Children Who Witness Violence at Home More Likely To Bully

A study by researchers at the University of Washington and Indiana University published in Pediatrics shows that children who have witnessed violence in the home are more likely to be bullies.

In a study of 112 children age 6 to 13, children were asked to self-report on their participation in physical (hitting, pushing and other physical violence) and relational bullying (teasing, non-physical cruelty) and victimization in the last year. Meanwhile, their parents were asked to report on their children's behaviors and the incidence of "intimate partner violence" in the home.

The study found a higher incidence of physical bullying among children who had experienced violence in the home than those who did not.

Interestingly, the study did not show a correlation between violence in the home and relational, or non-physical, bullying. The study also found that almost all (97.4%) of bullies had been victims of bullying themselves and that girls were more often bullies than boys, accounting for 61% of incidents.

Read more: Childhood Bullying Involvement and Exposure to Intimate Partner Violence
Abstract / Full Text / PDF