Bullying and cyberbullying in Polish elementary and middle schools: Validation of questionnaires and nature of the phenomena

Research on bullying and cyberbullying is advancing at the international level, but there are some geographic areas where the number of studies on these topics still needs to be increased. More research about bullying and cyberbullying is needed in Poland and validated questionnaires to measure these two aggressive behaviors could be useful. This study was conducted with 1052 Polish elementary and middle school students. Two European questionnaires to measure bullying and cyberbullying were validated and different bullying behaviors and roles were described. It was found that rates of bullying and cyberbullying in Poland are high. Bullying is more prevalent than cyberbullying. Bullying victimization was more prevalent in girls and in younger children when compared to boys and adolescents. Bullying perpetration and being a bully/victim were more prevalent in boys and adolescents when compared to girls and younger children. Involvement in any cyberbullying role was more prevalent in adolescents than in younger children. Being a cyberbully/victim was more prevalent in boys, and no gender differences were found in other cyberbullying roles. There was a strong overlap between bullying and cyberbullying. Results of this study have implications for policy and practice and show that anti-bullying programs in Poland are needed.