).
Results:
Research indicates that bullying is not a single phenomenon resulting from children’s and adolescents’ individual characteristics. It is rather a result of complex and multi-dimensional phenomenon affected by family characteristics, school atmosphere, teachers’ attitude, peer relations, and culture. Briefly, bullying is not an isolated individual event but a result of the interaction between individual factors and the people and environment that the child is in interaction with.
Discussion:
The information presented in this article will contribute to the design and utilization of developmentally appropriate and culturally sound prevention programs in order to prevent bullying or to reduce its negative effects.
Keywords: Bullying, peer victimization, ecological model.
