Abstract

Multilevel logistic regression was used to examine the relationship between sense of community in the school at both individual and class level and bullying and victimization, controlling for some individual characteristics (self-esteem, difficulties in communicating with parents and demographics). Data were analyzed using a two-level model based on 4386 Italian, 11-15-year-old students nested within 265 classes (across three grade levels: 6th, 8th, and 10th grade level). Being a female and being older are protective factors at the individual level for bullying, while having higher degree of self-esteem is a risk factor. Being a female and having a higher degree of self-esteem are protective factors at the individual level for victimization. Individual and contextual measures of sense of community, modeled at the individual and class levels simultaneously, are each significant predictors (protective factors) of both bullying and victimization. Implications for preventive interventions are discussed.