Bullying in Five European Countries

Evidence for Bringing Gendered Phenomena Under the Umbrella of ‘Sexual Bullying’ in Research and Practice

Bibliographic Data

ID11995889
AuthorsRhys Turner-Moore (0000-0002-0045-9095, Leeds Beckett University, corresponding author), Kate Milnes (0000-0002-5669-8431, Leeds Beckett University), Brendan Gough (0000-0001-7438-0139, Leeds Beckett University)
Year2021
Volume86
Issue1-2
Pages89-105
Publication date2021-10-27
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSex Roles (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0360-0025 • E-ISSN: 1573-2762
PublisherSpringer Science+Business Media (PUBLISHER • DE)
DOI10.1007/s11199-021-01254-1
OpenAlexW3206372722
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited35

Sexual bullying refers to bullying or harassment that is sexualised, related to sexuality, and/or related to gender expression (Duncan, 1999). Research on sexual bullying is disparate and still developing as a field. This study extends on this research through a mixed-methods analysis of the different forms of sexual bullying and the relationships between them across five European nations. Participants were 253 young people (aged 13–18) from Bulgaria, England, Italy, Latvia and Slovenia. As part of focus groups on sexual bullying, participants individually and anonymously completed a Sexual Bullying Questionnaire (SBQ), comprising closed- and open-ended questions about their experiences of victimisation and bullying their peers. Factor analysis identified five forms of sexual bullying victimisation and two forms of sexual bullying towards peers. The quantitative and qualitative findings indicated that bullying or harassment that is sexualised, related to sexuality, and/or related to gender expression are associated with each other. Further, sexual bullying was found to be common to all five European countries indicating that it is a cross-national issue. The associations between sexualised, sexuality and gender expression bullying or harassment support the use of the term sexual bullying to unite these forms of peer victimisation in research and practice. Further, all countries studied require initiatives to address sexual bullying, and the gender and sexual norms that may contribute to it, with tailoring to the country context

Context (archaeology · Developmental psychology · Harassment · Human sexuality · Poison control · Sociology · Victimisation · Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression · Clinical Psychology · Gender Studies · Human Factors and Ergonomics · Intimate Partner and Family Violence · Medicine · Psychology · Sexual Assault and Victimization Studies · Social Psychology

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Open DOIOpen Access