Impact of Bullying and Facts on Victims in Elementary Schools

Scientific Foundation SPIROSKI, Skopje, Republic of Macedonia

2022-01

en

Article

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BACKGROUND: Bullying is a serious problem for the mental health development of school-age children. The studies in Indonesia have reported how the impact of bullying causes children to experience stress and difficulty in building social relationships. AIM: This study aims to determine the impact and phenomenon of becoming victims of bullying in elementary schools in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. METHODS: This research used a mixed-method approach with a sequential explanatory design. The sampling technique used multistage random sampling. The sample population included 617 elementary school students who are in grades 4, 5, and 6. The quantitative data analysis used structural equation modeling (SEM) while the qualitative data analysis was based on the results of SEM analysis. RESULTS: The impact of bullying on victims is stressful and symptomatic. The victims reveal that they become depress, have poor performance, have difficulty in socializing, do not dare to report fear of being ostracized, fear to be the next victim, and advised by the teacher not to reply, be patient, and just let it go. The results are the victims complained they felt ugly, shy among friends, and reluctant to attend the class. Teacher assumes that bullying is ordinary mischief, just a joke that no specific actions are required. CONCLUSION: Bullying of elementary school students has a negative impact on their mental health and causes psychosocial problems. There is a tendency to become repeated victims, while the ambivalence of teachers makes victims more vulnerable to bullying.