Child abuse & neglect
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Child abuse & neglect · Jan 2015
Multicenter StudyBullying among school-age children in the greater Beirut area: risk and protective factors.
This study investigated the prevalence of bullying at schools in the Greater Beirut Area and the extent to which differences in children's sociodemographics, family and school environment, and coping strategies could account for variation in academic achievement, PTSD and emotional and behavioral disorders. Participants were 665 male and female children of mean age 13.8 years. Results indicated that a high proportion of children had been involved in bullying on a regular basis with victims having a higher prevalence ratio than bullies and bully/victims. ⋯ School bullying was not associated with academic achievement or with having difficulties in reading and math. Children who were identified as bully/victim, victim, and bully suffered from PTSD compared to those who were not identified as being involved in bullying The study showed that both bullies and victims are at-risk for short term and long-term adjustment difficulties including hyperactivity, emotional symptoms, conduct problems and peer problems. Child's gender and emotion-focused coping stood out as risk factors for the development of bullying behaviors whereas age, problem-focused coping, family environment, and school environment were significant protective factors.
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Child abuse & neglect · Jan 2015
Online social support as a buffer against online and offline peer and sexual victimization among U.S. LGBT and non-LGBT youth.
In today's technology-infused world, we need to better understand relationships youth form with friends online, how they compare to relationships formed in-person, and whether these online relationships confer protective benefits. This is particularly important from the perspective of peer victimization, given that social support in-person appears to reduce the odds of victimization in-person. To address this literature gap, data from a sample of 5,542 U. ⋯ Online social support did not reduce the odds of any type of victimization assessed. Together, these findings suggest that online friends can be an important source of social support, particularly for LGBT youth. Nonetheless, in-person social support appears to be more protective against victimization, suggesting that one is not a replacement for the other.