Emotional Intelligence as a Protective Factor against Victimization in School Bullying

Abstract

Previous research has identified the main predictors of being a victim of school bullying. This study focused on the phenomenon of school bullying and its relationship with self-perceived emotional intelligence. The main aim was to analyze the mediating effect of emotional attention, clarity, and repair in relation to school victimization. The sample was made up of 822 primary school pupils from 10 public schools. Data were collected through self-reports, exploring the profile of victims of school bullying, and the dimensions of self-perceived emotional intelligence (PEI). A multivariate analysis and multinomial regression showed a relationship between the two variables; the probability of being a victim of school bullying was 5.14 times higher among pupils with low clarity, 2.72 times higher among pupils with low repair, and 2.62 times higher among pupils with excessive attention. The results demonstrated that the better their emotional regulation and understanding, the less likely pupils are to be victims of school bullying. This confirmed that adequate emotional attention and excellent emotional clarity and repair are protective factors against victimization.

Emotional Intelligence and School Bullying Victimization in Children and Youth Students: A Meta-Analysis

“…Participants with lower EI were more likely to be bullied. This finding aligns with theories and research suggesting that emotional intelligence protects against bullying victimization in schools and that people with high EI are more likely to handle negative situations well than people with poor EI are [ 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 ]. The overall finding also echoes trait emotional intelligence theory [ 19 ] and emotion theories [ 15 , 16 ], in which high trait emotional intelligence motivates flexible coping behaviors at school and protects students against problem behaviors.…”

“… Forest plot of the association between emotional intelligence and bullying victimization [ 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 26 , 28 , 29 , 34 , 35 , 47 , 49 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 ]. …”

“…Emotional intelligence (EI) indicates the subset of social intelligence that involves several emotion-related abilities: the appraisal and expression of emotions in self and others, regulation of emotions in self and others, and utilization of emotions in problem solving [ 25 ]. EI has been considered as an influential factor in predicting bullying victimization [ 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 ]. People with high EI are more likely to deal with negative events appropriately than people with low EI are [ 26 ].…”

“…EI has been considered as an influential factor in predicting bullying victimization [ 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 ]. People with high EI are more likely to deal with negative events appropriately than people with low EI are [ 26 ]. Several emotion theories suggest that emotions have a profound influence on perception, cognition, and action, and emotions also serve adaptive purposes [ 15 , 16 , 17 ].…”

Research on the influence of sports participation on school bullying among college students—Chain mediating analysis of emotional intelligence and self-esteem

“…Similarly, bullies will be less likely to bully others, thus reducing the occurrence of school bullying. At the same time, some scholars believe that ( Canas et al, 2020a , b ; Leon-del-Barco et al, 2020 ; Franzen et al, 2021 ) emotional intelligence is a protective factor of school bullying, and has a key role to play in promoting students’ emotional adjustment and understanding ability.…”