ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Bullying among students of secondary school occurs world-wide, among all the problems of secondary schools, none is as debilitating as bullying because of its effect on the bully and the victim as well. Bullying and victimization can be caught early and discouraged in children in the secondary school age group, however, the solutions to bullying are not simple. The approaches that show the most promise confront the issues from various angles. Focusing such approaches against bullying on just the victims will give less success than if psychosocial analysis and attention are not also given to the perpetrators.
OBJECTIVES: This study assessed the prevalence, knowledge of, attitude towards and perception of the causes and effects of bullying among female secondary school students in Benin-City, Edo State, Nigeria.
METHODOLOGY: An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted among 660 female secondary school students selected using a multi-stage sampling technique. Data was collected using a semi-structured self-administered questionnaire tool which was adapted from the Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire (OBVQ). Statistical analysis was done using the IBM SPSS version 25 software. Univariate and bivariate analyses were carried out for all variables. Multivariate analysis using binary logistic regression was done to determine the predictors of burnout. The level of significance was set at <0.050.
RESULTS: The mean age of respondents was 13.9 (± 1.4) years. Six hundred and nineteen (94.8%) and 34 (5.2%) of the respondents had good and poor knowledge of the concept of bullying respectively. There was a statistically significant association between age and knowledge (p=0.016). In relation to attitude, 491 (74.4%) and 169 (25.6%) of respondents had positive attitude and negative towards bullying respectively. Class and household size had a statistically significant association with attitude towards bullying (p<0.001 and p=0.009 respectively). Furthermore, 351 (53.2%) and 232 (65.1%) reported a lifetime and current xv prevalence of being bullied respectively. On the perpetration of bullying, 142 (21.5%) and 82 (42.3%) affirmed to being bullies in their lifetime and within the past six months respectively. Household size had a statistically significant association with being a victim of bullying (p=0.017). On causes of bullying, 444 (67.3%) chose peer pressure as a perceived cause of bullying, while 506 (84.9%) chose poor academic performance as a harmful effect of bullying.
CONCLUSION: The knowledge of the concept of bullying was very good among the female secondary school students. Majority of them acknowledged that bullying was not ideal and should be shunned. Recognizing and addressing the root causes of bullying and victimization is not just an ethical imperative but a vital step toward safeguarding the health status and general well-being of secondary school students.
