Abstract
This study investigates the complex relationships between personality traits, bullying perpetration, and victimization among Chinese adolescents, emphasizing the moderating role of sex. Data from 2,342 participants across two educational institutions in China were analyzed using Bayesian Gaussian Graphical Model (BGGM) to identify variable-level network structures among specific personality traits, bullying perpetration, and victimization across different sexes. The findings reveal a consistent inhibitory role of Agreeableness and Conscientiousness on both bullying perpetration and victimization. In contrast, the effects of Openness, Neuroticism, and Extraversion on bullying dynamics are inconsistent. Additionally, a significant overlap between bullying perpetration and victimization was observed, with most types of bullying being positively correlated. The network structure also indicates significant sex differences, suggesting that sex not only moderates the relationships between personality traits and bullying behaviors but also between specific types of bullying perpetration and victimization. These results underscore the importance of psychological network analysis in revealing complex patterns within bullying phenomena and advocate for its expanded use to achieve a deeper understanding of the issue.
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The dataset for this specific manuscript is available from the corresponding author upon reasonable requests.
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This study was supported by Major Project of The National Social Science Fund of China (Grant No. 19ZDA324) and the Project of Social Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (Grant No. 21XWC010).
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Conceptualization: YX, ZM; Data curation: YX, ZM; Formal analysis: ZM; Funding acquisition: ZM; Investigation: T-HL; Methodology: ZM; Project administration: T-HL, ZM; Writing—original draft: YX, HS, ZM; and Writing—review & editing: YX, HS, T-HL.
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Xia, Y., Sun, H., Liu, TH. et al. Understanding the relations between personality traits, bullying perpetration, and victimization among Chinese adolescents: a psychological network analysis. Curr Psychol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-024-06029-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-024-06029-x