Coping Patterns and Bullying Role Transition Among Adolescents in Hong Kong Primary Schools: A Latent Class Approach

Background and Purpose: Coping strategies, according to the general strain theory, act as mitigative responses to stressors such as bullying victimization and undergo transformations during adolescence (Agnew, 1997; Zimmer-Gembeck & Skinner, 2011). Primarily classified into approach coping (e.g., proactive problem-solving) and avoidance coping (e.g., evasion of the issue), research has revealed the association of these strategies with past bullying victimization and bullying perpetration among adolescents (Lee et al., 2021; Luo et al., 2022). The role of coping strategies that link bullying victimization and bullying perpetration provides the possibility to examine how coping strategies impact bullying involvement in the long run, which has been understudied. Also, the exploration of adolescents’ coping strategies has primarily deployed a variable-centered approach, a methodology that proves challenging in discerning subgroup coping patterns and understanding the heterogeneity of the study population. This research aims to explore the intricacies of coping strategies by using the person-centered approach and to provide nuanced insights into how different coping mechanisms influence long-term involvement in bullying, thus paving the way for more targeted and efficacious interventions in addressing school bullying.

Methods: 1122 students from 10 primary schools (58.5% male; Mage = 10.73; SD = 0.81) in Hong Kong participated in the two-wave longitudinal survey, completing self-report questionnaires. To comprehend the heterogeneity in the patterns of coping strategies across both waves, Latent Class Analysis was employed. The characteristics of the constituents were meticulously examined within each identified latent class. Additionally, logistic regressions were executed to assess the associations and predict the impact of alterations in coping patterns on transitions in roles related to school bullying.

Results: The analysis identified three distinct coping strategy patterns in both waves: mixed coping (high approach and high avoidance), active coping (high approach and low avoidance), and inactive coping (low approach and low avoidance). Approximately 50% (n=544) of the adolescents altered their coping strategies. Adolescents employing active coping strategies exhibit a significantly higher likelihood of experiencing a change in bullying involvement, compared to those using mixed coping strategies. Furthermore, the analysis revealed that, compared to consistent coping patterns, those who transitioned to inactive coping strategies were less likely to shift from bullying-engaged roles to non-engaged roles. Conversely, adolescents who transitioned to active coping strategies were found to have a higher probability of shifting to roles of bully/victim regardless of their original roles.

Conclusion: This research elucidates the dynamic nature of coping strategies in adolescents and their consequential impact on bullying involvement transitions. Certain patterns and shifts in adolescents’ patterns of coping strategies may be an early signal for future bullying involvement and this underscores the importance of developing interventions centered on enhancing effective coping mechanisms to address bullying in schools.