Profiling Experiences of Bullying in the Elementary School: The Role of Gender

The purpose of the present study was to profile bullying behaviors in elementary schools in Saudi Arabia. A secondary purpose was to examine differences in bullying behaviors across gender. Participants were 3867 fourth graders who completed surveys during the TIMSS 2019 survey. An 11-item bullying experience scale was utilized with good internal consistency reliability. Data were analyzed using latent class analysis with Mplus 8.9 to identify profiles of bullying experiences. The results indicated the presence of five profiles with levels of low, medium, and high bullying experiences, as well as two profiles with no cyberbullying experiences and medium high and medium low physical and verbal instances of bullying. Gender effects were highly pronounced, with most maladaptive bullying profiles being predominantly male. It is concluded that physical bullying is mainly occupied by males and the levels of cyberbullying are generally low in the elementary school grades. Implications for educational policy can clearly direct the development of support groups and expert counseling for both bullies and victims, staff training for identification and course of action, and the development of standardized school policies when such incidences occur.