Association of Different Forms of Child Maltreatment With Peer Victimization in Mexican Children and Adolescents

Abstract

Objective: To examine the relationship between exposure to multiple forms of child abuse and neglect within the family context and peer victimization at school, accounting for the moderator effect of sex and educational level.Methods: Two thousand four hundred fifteen children and adolescents, aged 9 to 15 years, attending public schools in Mexico completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire-Short Form and a modified version of the Olweus' Bully/Victim Questionnaire. We used linear regression models to assess the association of five different forms of child abuse (emotional, physical, and sexual abuse, and emotional and physical negligence) with three forms of peer victimization (direct, indirect, and cyberbullying).Results: Direct forms of child abuse within the family (i.e., emotional, physical, and sexual abuse), but not neglect, were significantly and positively associated with a risk for peer victimization. In the fully adjusted models, emotional abuse was significantly associated with the three types of peer victimization: [indirect b = 0.48, t = 6.75, p < 0.001, direct (b = 0.47, t = 4.89, p < 0.001), and cyberbullying (b = 0.85, t = 5.45, p < 0. 001)]; while physical abuse was positive and significantly associated with direct victimization (b = 0.29, t = 3.28, p < 0.001). Boys suffering from sexual abuse within the family context showed higher levels of all subtypes of peer victimization. Students attending secondary school who suffered from sexual abuse showed higher levels of indirect victimization than did students attending primary schools.Conclusion: Child abuse within the family context seems to be associated with the risk of peer victimization. Preventive strategies to address bullying and promote resilience should take family factors into account. Interventions for high-risk families might be useful to prevent child multi-victimization.

Childhood trauma, peer victimization, and non-suicidal self-injury among Chinese adolescents: a latent variable mediation analysis

“…D. W. Winnicott, a leading psychologist, argued that the formation and development of interpersonal relationships are largely affected by the relationship between the child and their main caregivers in early childhood [ 73 ]. Several recent studies have also reported that childhood trauma (maltreatment) in the family context is associated with later peer victimization [ 74 ]. Adolescents who have experienced childhood trauma may generalize the non-adaptive behaviors they learned from childhood to their extra-familial interactions, resulting in them being regarded as targets for bullying by peer groups [ 75 ].…”

Peer Status as a Potential Risk or Protective Factor: A Latent Profile Analysis on Peer Status and Its Association with Internalizing Symptoms in Adolescents with and without Parental Physical Abuse Experience

“…Therefore, it can be assumed that the adolescents in the rejected-unpopular profiles did not undergo resilient development regarding peer relationships. One possible explanation could be, as Martin-Babarro et al [113] hypothesized, that a lack of a supportive environment in families experiencing abuse might compromise building resilience. To date, research on peer relationships has focused on sociological and educational perspectives, although a resilience theory perspective could potentially provide meaningful information on protective factors for youth who struggle with peer rejection [114].…”

Childhood adversities and risk of posttraumatic stress disorder and major depression following a motor vehicle collision in adulthood

“…It is noteworthy in this regard that emotional abuse, the CA selected as most important by lasso, had the highest RR in the univariable frequency models and a comparatively high prevalence. Prior research has shown that emotionally abused children are often also bullied by peers (Holt et al ., 2008 ; Martín-Babarro et al ., 2021 ). This is consistent with the high correlation in AURORA between emotional abuse and bullying (online Supplementary Table S1).…”