Young adult problem behaviour outcomes of adolescent bullying

Abstract

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to report on the association between bullying victimisation and various internalizing and externalizing behaviours including anxiety and depression, somatic problems, withdrawn behaviour, aggressive and delinquent behaviour.

Design/methodology/approach - Data for this research come from the Mater-University of Queensland Study of Pregnancy and its Outcomes (MUSP) a prospective cohort study of mothers and their children which began in Brisbane in 1981, assessing the impact of experiences of being bullied at 14 years of age and YASR outcomes at 21 years of age. Brisbane is the capital city of the State of Queensland, Australia. The site for the research was the Brisbane Mater Misericordiae Mothers' Hospital (MMH), which is one of the two major obstetric units in Brisbane. In effect all pregnant women attending a publicly-funded obstetrical service over a three-year period were recruited to the study (about 50 percent of women attend public obstetrical services in Queensland). Findings - The authors find that: first, there is no association between the experience of being bullied and young adult anxiety and depression, as well as some other outcomes (withdrawn, intrusive behaviour); second, for both males and females, there are increased rates of attention problems for those children who have been bullied; and third, males and females respond somewhat differently to being bullied, with males reporting more aggressive behaviour and females reporting more somatic problems.

Originality/value - Overall, the findings suggest that the likely impact of being bullied may not be widespread across mental health domains, and that the impact may differ somewhat depending upon whether the person bullied is a male or female.