Peer Aggression in Secundary School: Behavior typology and group differences

Abstract

This study examined the characteristics of adolescents including in four groups differing in their roles in victimization and aggression experiences at the school. The participants were 745 adolescents enrolled in compulsory secondary education (mean age = 14.27 years) who completed a self-report inventory on Victimisation and Aggression Experiences and a Peer Nomination Inventory. The typology of subjects was established by two-steps cluster analysis procedures, and the groups were identified as non-involved, victims, bullies, and aggressive victims. Grade and sex differences in aggression and victimization experiences were statistically significant. Comparisons of groups indicated significant differences in the most of variables: factors derived from the Scale of Victimisation and Aggression Experiences, attributes from the Peer Nomination Inventory, and sociometric status. Larger effects were consistently found for aggressive-victims group. The findings highlight the distinctiveness and theoretical importance of the aggressive-victim subgroup.