Problem behavior patterns of victims of school bullying in rural China: The role of intrapersonal and interpersonal resources

The present study aims to explore the clustered nature in problem behaviors of victims of school bullying and how the problem behavior patterns are associated with intrapersonal and interpersonal resources. Using a wave of cross-sectional data from rural China, 262 victims (aged 12 to 16) were identified through the Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire. Based on the nomination of twelve local experienced teachers and social workers, a list containing ten problem behaviors was compiled. Latent class modeling was applied to examine the latent structure of victims' problem behaviors. Three latent groups were identified according to the list, namely the externalizing and internalizing behaviors group (Class 1), the internalizing behaviors group (Class 2), and the less-affected group (Class 3). The associations between problem behavior patterns and intrapersonal and interpersonal resources were tested using multinomial regression modeling. We found that higher depressive symptoms, lower self-efficacy, not living with parents, and fewer helpful friends were associated with more likelihood of falling into the Class 1 and/or the Class 2, while perceived supports from teachers did not predict the problem behavior patterns of victims of school bullying. Results of the present study shed lights on the patterns of problem behaviors of victims in the developing world, providing a useful baseline from which future studies can further explore interventions for victims of school bullying with different patterns of problem behaviors.