Aspetti individuali, interpersonali e sociali del bullismo etnico: studio su un campione nazionale di studenti della scuola secondaria di primo grado

This research investigates – through two studies conducted on a sample of Italian and foreign students – the factors potentially involved in the phenomenon of ethnic bullying and its connections with school achievement, social networks and students’ perceived school integration. In the first study a series of information was collected on Italian students’ bullying (N = 1638) which showed a negative relationship with school performance and the perception of integration with their foreign schoolmates, while the social network was not relevant. Study 2 analyzed the victimization of foreign students (N = 425) and significant and negative relationships only with the extension of the social network were found. These results, in addition to requiring an in-depth examination of this subject, suggest that greater attention should be paid to the educational pathways and to the anti-bullying intervention programs, considering both the levels of school integration between immigrant and native students and the social networks, and highlighting the social nature of the phenomenon.