Publication year
2014
Citation Title
Psychological distress and student engagement as mediators of the relationship between peer victimization and achievement in middle school youth
Journal Name
Journal of Youth and Adolescence
Journal Volume
43
Issue Number
1
Page Numbers
40-52
DOI
10.1007/s10964-013-9918-4
Summary
Students were surveyed to evaluate associations between peer victimization, psychological distress, student engagement, and academic achievement. Results suggest that the relationship between victimization and academic achievement is indirect and is influenced by psychological distress and student engagement.
Key Findings
Peer victimization affects academic achievement via increased psychological distress.
Psychological distress in turn contributes to reduced student engagement, ultimately affecting academic performance.
Peer victimization in this sample was relatively infrequent; participants reported experiencing overt or indirect aggression a couple of times per month.
Implications for Military Professionals
Collaborate with schools connected with military youth to develop ways to support victimized youth and reduce peer victimization at school
Facilitate support groups for military children dealing with peer victimization to help reduce psychological distress and teach youth healthy ways to cope with peer victimization
Implications for Program Leaders
Offer workshops to military youth to learn skills to prevent and mitigate the negative impacts of bullying
Provide training to parents about how to speak to their children about peer victimization experiences, including how to cope if victimized and the importance of treating peers respectfully
Implications for Policy Makers
Support the development and evaluation of peer victimization prevention efforts in military associated schools
Recommend the development of an integrated, comprehensive strategy (involving both mental health and academic resources) to help children experiencing peer victimization succeed
Methods
Twenty-five percent of sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students from randomly selected classrooms in 11 public schools in a large school district in the Southeast were surveyed.
Students completed questionnaires regarding bullying and peer victimization, psychological distress, and student engagement.
Academic achievement was defined by course grades and performance on statewide academic achievement tests.
Participants
Four hundred sixty-nine sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students participated.
Fifty-four percent of the students were girls.
The majority of students were White (74%); 11% were Latino/Latina, 4% were Black; and 3% were Asian American.
Limitations
Rates of peer victimization were low; therefore, results may not generalize to students experiencing higher rates of victimization.
Generalizability may also be constrained by limited racial/ethnic and geographic diversity.
The data were cross-sectional; therefore, the ability to draw causal conclusions is limited.
Avenues for Future Research
Incorporate other informant reports of bullying from teacher, parent, or peers
Utilize more psychometrically sound measures in a longitudinal design to thoroughly evaluate the associations between victimization, distress, engagement, and academic achievement
Include a more diverse sample of students, such as those with a broader range of victimization experiences
Focus
Civilian
Target Population
Population Focus
Abstract
Peer victimization is a well-known national and international problem, contributing to a range of emotional, social, and behavioral consequences. Using structural equation modeling, the authors tested a theoretical model suggesting that psychological distress and student engagement mediate the association between the experience of victimization and concurrent academic achievement. Participants were 469 (46.4 % male, 53.6 % female) 6th to 8th grade students, from randomly selected classrooms in 11 middle schools in a southeastern school district. Structural equation models of the hypothesized effects demonstrated adequate fit to the data, with both symptoms of psychological distress and engagement mediating the relationship between victimization and academic achievement. In general, the results suggest that victimization predicts diminished academic achievement by way of psychological distress and poorer engagement in classroom and academic tasks. However, the direct relationship between victimization and measures of achievement lacked significance across many correlational and path analyses conducted. These findings have implications for researchers and practitioners in understanding how psychological distress and student engagement are associated with the academic performance of students who experience peer victimization.
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