Open research questions in Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression

What the literature leaves open

• While evidence suggests that the CVE-aggression link may be bidirectional, few studies have examined this bidirectional association and gender differences for older African American adolescents.

  The Reciprocal Effects of Community Violence Exposure and Aggression Among African American Adolescents · 2026 · DOI

• Future studies are needed to depict detailed characteristics of BV-FGIDs co-variation, and to preliminarily corroborate Page 13 of 16 49 the effectiveness of anti-bullying intervention in preventing subsequent pediatric FGIDs.

  Longitudinal Association Between Bullying Victimization and Pediatric Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders (FGIDs) in Chinese Adolescents: Trajectories and Bidirectional Associations · 2026 · DOI

• The current longitudinal study addressed critical gaps in the literature on BV during adolescence by employing a person- centered approach to identify heterogeneous developmen- tal trajectories and examining their co-development and bidirectional associations with pediatric FGIDs in a large sample of Chinese adolescents.

  Longitudinal Association Between Bullying Victimization and Pediatric Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders (FGIDs) in Chinese Adolescents: Trajectories and Bidirectional Associations · 2026 · DOI

• Future research should consider multi-informant data, such as teacher assessments, peer nominations, or behavioral observations. , 2021), and future research could explore how subtype-specific individual– classroom incongruence relates to adjustment outcomes.

  The (In)Congruence of Individual and Classroom Bullying Victimization: Implications for Adolescent Internalizing and Externalizing Problems and the Moderating Role of Moral Disengagement · 2026 · DOI

• The search for social hierarchy and identity development efforts during adolescence have made this age group a primary target for academic studies on peer bullying. However, the concentration of doctoral- level academic interest in these levels brings the risk that preschool and primary school periods are not sufficiently represented. New studies to be conducted should focus on preschool and primary school levels, where peer bullying can be prevented before it becomes chronic, which will be very important both for filling the theoretical gap and for developing more effective prevention strategies. Therefore, future doctoral dissertations may focus on earlier childhood periods in order to understand the origins of peer bullying. In particular, increasing longitudinal studies may contribute to a better understanding of the long-term effects of peer bullying on the individual. On the other hand, the lack of parent and teacher samples in doctoral dissertations written on peer bullying in the fields of “education and training” and “psychology” between 2021 and 2025 may be interpreted as a lack of academic guidance on how teachers should respond in crisis situations or how families should support their children. Future studies may be designed to identify the attitudes and training needs of adults (parents and teachers) who play a key role in the prevention of bullying. In addition, although the increase in variable diversity shows that the field is becoming richer, it is observed that most studies focus on individual psychological characteristics. In future research, environmental variables such as family functions, school climate, teacher attitudes, digital media use, cultural factors, and social support systems may be addressed within more holistic models. Furthermore, it may be recommended to increase mixed-method research. Because while quantitative studies provide information about the prevalence of peer bullying, related variables, and statistical dimensions, qualitative studies can contribute to a deeper understanding of students’ bullying experiences, emotions, and lived experiences. The use of these two methods together may allow a more comprehensive evaluation of the multidimensional nature of peer bullying. Finally, in line with the findings of the study, it may be recommended to expand intervention programs aimed at preventing peer bullying in educational institutions. In addition, training activities may be organized to raise awareness among teachers, school psychological counselors, and families about peer bullying.

  Peer Bullying in the Disciplines of Education and Psychology: A Thematic Analysis of Doctoral Dissertations (2021–2025) · 2026 · DOI

• Based on the findings of this systematic review, several recommendations can be proposed for research, policy, and practice. First, future research should move beyond the predominant use of cross-sectional survey designs by incorporating longitudinal and intervention-based methodologies. Such approaches would enable a deeper understanding of causal mechanisms underlying teacher victimization and allow for the evaluation of prevention and intervention strategies over time. Second, greater emphasis should be placed on institutional and governance-level variables. Future studies should examine factors such as administrative responses, reporting procedures, disciplinary policies, and accountability mechanisms, which remain underrepresented in the current literature. Integrating these dimensions would contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of how school systems shape teachers’ experiences of victimization. Third, researchers are encouraged to expand the geographic scope of studies on teacher victimization. The strong concentration of research in a limited number of countries highlights the need for greater representation of diverse educational contexts. Comparative and cross-national research would be particularly valuable in identifying how cultural, institutional, and policy differences influence patterns of violence against teachers. International Journal of Educational Methodology  147 Finally, from a practical perspective, schools and policymakers should prioritize interventions targeting student- perpetrated verbal aggression, which emerges as the most frequently reported form of teacher victimization. At the same time, strengthening administrative support systems, improving reporting mechanisms, and promoting positive school climate initiatives are essential steps toward enhancing teacher safety and well-being.

  Teacher Victimization in Schools: A Systematic Review of Quantitative Research on Violence Against Teachers (2015–2026) · 2026 · DOI

• This study sheds light on Muscle Dysmorphic Disorder, an understudied aspect of physical concern in adolescents and brings supportive evidence on higher levels of MDD among adolescents’ victim of bullying and with history of abuse.

  Association between Bullying Victimization and Child Abuse and Muscle Dysmorphic Disorder among Lebanese Adolescents: the Co-moderating Effect of Social Support and Mindfulness · 2026 · DOI

• Results of this study, though addressing a major gap in the literature revolving around teens mental health, should be taken with caution. First, the data was collected using a snowball sampling technique with an inability to retrieve the refusal rate, which might produce response bias. More specifically, the use of snowball sampling may limit the generalizability of the findings, as the sample might over- represent certain social or geographic groups. Future studies could employ stratified random sampling or other probabil- ity-based methods to ensure a more representative sample of Lebanese adolescents. Second, the cross-sectional design does not allow causation to be inferred. Third, the sole uti- lization of retrospective self-report to assess early experi- ences of abuse and bullying might have resulted in recall biases and/or unintentional measurement errors. Finally, other variables that may influence MDD were not evaluated, Journal of Child & Adolescent Trauma1 3 thus, the likelihood of residual confounding bias must be mentioned. Despite these limitations, results remain none- theless credible with the use of validated scales and as such should be generalized with care. Programs targeting mental health support, mindful stress management, and resilience-building in schools and com- munity settings could help mitigate the downstream impact of abuse on psychological and physical health.

  Association between Bullying Victimization and Child Abuse and Muscle Dysmorphic Disorder among Lebanese Adolescents: the Co-moderating Effect of Social Support and Mindfulness · 2026 · DOI

• Therefore, the cur- rent study aimed to fill this significant gap in the literature by examining the role of PTSD, MDD, and anxiety disorders on the link between physical victimization and gang membership.

  The Role of Physical Victimization and Mental Health on Adolescents’ Gang Membership · 2026 · DOI

• The current study has several important strengths. To the authors’ knowledge, it is the first to investigate mental health problems beyond PTSD as possible mechanisms facilitating the association between physical victimization and youth gang membership. In addition, the data for the current study was drawn from a large representative sample of incarcerated ado- lescents across all 50 states and, therefore, has a higher chance of generalizing to the broader juvenile justice population in the United States than studies based on small, localized samples. However, there are also several limitations that should be taken into consideration. Most notably, questionnaires were admin- istered at a single time point and questions were phrased in a way that did not help clarify temporal ordering (e.g., physical abuse prior to the current facility stay, gang membership prior to current facility stay, and previous diagnoses of disorders). Therefore, the study’s design is cross-sectional, and no causal inferences can be drawn. It is equally as likely, for example, that youth with a history of gang membership are more likely Journal of Child & Adolescent Trauma (2026) 19:159–1701 3 to both experience physical victimization and mental health difficulties as a result of routine gang activity. This is a major limitation, and research studies seeking to examine the bidi- rectional effects of trauma exposure, mental health, and youth gang membership are crucial. There are other limitations inherent to the measures used. Almost all constructs were assessed with a single self-report item, making them more vulnerable to error and less reliable due to recall bias. Additionally, as a result of mental health disorders being assessed by asking youth about past diagnoses made by professionals, the prevalence rates of PTSD, MDD, and anxiety disorders may have been artificially lowered due to youth having inadequate access to healthcare providers prior to incarceration. Further, not all mental health providers inform clients of their diagnoses, thus, some youth may have been unaware of their past mental health histories, even if they have received previous care. In addition, the question regarding anxiety was assessing a diverse number of anxiety disorders, making the impact of this variable difficult to examine. Further, the dichotomous way of measuring mental health precluded the examination of the effects of specific cluster symptoms. It is also important to note that, although there were significant effects of demographic factors (e.g., sex, race and ethnicity) on main variables of interest, the current study did not analyze how the proposed paths may be moderated by these factors. In light of the demographic differences, future research should examine potential moderating effects based on demographic characteristics. Lastly, there are likely to be other crucial factors that may precipitate gang membership that were not included in the current model. For instance, beyond physical victimiza- tion, trauma exposure in general has been linked to youth gang involvement. Thus, future empirical work should consider the relations between gang involvement and other victimization experiences, both broadly and specifically.

  The Role of Physical Victimization and Mental Health on Adolescents’ Gang Membership · 2026 · DOI

• The current study suggests several promising directions for future research. First, robust, longitudinal studies are sorely needed in order to firmly establish patterns of continuity and change in youth gang involvement in relation to trauma exposure and mental health symptoms. These longitudinal studies would do well to examine points of both continu- ity and discontinuity in gang involvement, and particularly to evaluate the role that trauma exposure and downstream mental health symptoms play in youths’ decisions to disen- gage from gangs after periods of membership. Although the current study showed that some mental health disorders may help to negatively or positively facili- tate the association between physical victimization and gang involvement, it is possible that other diagnoses not explored in this study, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder 167 or borderline personality disorder, may also exert mediating effects. Further, future researchers might test whether the current results extend to types of adversity or trauma not examined in the current study. These might include com- munity violence, traumatic loss, and perpetration trauma, all of which have been linked to increased rates of youth gang involvement (see Kerig et al., 2024a). Future studies should also employ more sensitive measures of mental health conditions that assess the severity of partici- pants’ symptoms on a continuous scale, rather than simply relying on reports of past diagnoses. In fact, it will be ben- eficial to move beyond categorical diagnoses and to examine how clusters or unique profiles of mental health symptoms are associated with gang-joining and gang membership. Similarly, future research would benefit from utilizing more comprehensive measures of gang involvement, such as gang embeddedness, rather than dichotomous self-reported gang membership. Finally, future studies should investigate how detention in a juvenile justice facility influences gang status. It would be particularly illuminating to determine whether risk factors for institutional and community gang involve- ment are equivalent, as well as whether incarceration itself is a facilitator or disruptor of gang involvement.

  The Role of Physical Victimization and Mental Health on Adolescents’ Gang Membership · 2026 · DOI

• There are several limitations to this study that warrant discussion. First, the sample of participants in this study was a majority of adolescents from the same region, a suburban Midwestern town in the U.S. Generalizing the quantitative results should be done with caution, as this sample likely does not represent the national or international population of adolescents. Further, very little is known about the school districts from which participants were recruited on social media; therefore, determining systemic differences among participants and interpreting how results may have been influenced by these differences are difficult. Future researchers may consider recruiting a more diverse sample to understand how a more diverse group of adolescents would respond to microaggressive social media posts. Second, we relied on self-report measures and used an operational definition of intervening that was limited to “respond to this post” that may not have captured the most accurate allyship behavior. We aimed to examine behavior using self-report measures, and this method may not accurately capture what an adolescent might actually do when scrolling through their social media timeline. Although prompted to think of the post as from someone from school and with the account labeled as “friendfromschool123,” this stimulus was simply a simulation. The intention-behavior gap (i.e., following through on a goal you intend to achieve; Sheeran & Webb, 2016) may be a factor, as individuals who intend to engage in a behavior (e.g., intervening on a microaggressive social media post) may not actually follow through with that behavior (Sheeran & Webb, 2016). Research demonstrates that when individuals have an actionable goal and monitor progress toward that goal, the intention-behavior gap decreases (Sheeran & Webb, 2016), further pointing to the need for education and intervention about microaggressions. Also worth mentioning, participants who answered that they would intervene, yet responded to the open-ended question in support of the colorblind post, might not be considered allies, which points to the limitation of how “ally” was defined for this study. Although endorsement of any type of intervention was considered “ally behavior” for this study, we know that colorblind attitudes and comments are harmful to racially minoritized people (Sue et al., 2007). Future researchers may utilize behavioral observations or experimental designs to assess bystander behavior and intention of intervening. Third, another limitation of this study is the lack of access to policies at participants’ schools. A thorough analysis of school policies may help future researchers understand specific areas of improvement that may encourage more appropriate bystander behavior.

  Bystander or Ally?: Predictors of Adolescent Behavior in Response to Microaggressions on Social Media · 2026 · DOI

• Despite extensive research on the risks of bullying within school mental health, very few studies have examined school counselors’ self-efficacy in addressing bullying in mainstream schools. However, there remains a notable gap in the literature regarding school counselor’s self-efficacy in addressing bullying in mainstream schools.

  School counselors’ self-efficacy in addressing bullying of students with disabilities in mainstream schools: predictors and implications · 2026 · DOI

• Abu Dhabi has developed a National Bullying Prevention Strategy (NBPS), but its structure, stakeholder roles, and alignment with global best practices remain underexplored.

  Mapping stakeholders of the National Bullying Prevention Strategy in Abu Dhabi with document analysis—a qualitative and comparative study · 2026 · DOI

• The current research adopts the questionnaire survey para- digm. This method enables the collection of a large amount of data, which is conducive to exploring the complex cor- relations among multiple variables. However, it also has limitations such as social expectation bias. During the investigation of children’s adversity variables, the social expectation effect can influence the objective responses of parents. For example, the relatively infrequent occurrence of ACEs, such as parental death (0.3%), and bullying behaviors (with only 6.4% of children reported as engaging in bullying) could reduce statistical power. The measurement of reported bullying behavior in the current study may also have biases from the teachers. Bour- dieu’s “social reproduction” theory requires us to examine the generation process of reported behaviors. As gatekeep- ers of the educational field, teachers may have class biases in their evaluations (Hamre, 2014). Teachers with middle- class backgrounds may be more likely to regard the con- flicts of children with a good family education (high cultural capital) as “assertive behavior” and define similar behaviors from children with a high ACEs background as “bullying” (Darjan et al., 2020). This “misidentification” forms a form of symbolic violence: when children with adversity habits enter the field, because they cannot provide the required “gentle” behavior, they are labeled by the teachers, and the feedback to parents is reported back, completing the nega- tive reproduction of social status. Therefore, when inter- preting the data, we must admit that “reported bullying behavior” is both a reflection of the children’s real behavior and the result of the operation of field power. And this bias may lead to an overestimation of the association between adversity and reported bullying behavior. In addition, we must also state that the quantitative research paradigm adopted in the current study cannot draw causal conclusions. There is a certain correlation between childhood adversity and bullying behavior, but it cannot be simply assumed that childhood adversity necessarily leads to bullying behavior. However, the correlation between the two is still worthy of continuous and in-depth research. Future research can adopt a more direct way to measure children’s bullying behavior to overcome the biases in teacher observation and parent reports. Regarding the research topic of whether there is a causal relationship between childhood adversity and bullying behavior, future research is necessary to adopt a longitu- dinal research paradigm and conduct further exploration through long-term observation. Last, the data is sourced exclusively from a city in southern China, which may limit the generalizability of the findings due to potential urban-rural and regional cultural differences.

  Associations of ACEs with Bully Perpetration among Chinese Kindergarten Children: A Large-scale Sample Study · 2026 · DOI

• Approximately one-third (33 %) of the KiVa teams did not respond at all to the questionnaire during the six years of the study. Therefore, data from 738 registered KiVa schools were lacking. We do not know whether these schools implemented the targeted intervention discussions and, if so, which approach they used. The data analyzed in this study came from schools that were free to choose between different approaches rather than instructed to use one or the other. It might be that certain types of schools were more likely to choose some specific approach, and that the effectiveness of the chosen approach depended more on the features of those schools than on the approach itself. For instance, the schools that are most committed to antibullying work might be most likely to follow the guidelines and use the recommended approaches. However, many schools varied the approach they used across the study years, and therefore this should not have affected the results to a large extent. Also, only 12–17 % of the variation in perceived effectiveness was due to differences between schools. The data used in this study lacked information about what was done when the schools used their own adaptation and why they used them. In future studies, investigating the type of adaptations schools made to the recommended approaches and the reasons for these adaptations APPROACHES TO TACKLING BULLYING would increase our understanding of the link between fidelity of implementation and 20 effectiveness of targeted interventions. The present study focused on the perceived effectiveness - by personnel and by students - of the used approaches. It did not consider strictly objective measures of whether the bullying had stopped. Finally, the approaches recommended in the program were limited to a confronting and a non-confronting one – other strategies, such as the restorative approach (Morrison 2002), or direct sanctions (Thompson and Smith 2011) were thus not considered in this study. A thorough investigation of the relative effectiveness of different antibullying strategies would include comparisons among a wider variety of methods.

  An evaluation of emergency pain assessment and management practices in fragility vertebral compression fractures · 2026 · DOI

• interventions were counter cyberbullying that could be translated into policies and the participants, many of which concur with those given in previous studies on cyberbullying. At the policy and level, the need for effective reporting mechanisms to counter cyberbullying on social-media platforms was expressed. Most participants agreed on the importance of anticyberbullying awareness campaigns that explain the forms, dangers, and consequences of cyberbullying. This finding is especially relevant as many families, educators, and even students appear not to fully understand its impact.

  THE EFFECTS OF CYBERBULLYING ON SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN RIYADH: A QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY · 2026 · DOI

• acknowledged. First, as it focused solely on the experiences of students in relation to cyberbullying, the input of parents and teachers was not included. Future studies could adopt a wider sample of participants to produce more rounded results by taking these stakeholders into account. Second, as the current study was limited to secondary school students in Riyadh, the findings cannot be usefully generalized to other educational contexts in Saudi Arabia. Accordingly, the researcher recommends that future studies target victims of cyberbullying across different educational stages in Saudi Arabia. Third, investigate cyberbullies themselves or their online behaviors in terms of their characteristics and the factors that drive them to engage in cyberbullying. Therefore, future studies could include cyberbullies and school personnel, such as teachers, school counselors, and parents, to gain a better understanding of those perpetrating cyberbullying. Finally, the researcher believes that future studies could benefit from incorporating a complementary secondary research instrument that analyses instances of cyberbullying experienced by participants.

  THE EFFECTS OF CYBERBULLYING ON SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN RIYADH: A QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY · 2026 · DOI

• Abstract Background Previous studies indicated that perceived hostile intention may mediate the link between traumatic experiences and aggressive behaviors, but the longitudinal associations between posttraumatic stress (PTS) and reactions to perceived provocation in adolescents have been underexplored.

  Posttraumatic stress, perceived hostile intention and reactions to peer provocation: A longitudinal study in US inner‐city youth · 2025 · DOI

• This paper introduces the development and validation of the Dimensions of Teacher Discipline Inventory (DTDI), addressing the gap in research on the spectrum of teacher disciplinary practices beyond corporal punishment and psychological aggression.

  The dimensions of teacher discipline inventory (DTDI): development and initial validation · 2025 · DOI

• Furthermore, it remains unclear whether the nature, extent, and etiology of cyberbullying victim-offender overlap have significantly changed since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, an extraordinary time when youth spent a substantial amount of time online.

  Cyberbullying Victim-Offender Overlap Among Chinese College Students: Comparing the Predictive Effects Across Criminological Factors · 2025 · DOI

• Based on the discussed implications of this study, the following states the recommendations for policy and intervention strategies: 1. Address the Awareness-Perception Gap  Develop educational programs that dispel myths and inaccurate portrayals of gangs, focusing on the realities 2. Pedersen ML. Gang joining in Denmark: prevalence and correlates of street gang membership.

  Understanding Gang Dynamics: Exploring Prevalence and Student Perceptions among High School Students · 2024 · DOI

• We found that university students were concerned about a lack of available initiatives, and they identified several barriers, including a lack of cyberbullying conversations occurring on campus, limited knowledge about the impacts of cyberbullying on university students, and stigmatization associated with cybervictimization, which made it difficult for students to openly talk about their experiences.

  The perspective of university students on the availability and effectiveness of cyberbullying prevention and response initiatives on campus: Virtual semi-structured interviews on resources, barriers, and solutions · 2023 · DOI

• Most studies used a short-term longitudinal approach and, in particular, longitudinal studies on the link between MD loci and bullying and the link between classroom collective MD and bullying were scarce.

  Longitudinal link between moral disengagement and bullying among children and adolescents: A systematic review · 2023 · DOI

• However, the susceptibility of LBC to engage in bullying is controversial, and comprehensive, representative studies covering the entire country are lacking.

  The Prevalence and Severity of School Bullying among Left-Behind Children: A Meta-Analysis · 2023 · DOI

Most-cited papers in Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression

• Online aggressor/targets, aggressors, and targets: a comparison of associated youth characteristics · Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry · 2004 · 847 citations
• Peer Victimization: Cause or Consequence of School Maladjustment? · Child Development · 1996 · 758 citations
• Associations Between Overweight and Obesity With Bullying Behaviors in School-Aged Children · PEDIATRICS · 2004 · 631 citations
• Social cognition and bullying: Social inadequacy or skilled manipulation? · British Journal of Developmental Psychology · 1999 · 447 citations
• Prospective linkages between peer victimization and externalizing problems in children: a meta-analysis · Aggressive Behavior · 2010 · 408 citations
• Bullying Victimization Uniquely Contributes to Adjustment Problems in Young Children: A Nationally Representative Cohort Study · PEDIATRICS · 2006 · 401 citations
• Homophobic Teasing, Psychological Outcomes, and Sexual Orientation Among High School Students: What Influence Do Parents and Schools Have? · School Psychology Review · 2008 · 339 citations
• Bullying and victimization of primary school children in England and Germany: Prevalence and school factors · British Journal of Psychology · 2001 · 331 citations
• Engagement in gender normative versus nonnormative forms of aggression: Links to social-psychological adjustment. · Developmental Psychology · 1997 · 330 citations
• Examining the Applicability of Lifestyle-Routine Activities Theory for Cybercrime Victimization · Deviant Behavior · 2008 · 319 citations

Most recent work

• Cognitive mechanisms underlying within-person changes in aggression among adolescents: The roles of positive outcome expectancies and moral disengagement · European Journal of Personality · 2026
• Cyberbullying among high school students: digital literacy as a protective factor? · Social Psychology of Education · 2026
• Reshaping Digital Social Reality in the AI Era: A Data-Driven Analysis of University Students’ Exposure to Digital Harassment in Emerging Countries · Societies · 2026
• Bullying in education · OECD education working papers · 2026
• Associations between self-compassion and interpersonal behaviours among adolescents during COVID-19: examining the role of gender · Australian Psychologist · 2026
• The Evolution of Cyberbullying Definitions in the Digital Age: A Systematic Review of Defining Attributes and Conceptual Synthesis · Journal of Technology in Human Services · 2026
• Perceived Adults’ Responses to School Bullying and Students’ Bystander Behaviors: The Role of Parents, Teachers, and School Administrators · Journal of School Violence · 2026
• Bias-Based Bullying: The Role of Support Systems for Young Persons with Disabilities · Journal of the Society for Social Work and Research · 2026
• Exploring the Links Between Bullying Victimization and Suicidal Ideation for Secondary Students with Disabilities: The Mediating Role of Mental Health · School Mental Health · 2026
• Inconsistencies of prevalence rates of (cyber)bullying and (cyber)victimization in large-scale cross-national datasets: Country trumps definition · International Journal of Developmental Science · 2026

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