Transition From School Violence Victimization to Reporting Victimized Experiences: A Latent Transition Analysis

Area of Science:

• Adolescent Psychology
• Criminology
• Sociology

Background:

• School violence is a significant issue affecting youth well-being.
• Understanding the heterogeneity of school violence experiences is crucial.
• Existing research often overlooks the nuances of reporting behaviors linked to specific violence types.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the diverse profiles of school violence victimization among South Korean youth.
• To analyze the different patterns of reporting behaviors associated with these victimization profiles.
• To examine the role of social support in influencing students' decisions to report victimization.

Main Methods:

• Latent profile analysis (LPA) was used to identify distinct groups of violence victimization and reporting behaviors.
• Latent transition analysis (LTA) was employed to understand the transitions between violence profiles and reporting behaviors.
• Regression analysis examined the influence of social support (family, friends, teachers) on reporting.

Main Results:

• Five distinct school violence victimization profiles were identified: cyber, ostracization, verbal, high-level multiple-violence, and medium-level multiple-violence.
• Four reporting behavior profiles emerged: reporting to family/teachers, reporting to family/teachers/friends, actively reporting, and passively coping.
• Passive coping was the predominant reporting behavior across all victimization profiles; active reporting was consistently low.
• Social support from family and friends positively correlated with reporting, whereas teacher support did not show a significant association.

Conclusions:

• The type of school violence significantly influences reporting behaviors, necessitating tailored intervention strategies for different forms of violence.
• The low rate of active reporting highlights a critical need for improved support systems and reporting mechanisms in schools.
• Enhancing social support from family and peers can encourage more students to report victimization, suggesting a focus for school counselors and practitioners.