Why Peer Victimization?

Bullying in schools has been a topic of discussion for several years, and even though schools have focused on creating preventative measures, there still seems to be a lack of effective solutions to control the problem. Existing literature overall notes two forms of peer victimization, relational victimization and overt victimization. Relational victimization in this context, and in simpler terms, is when students are victims of social exclusion. This can be done through rumor spreading, gossiping, among other things. Overt victimization, on the other hand, is when students are victims of physical and verbal aggression. This can be done through pushing, shoving, calling names, and more. Even though there are several different approaches to anti-bullying treatments and school policies, research has proven that not every intervention is applicable to students (Vreeman & Carroll, 2007, p. 86). In fact, a cumulation of studies has shown that while one intervention might decrease bullying in one school, in other schools there can be no effect or sometimes promote more peer victimization among students (Vreeman & Carroll, 2007, p. 79). Not being able to properly control and treat this problem can harm these student victims emotionally, behaviorally, and academically.

Why Asian-Americans and Latinx Students?

It was found that “Approximately 60% of Latino and 70% of Asian youth live in families that have at least one parent who is a first-generation immigrant” (Hong et al., 2013, p. 319). Being that these two groups are the fastest-growing immigrant populations in the United States, both Asian and Latinx youth may be at a greater risk for mental health concerns as they encounter high levels of peer victimization due to factors such as lack of acculturation, and low socioeconomic status (Hong et al., 2013, p. 316). The literature revealed that schools with heavily populated recently immigrated families create for poor school climate, directly affecting these students. Not only are these students being targeted by their peers, but also by teachers and administrators who are not trained to effectively and efficiently teach these students. These same teachers and administrators have reported seeing these students as burdens due to their limited capabilities in the classroom when comparing them to their acculturated students (Hong et al., 2013, p. 320). Victimization from peers, lack of support from educators and administrators, and the lack of resources in these communities heavily limits the possibility of effective anti-bullying programs at their schools. As mentioned before, when victimization is not treated for, victimized students suffer the consequences through emotional, behavioral, and academic difficulties. With a lack of literature on peer victimization focusing on Asian-American and Latinx student samples independently from other ethnic/racial groups, we found it important to add to the existing literature with current data collected.

Materials

Materials used for this study included the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), a 25-item questionnaire, used to measure emotional problems and conduct problems on a 0 through 6 Likert scale, with 0 being not true and 6 being certainly true (Goodman, Meltzer, & Bailey, 1998).

Peer victimization was measured using the Aggression/Victimization Scale, a 12-item questionnaire measured on a 0 through 6 Likert scale, with 0 being zero times and 6 being six or more times. The scale measured how many times did a student experience peer victimization from peers at school (Dahlberg, Toal, Swahn, & Behrens, 2005).

Examples questions are provided