physical bullying

Bullying remains a concern at SDN Sindangsono because teasing and name-calling occur in student interactions, while students’ understanding of the forms of bullying is still limited. This community service activity aimed to describe bullying prevention education through a participatory approach for third- and fourth-grade students. The activity involved 64 students, consisting of 34 third-grade and 30 fourth-grade students, and included an initial question-and-answer session, presentation of learning materials, an educational video, discussion, sharing session, written reflection, oral evaluation, and a joint commitment. Evaluation was conducted through the initial question-and-answer session and oral evaluation. At the beginning of the activity, students’ responses were more focused on physical bullying. Fifteen students (23.4%) voluntarily stated that they had engaged in actions they understood as bullying, while all participants stated that they had experienced feeling bullied, mainly through teasing and name-calling. After the activity, students’ responses began to include verbal, social, and social media-related forms of bullying, accompanied by reflective responses regarding peer interactions. All participants also took part in a joint commitment to prevent bullying. The activity indicated a broader understanding of bullying, the emergence of reflection, and student participation in bullying prevention.

Bullying victimization is an important public health concern that has been linked to adverse psychological outcomes among adolescents. The study used mental health well-being data collected in the most recent Bangladesh Adolescent Health and Wellbeing Survey (2019–2020) (BAHWS). A total of 9,116 adolescents aged 15–19 years with complete depression data were included in the analysis. A three-level linear mixed-effects model was employed to account for the hierarchical structure of the survey, with adolescents nested within primary sampling units and districts. Additional analyses examined gender and marital status interactions, subgroup differences, and the cumulative association between multiple forms of bullying and depressive symptoms using a composite bullying measure. The findings revealed that verbal bullying (β = 1.39, p < 0.001) and cyberbullying (β = 1.15, p = 0.012) were independently associated with higher depressive symptom scores. The association between physical bullying and depressive symptoms differed significantly by gender, whereas interactions of gender with verbal and cyberbullying were not statistically significant. Exploratory subgroup analyses showed variation in the magnitude of estimated associations across ever-married females, unmarried females, and unmarried males. A graded association was observed for cumulative bullying exposure: compared with adolescents reporting no bullying exposure, those exposed to on (β = 1.25), two (β = 2.61), and three (β = 4.99) bullying types had progressively higher depressive symptom scores (all p < 0.001). Adolescent Age, Current school or college attendance and higher household wealth were associated with lower depressive symptom scores. Bullying victimization, particularly verbal bullying, cyberbullying, and exposure to multiple forms of bullying, was associated with higher depressive symptoms among Bangladeshi adolescents. These findings highlight the need for comprehensive bullying prevention strategies and accessible psychosocial support services, with particular attention to adolescents experiencing multiple forms of bullying and other vulnerable groups.