Science for Society: Understanding Bullying – A Developmental Perspective and Long-Term Impacts
The experience of being bullied is a common one that affects communities globally, across age groups, and is expressed in a variety of forms. In the United States, about 25% of school-aged students reported being victims of bullying behavior, with verbal bullying as the most prevalent form experienced (Irwin et al., 2021; Sinclair et al., 2022).
The science of bullying—why it occurs and how it impacts all parties involved—has received increased attention from researchers in recent years, especially in terms of online dynamics such as cyberbullying. This webinar featured perspectives from researchers who have investigated the short-term and long-term effects of bullying on mental health and have identified possible early intervention strategies.
Megan Stubbs-Richardson, an associate research professor at Mississippi State University, has been researching bullying since 2011. Bullying is often characterized as having a goal-directed element, a power imbalance, and contributing to harm, whether the behavior intended to cause harm or not, she said.
She outlined four common types of bullying: physical, verbal, relational, and cyber. Cyber bullying is seen as potentially more harmful than other forms of bullying because of its anonymous nature and large audience.
Creating programs that provide social support on a school-wide level can also combat bullying. “We have found that social support really matters, especially when it comes to increasing pro-social responding,” she said.
Antonio Camacho Lopez, a lecturer at the Universidad de Córdoba, emphasized that it is important to understand how development patterns contribute to bullying behaviors. In his presentation, Camacho outlined short-, mid-, and long-term effects of bullying on bystanders, perpetrators, and victims.
For example, short- and mid-term effects for victims include an increase in anger rumination alongside a decrease in social adjustment.
“Many victims adopt a pattern of social withdrawal, so they avoid situations they perceive as risky,” Camacho said, adding that this behavior can make it difficult for those individuals to form healthy relationships later in life.
Charlotte Vrijen, assistant professor at the University of Groningen, described her research on childhood and adolescent bullying behaviors and connections to later substance abuse. Through their meta-analysis, Vrijen worked with a team to investigate 215 effects from 28 publications, which included a total sample of more than 28,000 participants.
Because the studies included in the meta-analysis varied across a broad range of methods and measures, Vrijen said it was difficult to compare them. The team also identified several possible confounding factors such as genetic vulnerability and negative family background, providing evidence for a need to continue this research for clearer results.
References
Irwin, V., Wang, K., Cui, J., Zhang, J., & Thompson, A. (2021). Report on Indicators of School Crime and Safety: 2020. NCES 2021-092/NCJ 300772. National Center for Education Statistics.
Sinclair, H. C., Wilson, K. J., & Stubbs-Richardson, M. (2022). Advances in youth bullying research. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 860887.
Speakers

Antonio Camacho Lopez
Universidad de Córdoba
Charlotte Vrijen
University of Groningen