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Association between bullying and psychosomatic problems: a meta-analysis.
Gianluca Gini1, Tiziana Pozzoli
1Università di Padova, Dipartimento di Psicologia dello Sviluppo e della Socializzazione, Via Venezia, 8, 35131 Padova, Italy. gianluca.gini@unipd.it
Pediatrics
|March 4, 2009
Summary
Children involved in bullying, whether as victims, bullies, or bully-victims, face a significantly higher risk of psychosomatic problems. This highlights bullying as a critical public health concern.
Area of Science:
- Child and Adolescent Psychology
- Public Health
- Social Epidemiology
Background:
- Growing evidence links peer bullying to immediate and lasting negative health outcomes.
- Bullying is a prevalent issue affecting school-aged children globally.
Purpose of the Study:
- To conduct a meta-analysis quantifying the relationship between bullying involvement and psychosomatic complaints in school-aged children.
- To assess the risk of psychosomatic problems for victims, bullies, and bully-victims.
Main Methods:
- Systematic literature search of major databases (Embase, Medline, PsychInfo, Scopus) up to March 2008.
- Inclusion of 11 studies from an initial search of 19, meeting predefined criteria.
- Three random-effects meta-analyses were conducted for distinct bullying roles.
Main Results:
- A significantly elevated risk for psychosomatic problems was observed in victims, bullies, and bully-victims compared to uninvolved peers.
- The association was statistically significant across all three groups of children aged 7–16 years.
Conclusions:
- Bullying involvement is strongly associated with increased psychosomatic problems in children and adolescents.
- School bullying is a widespread global issue that warrants recognition as a significant international public health problem.
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