The age and gender effect on four forms of peer victimization among Chinese children and adolescents

Abstract

This study is the first to examine the effects of age and gender on different forms of peer victimization among local Chinese schoolchildren in Hong Kong. The cross-sectional study recruited a sample of 8604 schoolchildren aged between 8 and 16 from 24 primary (elementary) and secondary (middle) schools in Hong Kong. The Multidimensional Peer Victimization Scale was used to measure how often the participants had experienced physical and verbal victimization, social manipulation, and attacks on property during the last school term. The participants were divided into three age groups (8–10, 11–13, 14–16) based on the average ages of senior primary, junior secondary, and senior secondary school students. Two-way MANOVA and subsequent two-way ANOVAs were used to analyze the data. Physical victimization and attacks on property were found to decrease with age. Across the age groups, boys were more likely than girls to experience physical and verbal victimization, but not social manipulation. However, the gender × age group interaction effects were insignificant. The findings suggest that educators and helping professionals should consider providing gender-specific anti-bullying programs in schools.