Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-t5tsf Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-16T09:21:58.999Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

6 - Research on school bullying in mainland China

from Part I - Social awareness and research on bullying and cyberbullying

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 April 2016

By
Wenxin Zhang ,
Liang Chen  and
Guanghui Chen
Edited by
Peter K. Smith ,
Keumjoo Kwak  and
Yuichi Toda
Peter K. Smith
Affiliation:
Goldsmiths, University of London
Keumjoo Kwak
Affiliation:
Seoul National University
Yuichi Toda
Affiliation:
Osaka Kyoiku University, Japan
Get access

Summary

Although the problem of bullying/victimization among children in Chinese schools has been a major concern for the government and the public, scientific research on school bullying in mainland China only has a very brief history. This chapter starts by considering the etymological research of Qifu, the term nearest to western bullying. A review is then presented of the characteristics of school bullying and victimization in Mainland China, starting with prevalence, age differences, types of bullying and victimization, gender differences, and some other characteristics. There is a section on children’s attitudes against bullying, considering here gender, grade and role differences, and dimensions of attitudes against bullying (feelings and action). A following section is on the socio-ecology of bullies and victims, considering individual characteristics (personality, social behaviour, academic functioning), the peer context (peer status, friendship), family context, school context (teachers, class norms, school climate). A following section is on adjustment of bullies and victims. The chapter concludes with consideration of bullying or Qifu and Chinese culture.
Type
Chapter
Information
School Bullying in Different Cultures
Eastern and Western Perspectives
 , pp. 113 - 132
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2016

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Berger, K. S. (2007). Update on bullying at school: Science forgotten? Developmental Review, 27, 90–126.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Biggs, B. K., Vernberg, E. M., Twemlow, S. W., Fonagy, P., and Dill, E. J. (2008). Teacher adherence and its relation to teacher attitudes and student outcomes in an elementary school-based violence prevention program. School Psychology Review, 37, 533–549.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development: Experiments by nature and design. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
Buhs, E. S. and Ladd, G. W. (2001). Peer rejection in kindergarten as an antecedent of young childen’s school adjustment: An examination of mediating processes. Developmental Psychology, 37, 550–560.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Byrne, B. J. (1994). Bullies and victims in a school setting with reference to some Dublin schools. Irish Journal of Psychology, 15, 574–586.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cao, W. (2012). Investigation on parenting style to students of senior high schools (in Chinese). Journal of Guizhou Normal University (Nature Sciences), 30(6), 45–49.Google Scholar
Chen, G. H. (2010). The definition and foundamental features of qifu/suffering qifu and its relationship with peer context in indigenous perspective (in Chinese). Shandong: Unpublished Doctor’s thesis, Shandong Normal University.Google Scholar
Chen, S. P. (2003). The relationship between school children’s bully behavior and their personality traits (in Chinese). Psychological Exploration, 23, 55–58.Google Scholar
Chen, S. P. and Yue, G. A. (2002). A survey of bullying in primary and junior middle schools (in Chinese). Psychological Science, 25, 355–356.Google Scholar
Chen, X. Y. and Zhang, R. B. (2007). The current situation of bullying among the vocational college girls and its intervention strategies (in Chinese). China Adult Education, 16, 107–108.Google Scholar
Chen, X., Cen, G., Li, D., and He, Y. (2005). Social functioning and adjustment in Chinese children: The imprint of historical time. Child Development, 76, 182–195.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chen, X., Huang, X., Chang, L., Wang, L., and Li, D. (2010). Aggression, social competence, and academic achievement in Chinese children: A 5-year longitudinal study. Development and Psychopathology, 22, 583–592.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cheng, Y., Newman, I. M., Qu, M., Mbulo, L., Chai, Y., Chen, Y., and Shell, D. F. (2010). Being bullied and psychosocial adjustment among middle school students in China. Journal of School Health, 80, 193–199.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Craig, W., Harel-Fisch, Y., Fogel-Grinvald, H., Dostaler, S., Hetland, J., Simons-Morton, B., Molcho, B., Gaspar de Mato, M., Overpeck, M., Due, P., Pickett, W., HBSC Violence and Injuries Prevention Focus Group, and HBSC Bullying Writing Group (2009). A cross-national profile of bullying and victimization among adolescents in 40 countries. International Journal of Public Health, 54 (Suppl 2), 216–224.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Eisenberg, N., Fabes, R. A., and Spinrad, T. L. ( 2006 ). Prosocial behavior. In Eisenberg, N. (Vol. Ed.) and Damon, W. and Lerner, R. M. (Series Eds.), Handbook of child psychology, Vol. 3: Social, emotional, and personality development (6th edn.; pp. 646–718). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons.Google Scholar
Eslea, M., Menesini, E., Morita, Y., O’Moore, M., Mora-Merchán, J. A., Pereira, B., Smith, P. K., and Zhang, W. X. (2003). Friendship and loneliness among bullies and victims: Data from seven countries. Aggressive Behavior, 30, 71–83.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Felix, E. D. and Green, J. G. (2010). Popular girls and brawny boys: The role of gender in bullying and victimization experiences. In Jimerson, S. R., Swearer, S. M. and Espelage, D. L. (Eds.), Handbook of bullying in schools: An international perspective (pp. 173–186). London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Fujihara, T., Kohyama, T., Andreu, J. M., and Ramirez, J. M. (1999). Justification of interpersonal aggression in Japanese, American, and Spanish students. Aggressive Behavior, 25, 185–195.3.0.CO;2-K>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Genta, M. L., Menesini, E., Fonz, A., Costablile, A., Smith, P. K. (1996). Bullies and victims in schools in central and southern Italy. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 11, 97–110.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gu, C. H. and Zhang, W. X. (2003). A survey on the relations of the bullying problem among primary school children to their personality (in Chinese). Acta Psychologica Sinica, 35, 101–105.Google Scholar
Hazemba, A., Siziya, S., Muula, A. S., and Rudatsikira, E. (2008). Prevalence and correlates of being bullied among in-school adolescents in Beijing: results from the 2003 Beijing Global School-Based Health Survey. Annals of General Psychiatry, 7, 1–6.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ji, L. Q., Chen, L., Xu, F. Z., Zhao, S. Y., and Zhang, W. X. (2011). A longitudinal analysis of the association between peer victimization and patterns of psychosocial adjustment during middle and late childhood (in Chinese). Acta Psychologica Sinica, 43, 1151–1162.Google Scholar
Ji, L., Zhang, W., Jones, K., and Smith, N. (2003). A comparison of children’s attitudes towards bullying between Chinese and British children (in Chinese). Studies of Psychology and Behavior, 1, 122–127.Google Scholar
Ji, L., Zhang, W., Jones, K., and Smith, N. (2004). Gender differences of physical, verbal , and indirect bullying among primary and secondary school children : A cross-cultural comparison between China and Britain (in Chinese). Journal of Shandong Nnormal University (Humanities and Social Sciences), 49, 21–24.Google Scholar
Juvonen, J., Nishina, A., and Graham, S. (2000). Peer harassment, psychological adjustment, and school functioning in early adolescence. Journal of Educational Psychology, 92, 349–359.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lagerspetz, K. M. J. and Björkqvist, K. (1994). Indirect aggression in boys and girls. In Huesmann, L. R. (Ed.), Aggressive behavior: Current perspectives (pp. 131–150). New York: Plenum.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lei, L. and Chang, L. (2002). Adolescent victims in school bullying: Some predictors (in Chinese). Exploration of Psychology, 22, 38–43.Google Scholar
Lei, L., Wang, Y., Guo, B. L., and Chang, L. (2004). The influence of classroom norms on the relations between social behaviors and peer victimization (in Chinese). Acta Psychologica Sinica, 36, 563–567.Google Scholar
Lerner, R. M. (2002). Concepts and theories of human development. London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
Liu, J. S., Chen, X. Y., Li, D., and French, D. (2012). Shyness-sensitivity, aggression, and adjustment in urban Chinese adolescents at different historical times. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 22, 393–399.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mynard, H. and Joseph, S. (1997). Bully/ victim problems and their association with Eysenck’s personality dimensions in 8 to 13 year-olds. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 67, 51–54.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Menesini, E., Eslea, M., Smith, P. K., Genta, M. L., Giannetti, E., Fonzi, A., and Costabile, A. (1997). Cross-national comparison of children’s attitudes towards bully/victim problems in school. Aggressive Behavior, 23, 245–257.3.0.CO;2-J>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nakamoto, J. and Schwartz, D. (2010). Is peer victimization associated with academic achievement? A meta-analytic review. Social Development, 19, 221–241.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Olweus, D. (1991). Bullying/Victim problems among school children: Basic facts and effects of a school based intervention programme. In: Pepler, D. J., Rubin, K. H. (Eds.), The development and treatment of childhood aggression (pp. 411–448). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Olweus, D. (1993). Bullying at school: What we know and what we can do. Oxford: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Olweus, D. (2001). Peer harassment: A critical analysis and some important issues. In Juvonen, J. and Graham, S. (Eds.), Peer harassment in schools: The plight of the vulnerable and victimized (pp. 3-20). New York: Guilford.Google Scholar
Qu, W. (2005). Investigation and remedy of young children’s bullying behavior (in Chinese). Studies in Preschool Education, 29, 1–3.Google Scholar
Rigby, K. and Slee, P. T. (1991). Bullying among Australian school children: Reported behavior and attitudes towards victims. Journal of Social Psychology, 131, 615–627.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schwartz, D., Chang, L., and Farver, J. M. (2001). Correlates of victimization in Chinese children’s peer groups. Developmental Psychology, 37, 520–532.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Smith, P. K. (1991). The silent nightmare: Bullying and victimization in school peer groups. The Psychologist, 4, 243–248.Google Scholar
Smith, P. K., Cowie, H., Olafsson, R. F., and Liefooghe, A. (2002). Definitions of bullying: A comparison of terms used, and age gender differences, in a fourteen-country international comparison. Child Development, 73, 1119–1133.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, P. K., Madsen, K., and Moddy, J. (1999). What causes the age decline in reports of being bullied at school? Towards a developmental analysis of risks of being bullied. Educational Research, 41, 267–285.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, P. K. and Sharp, S. (1994). The problem of school bullying. In Smith, P. K. and Sharp, S. (Eds.), School bullying: Insights and perspectives. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Smith, P. K. and Shu, S. (2000). What good school can do about bullying: Findings from a survey in English schools after a decade of research and action? Childhood, 7, 193–212.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Swearer, S. M. and Espelage, D. L. (2004). A social-ecological framework of bullying among youth. In Espelage, D. L. and Swearer, S. M. (Eds.), Bullying in American schools: A social-ecological perspective on prevention and intervention (pp. 1–12). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Tan, Q. (2010). The relationship between school bullying and adjustment among urban migrant children (in Chinese). Theory and Practice of Contemporary Education, 2, 94–96.Google Scholar
Wang, M. F. and Zhang, W. X. (2002). Peer relationships of bullies, victims and bully/victims in primary and junior middle schools (in Chinese). Psychological Development and Education, 18, 1–5.Google Scholar
Wang, H., Zhou, X., Lu, C., Wu, J., Deng, X., Hong, L., Gao, X., and He, Y. (2012). Adolescent bullying involvement and psychosocial aspects of family and school life: A cross-sectional study from Guangdong province in China. PLoS One, 7: e38619.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wentzel, K. R. (2009). Peers relationships and motivation at school. In Rubin, K. H., Bukowski, W. M. and Laursen, B. P. (Eds.), Handbook of peer interactions, relationships, and groups (pp. 531–547). New York: Guilford.Google Scholar
Whitney, I. and Smith, P. K. (1993). A survey of the nature and extent of bullying in junior/middle and secondary schools. Educational Research, 35, 3–25.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zeng, Y. (2010). Social Behaviors and Academic Achievement as Correlates of Peer Victimization among Chinese Adolescents: Peer Relationships as Mediators and Moderators (in Chinese). Shandong: Unpublished Master’s thesis, Shandong Normal University.Google Scholar
Zeng, Y., Chen, L., Tian, L. M., and Zhang, W. X. (2010). Shyness-sensitivity, social preference and adolescents’ physical victimization (in Chinese). Psychological Science, 33, 689–700.Google Scholar
Zhang, W. X. (2002). Prevalence and major characteristics of bullying/victimization among primary and junior middle school children (in Chinese). Acta Psychologica Sinica, 34, 387–394.Google Scholar
Zhang, W. X., Chen, L., Ji, L. Q., and Zhang, L. L. (2009). Physical and relational victimization, and children’s emotional adjustment in middle childhood (in Chinese). Acta Psychologica Sinica, 41, 433–443.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zhang, W. X., Gu, C. H., Wang, M. P., and Wang, Y. W., Jones, K. (2000). Gender differences in the bully/victim problem among primary and junior middle school students (in Chinese). Psychological Science, 23, 435–511.Google Scholar
Zhang, W. X. and Ju, Y. C. (2008). Intervention research on bullying of pupils in primary schools. Educational Research (in Chinese), 2, 95–99.Google Scholar
Zhang, W. X., Wang, L. P., Gong, X. L., Wu, J. F., and Zhang, K. (2002). Children’s attitude toward bullying in school (in Chinese). Psychological Science, 25, 226–227.Google Scholar
Zhang, W. X., Wang, Y. W., Ju, Y. C., and Lin, C. D. (2001). Types of bullying behavior and its correlates (in Chinese). Psychological Development and Education, 17, 12–17.Google Scholar
Zhang, W. X., Wu, J. F., and Cheng, X. (1999). The review of child bullying research in foreign countries (in Chinese). Journal of Developments in Psychology, 7, 37–42.Google Scholar
Zhang, W. X., Wu, J. F., and Jones, K. (1999). The modification of a Chinese version of the Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire (in Chinese). Psychological Development and Education, 15, 7–11.Google Scholar
Zhu, B. and Lei, L. (2005). The relationship between perceptions of control and victimization of adolescents (in Chinese). Psychological Development and Education, 21, 91–95.Google Scholar
Zhu, X. X. (2005). The relationship between school climate and bullying perceived by junior middle school students (in Chinese). Shandong: Unpublished Master’s thesis, Shandong Normal University.Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×