Estimating the Psychological Harm Consequence of Bullying Victimization: A Meta-Analytic Review for Forensic Evaluation

Abstract

The prevalence of traditional bullying victimization has been estimated at around 36%, while that of cyberbullying has been estimated at 15%. The victimization of bullying brings with it harm to mental health that must be compensated for, after a forensic evaluation, by the aggressor or legal guardian. Thus, a meta-analytic review was undertaken with the aim of knowing the effect of bullying victimization on psychological harm, as well as quantifying the magnitude of the harm and estimating the probability that no harm associated with bullying victimization is generated. Method: A random-effects correlational meta-analysis correcting effect size by sampling error and criterion and predictor unreliability was performed. Results: The results exhibited a positive (i.e., more victimization and more psychological harm) and significant mean true effect size, implying an average psychological harm associated to bullying victimization of 29.7%. Nevertheless, 26.7% of students victimized by bullying did not develop psychological harm. Conclusions: Bullying victimization causes psychological harm, with an average increase in psychological harm associated with bullying victimization of 29.7%.