Traditional bullying and cyberbullying at schools in Germany: Results of the HBSC study 2022 and trends from 2009/10 to 2022.

Background: Bullying is a form of violence that is carried out repeatedly, with the intention of causing harm and with an imbalance of power between those involved. Bullying has serious negative effects on the mental health of adolescents and thus represents a significant health risk in childhood and adolescence. Methods: Based on data from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study from the survey year 2022 in Germany (N = 6,475), the prevalence of school bullying and cyberbullying among 11-, 13- and 15-year-olds in Germany was analysed. In addition, the prevalence of school bullying and cyberbullying was analysed as a trend from 2009/10 to 2022 (bullying) and from 2017/18 to 2022 (cyberbullying). Results: Around 14 % of the learners surveyed reported direct experience of bullying at school, and around 7 % reported cyberbullying experiences as bullied and/or bullying victims. Adolescents who identified as gender diverse were particularly likely to report bullying experiences. School bullying decreased over time, but remained stable between 2017/18 and 2022. Cyberbullying, on the other hand, increased in 2022 compared to 2017/18. Conclusions: Experiencing bullying at school and online is an everyday experience for many children and young people, so there is still a need for the broad implementation of effective anti-bullying measures in schools.

Concept and methodology of the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study - Insights into the current 2022 survey and trends in Germany.

Background: Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) is one of the largest international studies on child and adolescent health and cooperates with the World Health Organization (WHO). In Germany, adolescents aged 11, 13 and 15 are surveyed every four years about their health, health behaviour and social conditions. This article describes the HBSC study and in particular the methodology of the current 2022 survey and prior surveys conducted between 2009/10 and 2017/18. Method: 174 schools with a total of 6,475 students participated in the 2022 survey. The survey was conducted using questionnaires and covered a wide range of topics (including mental health, physical activity, bullying experiences, social determinants of health and experiences related to COVID-19). The 2022 survey was complemented by a school principal survey (N = 160). In addition to the current sample, the samples of the three previous surveys with representative data for Germany are presented: 2009/10 (N = 5,005), 2013/14 (N = 5,961) and 2017/18 (N = 4,347). Discussion: The health of children and adolescents is of great public health importance. The HBSC study makes a substantial contribution by providing internationally comparable results, analysing trends, and providing stakeholders with comprehensive and representative health monitoring data.

[Digital health literacy of pupils. Level and associations with physical activity and dietary behavior]. / Digitale Gesundheitskompetenz von Schülerinnen und Schülern. Ausprägung und Assoziationen mit dem Bewegungs- und Ernährungsverhalten.

BACKGROUND: While there are increasing empirical findings on general health literacy (HL), there is a lack of evidence on digital HL in adolescence and its association with health behavior. METHODS: A cross-sectional study of 490 students from grade eight and nine from the federal state of Hesse was conducted from October 2019 to February 2020. Digital HL was assessed using five subscales of the Digital Health Literacy Instrument (DHLI), while consumption of fruits, vegetables, and soft drinks as well as weekly physical activity were used as indicators of health behavior. In addition to gender and grade level, subjective social status (SSS) was used as a social characteristic. Univariate, bivariate, and multivariate analyses were performed, with binary-logistic regression adjusted for gender and SSS. RESULTS: Across all items, 15.3 to 37.5% of adolescents reported difficulties in acquiring and dealing with digital health information. Stratified by social characteristics, gender and socioeconomic differences were found with girls and respondents reporting a lower SSS more often showed a limited digital HL. Adolescents with moderate and low digital HL reported higher levels of low physical activity and non-daily fruit and daily soft drink consumption. DISCUSSION: The findings suggest a need for interventions to promote digital HL among adolescents, particularly for those of low SSS. In this context, the differential relationship patterns with health behaviors provide an avenue for the development of specific interventions. The school as a place of teaching and learning is a suitable setting because, among other things, of its fit with the mandatory strategy of media literacy education in schools.

Traditional bullying and cyberbullying among children and adolescents in Germany - Cross-sectional results of the 2017/18 HBSC study and trends.

Bullying is a specific form of violence that can potentially lead to numerous and long-term negative health implications. Despite consistent coverage in the media, particularly on cyberbullying, as of yet there are only few representative findings on the frequency of (cyber)bullying in Germany. This article analyses how widespread bullying and cyberbullying were at schools in Germany in 2018, what differences exist between girls and boys, age groups and various types of schools, and changes in bullying trends between 2002 and 2018. Our findings are based on an analysis of the data provided by the 2017/18 cycle (N=4,347 students, 53.0% female) and previous cycles of the German Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study. In the 2018 cycle, boys reported having bullied other children more frequently than girls, but were bullied just as often. 15-year-olds reported having bullied other children more frequently than 11- to- 13-year-olds but reported being bullied less frequently. Students at grammar schools (Gymnasium) least frequently reported any involvement in bullying. Only few children and adolescents reported cases of cyberbullying. Compared to all previous survey years, 2018 saw the lowest number of children that reported having bullied others. However, reports of having been bullied have remained almost stable. The findings highlight the need for evidence-based prevention and intervention anti-bullying programmes and measures across all types of general education schools and age groups.

Students' Willingness to Intervene in Bullying: Direct and Indirect Associations with Classroom Cohesion and Self-Efficacy.

Although school climate and self-efficacy have received some attention in the literature, as correlates of students' willingness to intervene in bullying, to date, very little is known about the potential mediating role of self-efficacy in the relationship between classroom climate and students' willingness to intervene in bullying. To this end, the present study analyzes whether the relationship between classroom cohesion (as one facet of classroom climate) and students' willingness to intervene in bullying situations is mediated by self-efficacy in social conflicts. This study is based on a representative stratified random sample of two thousand and seventy-one students (51.3% male), between the ages of twelve and seventeen, from twenty-four schools in Germany. Results showed that between 43% and 48% of students reported that they would not intervene in bullying. A mediation test using the structural equation modeling framework revealed that classroom cohesion and self-efficacy in social conflicts were directly associated with students' willingness to intervene in bullying situations. Furthermore, classroom cohesion was indirectly associated with higher levels of students' willingness to intervene in bullying situations, due to self-efficacy in social conflicts. We thus conclude that: (1) It is crucial to increase students' willingness to intervene in bullying; (2) efforts to increase students' willingness to intervene in bullying should promote students' confidence in dealing with social conflicts and interpersonal relationships; and (3) self-efficacy plays an important role in understanding the relationship between classroom cohesion and students' willingness to intervene in bullying. Recommendations are provided to help increase adolescents' willingness to intervene in bullying and for future research.

Do Emotional Components of Alexithymia Mediate the Interplay between Cyberbullying Victimization and Perpetration?

A substantial amount of research has revealed that cyberbully-victims have more emotional and behavioral problems than either cyberbullying victims or perpetrators. However, until now, little research has been conducted into the factors that contribute to the interplay between cyberbullying victimization and perpetration. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between cyberbullying victimization, perpetration, and two emotional components of alexithymia, namely difficulties in identifying and describing one's own feelings. Self-report questions were administered to 1549 adolescents between 12 and 18 years old (M = 14.51; SD = 1.68; 42.1% (n = 652) male) from Germany and Thailand. Results showed that cyberbullying victimization and alexithymia are associated with cyberbullying perpetration. Moreover, alexithymia mediated the associations between cyberbullying victimization and adolescents' cyberbullying perpetration. Consequently, we suggest that the ability to describe and identify one's own feelings might be important for understanding the link between cyberbullying, victimization, and perpetration. The results may help develop prevention and intervention programs focused on reducing cyberbullying.