Original scientific paper
Connection between Classroom Abuse and Manifest Aggressiveness, Anxiety and Altruism
Vesna Bilić
Abstract
The objective of this paper is to find out if the students exposed to abuse differ in their level of anxiety, aggressiveness,
and altruism from other students, and to test if the pattern of these differences differs depending on whether the abuse
they suffer is emotional or physical. The research was carried out on a sample of 127 senior elementary school students.
The data was gathered at the end of the 2003/04 school year, and obtained through the respondents’ self-statements in
questionnaires about childhood abuse and by the scales of manifest aggressiveness, anxiety and altruism. The frequency
analysis has shown that various forms of emotional abuse are more common in schools than physical abuse, and that
they are reaching disturbing proportions. For example, more than half of the participants in the study reported facing intimidation
and threats in school, and over a third of them have been yelled at. Although less commonplace, physical
abuse in school can by no means be ignored. Those students who suffer from frequent physical abuse are more dissatisfied
with school (r=0.174, p<0.05), display more aggressiveness (r=0.441, p<0.001), and are more often boys (r=0.324,
p<0.01). Those students who are frequently emotionally abused are more anxious (r=0.281, p<0.01), dissatisfied with
school (r=0.237, p<0.01), and display more manifest aggressiveness (r=398, p<0.01). The discriminant analysis has
shown that the bullied students can be differentiated from their non-abused schoolmates as they are manifestly more
anxious and aggressive, regardless of whether they suffer physical or emotional abuse. Instances of different forms of
emotional and physical classroom abuse have increased alarmingly. Such traumatic experiences affect children’s health
and functioning in school, as well as in their private lives. The interdisciplinary studies of this phenomenon and the education
of all those who work with young people emerge as the top priority in the prevention of this kind of abuse.
Keywords
abuse; anxiety; aggressiveness; altruism; school dissatisfaction; school performance
Hrčak ID:
27636
URI
Publication date:
13.12.2006.
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