Negative school perceptions and involvement in school bullying: A universal relationship across 40 countries

Cross-national analyses explore the consistency of the relationship between negative school experiences and involvement in bullying across 40 European and North American countries, using the 2006 (40 countries n = 197,502) and 2002 (12 countries, n = 57,007) WHO-HBSC surveys. Measures include two Cumulative Negative School Perception (CNSP) scales, one based on 6 mandatory items (2006) and another including an additional 11 items (2002). Outcome measures included bullying perpetration, victimization and involvement as both bully and victim. Logistic regression analyses suggested that children with only 2-3 negative school perceptions, experience twice the relative odds of being involved in bullying as compared with children with no negative school perceptions. Odds Ratios (p < 0.001) increase in a graded fashion according to the CNSP, from about 2.2 to over 8.0. Similar consistent effects are found across gender and almost all countries. Further research should focus on the mechanisms and social context of these relationships.