Bullied and bounced: an investigation of school bullying aftermaths among pupils with migrant background

Purpose. Bullying is one of the most challenging issues faced by schools in Western Countries. Scholars have variously analysed the consequences of bullying, pointing out its deleterious effects on bullied pupils. The aftermaths of bullying are even worse when it is targeted to fragile students, including those with an immigrant background. This paper tries to elicit the negative effects of bullying on school performances of bullied students of immigrant parents, suggesting organizational and management approaches to deal with this issue. Methodology. Secondary data were collected from the study on the Integration of Second Generations performed in 2015 by the European Fund of Integration and the Italian Ministry of Interior. An ad hoc ordered logistic regression model was arranged and implemented to investigate the relationship between bullying, victims’ socio-demographic characteristics, their school performances and behaviours. Findings. The study results suggested that bullied students were more likely to have poor self-reported school performances. Moreover, they were at greater risks to show one or more failed years and to dropout from school. Interestingly, students who were affected by bullying suffered from social exclusion and performed one or more working activities, in addition to mandatory schooling. Lastly, yet importantly, bullied students expressed lower trust in their teachers as compared with their peers. Practical implications. Bullying has relevant drawbacks on the quality of education services. Tailored interventions are needed to prevent and/or address bullying in mandatory schools. Originality/value. This study investigates the negative consequences of bullying and suggests some interventions which may be effective in preventing its occurrence or constraining the magnitude of its aftermaths.