Bullying and Self-Concept, Factors Affecting the Mental Health of School Adolescents

Bullying is an aggressive and repetitive behavior, where one person or several people physically, socially, or emotionally harm a vulnerable person and provokean imbalance of power in a school setting. Several factors such as age, sex, school performance, psychological factors, and ethnicity have be...

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Main Authors: Carmen Galán-Arroyo, Santiago Gómez-Paniagua, Nicolás Contreras-Barraza, José Carmelo Adsuar, Pedro R. Olivares, Jorge Rojo-Ramos
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2023-08-01
Series:Healthcare
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/11/15/2214
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author Carmen Galán-Arroyo
Santiago Gómez-Paniagua
Nicolás Contreras-Barraza
José Carmelo Adsuar
Pedro R. Olivares
Jorge Rojo-Ramos
author_facet Carmen Galán-Arroyo
Santiago Gómez-Paniagua
Nicolás Contreras-Barraza
José Carmelo Adsuar
Pedro R. Olivares
Jorge Rojo-Ramos
author_sort Carmen Galán-Arroyo
collection DOAJ
description Bullying is an aggressive and repetitive behavior, where one person or several people physically, socially, or emotionally harm a vulnerable person and provokean imbalance of power in a school setting. Several factors such as age, sex, school performance, psychological factors, and ethnicity have been associated with bullying and more are being sought. Thus, the objectives of this study were as follows: (1) analyze the differences in bullying (victimization and aggression) and self-concept (academic, social, emotional, family, and physical) with respect to sex, school location, and educational level among Spanish adolescents; (2) explore the associations of bullying and self-concept with these sociodemographic dimensions. A cross-sectional study was designed with a total of 1155 participants (between 12 and 18 years old); there were 48.8% boys and 51.2% girls, where 75.9% studied compulsory secondary education (CSE) and 24.1% Baccalaureate, and 31.9% were students from rural schools and 68.1% were from urban schools. Medium and inverse correlations were shown between victimization and self-concept at the general level, for both sexes, both types of school, and both educational stages. For the aggression dimension, the correlations with self-concept were inverse at the general level (low), in girls (low), in rural students (medium), and in compulsory secondary education students (medium). For academic self-concept and family self-concept, the associations were medium and inverse with bullying in all variables. For emotional self-concept the correlation with bullying was direct and medium in all variables; in physical self-concept, the correlations with bullying were inverse in almost all variables except in boys. Self-concept may be a protective factor for bullying and interventions should aim at adolescents building a positive multidimensional self-concept that prevents and protects them from bullying either as aggressor or victim.
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spelling doaj.art-471b503477704ea4aaa2853b9ce90bdd2023-11-18T22:57:06ZengMDPI AGHealthcare2227-90322023-08-011115221410.3390/healthcare11152214Bullying and Self-Concept, Factors Affecting the Mental Health of School AdolescentsCarmen Galán-Arroyo0Santiago Gómez-Paniagua1Nicolás Contreras-Barraza2José Carmelo Adsuar3Pedro R. Olivares4Jorge Rojo-Ramos5Physical and Health Literacy and Health-Related Quality of Life (PHYQoL), Faculty of Sport Science, University of Extremadura, 10003 Cáceres, SpainBioẼrgon Research Group, Faculty of Sport Sciences, University of Extremadura, 10003 Cáceres, SpainFacultad de Economía y Negocios, Universidad Andrés Bello, Viña del Mar 2531015, ChilePromoting a Healthy Society Research Group (PHeSO), Faculty of Sport Sciences, University of Extremadura, 10003 Cáceres, SpainFaculty of Education, Psychology and Sport Sciences, University of Huelva, 21007 Huelva, SpainPhysical Activity for Education, Performance and Health Research Group, Faculty of Sport Sciences, University of Extremadura, 10003 Cáceres, SpainBullying is an aggressive and repetitive behavior, where one person or several people physically, socially, or emotionally harm a vulnerable person and provokean imbalance of power in a school setting. Several factors such as age, sex, school performance, psychological factors, and ethnicity have been associated with bullying and more are being sought. Thus, the objectives of this study were as follows: (1) analyze the differences in bullying (victimization and aggression) and self-concept (academic, social, emotional, family, and physical) with respect to sex, school location, and educational level among Spanish adolescents; (2) explore the associations of bullying and self-concept with these sociodemographic dimensions. A cross-sectional study was designed with a total of 1155 participants (between 12 and 18 years old); there were 48.8% boys and 51.2% girls, where 75.9% studied compulsory secondary education (CSE) and 24.1% Baccalaureate, and 31.9% were students from rural schools and 68.1% were from urban schools. Medium and inverse correlations were shown between victimization and self-concept at the general level, for both sexes, both types of school, and both educational stages. For the aggression dimension, the correlations with self-concept were inverse at the general level (low), in girls (low), in rural students (medium), and in compulsory secondary education students (medium). For academic self-concept and family self-concept, the associations were medium and inverse with bullying in all variables. For emotional self-concept the correlation with bullying was direct and medium in all variables; in physical self-concept, the correlations with bullying were inverse in almost all variables except in boys. Self-concept may be a protective factor for bullying and interventions should aim at adolescents building a positive multidimensional self-concept that prevents and protects them from bullying either as aggressor or victim.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/11/15/2214bullyingself-conceptphysical educationadolescentsassociations
spellingShingle Carmen Galán-Arroyo
Santiago Gómez-Paniagua
Nicolás Contreras-Barraza
José Carmelo Adsuar
Pedro R. Olivares
Jorge Rojo-Ramos
Bullying and Self-Concept, Factors Affecting the Mental Health of School Adolescents
Healthcare
bullying
self-concept
physical education
adolescents
associations
title Bullying and Self-Concept, Factors Affecting the Mental Health of School Adolescents
title_full Bullying and Self-Concept, Factors Affecting the Mental Health of School Adolescents
title_fullStr Bullying and Self-Concept, Factors Affecting the Mental Health of School Adolescents
title_full_unstemmed Bullying and Self-Concept, Factors Affecting the Mental Health of School Adolescents
title_short Bullying and Self-Concept, Factors Affecting the Mental Health of School Adolescents
title_sort bullying and self concept factors affecting the mental health of school adolescents
topic bullying
self-concept
physical education
adolescents
associations
url https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/11/15/2214
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