Bullying

Child protection center of Zagreb conducted research on bullying in schools. The research included 25 elementary schools in 13 cities of Croatia, and examinees were pupils from the fourth to the eighth grade of elementary school, in 2003.

Obtained results indicate that:

1. 27%of children experience some form of bullying in schools (verbal and physical) on a daily or on almost a daily basis.
2. 16% of children bully other children on almost a daily basis, while 8% of children simultaneously bully and are exposed to bullying.
3. Boys more frequently both bully other children and are exposed to bullying.
4. The frequency of bullying, especially verbal, increases with age (from the tenth to the fourteenth year of age).
5. School results of children who bully or are bullied are, on the average, worse.
6. Only about 22% of bullied children ask adults for help.
7. Children most frequently ask parents, while only 11% ask teachers for help.

Within this project, the following papers have been published and presented:

Krmek, M., Buljan Flander, G. (2004.) Analysis of Offence Levels with Respect to Child Age and Town Size, 12. Annual conference of Croatian psychologists, Opatija

Buljan Flander, G., Karlović, A. (2005.). Bullying, in: Bilić, V. et al.: List of topics for class lessons (ed. Bilić, V.), Naklada Ljevak, Zagreb, pp. 179-193.

Krmek, M., Buljan Flander, G., (2005.) Analysis of offence levels with respect to child age and town size; 13th congress of European Union  for school and university, health and medicine; „ Healthy youth investment for future“, Dubrovnik

Profaca, B., Puhovski, S. i Luca Mrđen, J. (2006). Some characteristics of passive and provocative victims of bullying in schools, Društvena istraživanja,Year15, No.3, 575-590

Buljan Flander, G., Durman Marijanović, Z., and Ćorić Špoljar, R. (2007.). Onset of Violence among Children Related to Gender, Age and Acceptance/Rejection at School. Društvena istraživanja, 16 (87-88), pp. 157-174