The association between social environment and school bullying among middle school students: a mixed-methods study.
- 1School of Public Health, Shantou University, Shantou, 515041, China.
- 2School of Public Health, Shantou University, Shantou, 515041, China. [email protected].
- 3Local Government Development Research Institute, Shantou University, Shantou, Guangdong Province, China. [email protected].
Abstract
Background
Adolescent bullying does not occur in a vacuum but is tied to experiences across peer, family, school, and broader social contexts. Employing an ecological perspective, this study used a mixed-methods approach to examine the associations among ecological environmental factors and bullying victimization (BV), bullying perpetration (BP), and bystander emotional reactions (BR) among Chinese middle school students.Methods
We adopted a partially sequential mixed-methods design with a complementary purpose. Quantitative data were collected via questionnaires distributed to 411 students (378 valid cases) at a single middle school, with instruments measuring BV, BP, BR, and ecological environmental factors. Given the sparse distribution and strong right skew of BV and BP data, the current study adopted hurdle-type models to distinguish the occurrence and severity of bullying behaviors, with the false discovery rate (FDR) correction applied to coefficient-level statistical tests. BR was analyzed as a continuous outcome variable, and exploratory moderation analyses were conducted to further explore whether family support moderated the associations between negative peer experiences and bullying-related outcomes. Semi-structured interviews with 16 students were analyzed using inductive coding approach informed by grounded theory principles. Both quantitative and qualitative findings were integrated narratively during the interpretive stage of analysis.Results
The overall quantitative models predicting BV occurrence, BP occurrence, and BR were statistically significant. For BV and BP, several ecological variables showed significant unadjusted associations with the outcomes, but most of these associations failed to retain significance following FDR correction, and no stable associations were identified in the severity models. For the BR model, gender, parental academic expectations, school environment, and social environment remained significantly associated with BR after FDR correction. An exploratory interaction effect between negative peer experiences and family support was detected only for BP occurrence, which requires cautious explanatory framing. Qualitative findings revealed that students reported bullying-related experiences including peer, family, school, and broader social contexts. Their accounts highlighted peer conflict, social exclusion, behavioral imitation, family relationships, parental expectations, and teacher responses, while also revealing substantial variability in students' family support and school experiences.Conclusions
Based on data collected from a single school in China, ecological environmental factors demonstrated outcome-specific associations across bullying-related experiences. BR exhibited more consistent ecological correlates than BV or perpetration, suggesting that students' emotional responses to bullying situations warrant attention alongside their behavioral involvement. The qualitative data further illustrate how peer interactions, family expectations, school climate, and broader social influences intersect in students' accounts of bullying-related situations. These findings reflect correlational relationships, and further multi-site and longitudinal studies are needed to assess the robustness and generalizability of the present results.
Related
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- The association between perceived bullying in physical education classes and school satisfaction among middle school students: the mediating roles of physical activity enjoyment and physical education class happiness
- A mixed-methods study of depressive-symptom severity among Thai university students and the underestimated role of social media
- Physical Activity and Depressive Symptoms in Guangdong University Students: A Cross-Sectional Moderated Serial Indirect-Association Model Involving Self-Esteem, Positive Psychological Capital, and Perceived Social Support.
- Bullying/Victimization Experiences, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Mental Resilience and Self-Compassion in Adolescent Students
BibTeX
@article{zhu2026association,
title = {{The association between social environment and school bullying among middle school students: a mixed-methods study.}},
author = {Yuxin Zhu and Xiyu Lin and Chengzi Jiang and Xiaotong Cui and Jiasheng Li and Liping Li},
journal = {BMC public health},
year = {2026},
month = jul,
doi = {10.1186/s12889-026-28656-8},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42894137},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - The association between social environment and school bullying among middle school students: a mixed-methods study.
AU - Yuxin Zhu
AU - Xiyu Lin
AU - Chengzi Jiang
AU - Xiaotong Cui
AU - Jiasheng Li
AU - Liping Li
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/07/01
JO - BMC public health
DO - 10.1186/s12889-026-28656-8
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42894137
AB - Background Adolescent bullying does not occur in a vacuum but is tied to experiences across peer, family, school, and broader social contexts. Employing an ecological perspective, this study used a mixed-methods approach to examine the associations among ecological environmental factors and bullying victimization (BV), bullying perpetration (BP), and bystander emotional reactions (BR) among Chinese middle school students.Methods We adopted a partially sequential mixed-methods design with a complementary purpose. Quantitative data were collected via questionnaires distributed to 411 students (378 valid cases) at a single middle school, with instruments measuring BV, BP, BR, and ecological environmental factors. Given the sparse distribution and strong right skew of BV and BP data, the current study adopted hurdle-type models to distinguish the occurrence and severity of bullying behaviors, with the false discovery rate (FDR) correction applied to coefficient-level statistical tests. BR was analyzed as a continuous outcome variable, and exploratory moderation analyses were conducted to further explore whether family support moderated the associations between negative peer experiences and bullying-related outcomes. Semi-structured interviews with 16 students were analyzed using inductive coding approach informed by grounded theory principles. Both quantitative and qualitative findings were integrated narratively during the interpretive stage of analysis.Results The overall quantitative models predicting BV occurrence, BP occurrence, and BR were statistically significant. For BV and BP, several ecological variables showed significant unadjusted associations with the outcomes, but most of these associations failed to retain significance following FDR correction, and no stable associations were identified in the severity models. For the BR model, gender, parental academic expectations, school environment, and social environment remained significantly associated with BR after FDR correction. An exploratory interaction effect between negative peer experiences and family support was detected only for BP occurrence, which requires cautious explanatory framing. Qualitative findings revealed that students reported bullying-related experiences including peer, family, school, and broader social contexts. Their accounts highlighted peer conflict, social exclusion, behavioral imitation, family relationships, parental expectations, and teacher responses, while also revealing substantial variability in students' family support and school experiences.Conclusions Based on data collected from a single school in China, ecological environmental factors demonstrated outcome-specific associations across bullying-related experiences. BR exhibited more consistent ecological correlates than BV or perpetration, suggesting that students' emotional responses to bullying situations warrant attention alongside their behavioral involvement. The qualitative data further illustrate how peer interactions, family expectations, school climate, and broader social influences intersect in students' accounts of bullying-related situations. These findings reflect correlational relationships, and further multi-site and longitudinal studies are needed to assess the robustness and generalizability of the present results.
SN - 1471-2458
ER -