How teenagers view bullying: gender differences and psychological implications

Abstract

The article describes psychological peculiarities and gender differences in how teenagers view the phenomenon of bullying; it delineates psychological implications and health impacts of bullying. The aim is to identify gender peculiarities of teenagers’ perception of bullying and its psychological implications on their health. The main method of this empirical study was questionnaire. Teenage participants received the approbated questionnaire developed by the authors of this article. The research determines how teenagers understand the causes and consequences of bullying, ascertains how teenagers are involved in bullying including the role behaviour, and identifies psychological peculiarities of bullying in relation to gender identification of participants. Responses to the questionnaire demonstrate that two genders equally participate in bullying. Girls and boys communicate experiencing negative emotions of anger, hate, aggression, pity, anxiety, fear, and offense both during direct involvement in bullying and during observation of bullying from aside. Teenage girls tend to be more involved in psychological bullying while boys are more involved in physical bullying. Conclusions. Teenage involvement in bullying necessarily involves negative emotions regardless of the role in bullying or gender of the participants. Psychological implications of bullying correlate to its strength and duration; can be short term and/or long term and affect individual well-being of all immediate participants of bullying stretching its negative impacts on psychological health even to adulthood. Therefore, systemic approach to prevent and oppose teenage bullying is indisputably pertinent.