Citation

Walters GD, Kremser J, Runell L. Int. J. Bullying Prev. 2021; 3(2): 102-113.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s42380-020-00066-3

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The goals of this study were to determine whether children who took the bus to school on a regular basis felt safest during the commute to school, in school, or on the commute home from school, and to identify the factors that correlate with fear of being bullied on the bus. A sample of 610 students (296 boys, 313 girls; mean age = 11.25 years, SD = 0.51) was surveyed during the fall semester of their first year of middle school (sixth grade). Students indicated that they felt safer in school than they did on the commute to or from school, which nearly always occurred by bus. Sex differences were investigation and found to be small in number and magnitude. These differences were limited to slightly more girls than boys reporting feeling safer in school, slightly more boys than girls reporting feeling safer on the commute home from school, and a modestly stronger association between bullying victimization and fear of being bullied on the school bus in boys than in girls, although the effect was significant in both sexes. There were no significant differences between boys and girls in their overall level of fear of bullying on the bus. A full sample regression analysis revealed significant correlations between the risk factors of bullying victimization and depression, and a child's fear of being bullied on the bus, suggesting that such fears are related to past victimization and current feelings of sadness, loneliness, and reduced energy.

Language: en