Risk factors for child and adolescent bullying and victimisation in Ireland: a systematic literature review

Investigating the risk factors associated with bullying and victimisation in Ireland is important for understanding the individual and environmental conditions in which these actions emerge, and for informing the design of preventative programmes in childhood and adolescence. The aim of this systematic review is to identify studies which, over the past 10 years, have examined the risk factors associated with bullying and victimisation in Irish school settings, and to examine which preventative programmes have been made to date to counter these phenomena. Using systematic literature search techniques, we identified 19 relevant studies. Data were extracted, the quality of papers was appraised, and a descriptive synthesis was applied. The results of the systematic review suggest a varied picture of risk factors that included individual and social-relational factors connected with bullying (e.g. minority group belonging, behavioural adaptation problems, lack of prosociality, psychoticism) and victimisation (e.g. poor school support, minority group belonging, neurotic, socio-behavioural problems with peers, ease in communication with peer and parent). Theoretical and psycho-educational implications are discussed.