Belief in a Just World as a Resource of Victimized Students

Matthias Donat1, Anett Wolgast1, Claudia Dalbert1
1Department of Educational Psychology, Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, Halle/Saale, Germany

Tóm tắt

In a cross-sectional questionnaire study with N = 2593 German students, aged between 12 and 17 years (M = 14.1, SD = 0.5), we investigated the relation between students’ personal belief in a just world (BJW) and their victimization in bullying situations. According to the just-world theory and research, we expected that the more strongly the students endorsed the personal BJW, the less likely they were to report being victimized by other students. We aimed to extend previous findings that failed to confirm this negative relation by considering students’ personal experience of teacher justice as a possible mediator in this relation, while statistically controlling for sex and school type. We further considered the nested data structure with regard to school classes in our analyses. The results of latent mediation analyses at the individual and group levels showed that the more the students endorsed personal BJW, the more they evaluated their teachers’ behavior toward them personally as being just, and the less likely they were to report that they were bullied. However, the students’ personal experience of teacher justice did not mediate the relation between personal BJW and victimization at the individual or group level when controlled for sex and school type. We discussed the adaptive functions of BJW and implications for future school research and practice.

Từ khóa


Tài liệu tham khảo

Bègue, L., & Muller, D. (2006). Belief in a just world as moderator of hostile attributional bias. British Journal of Social Psychology, 45(1), 117–126. https://doi.org/10.1348/014466605X37314.

Cook, C. R., Williams, K. R., Guerra, N. G., Kim, T. E., & Sadek, S. (2010). Predictors of bullying and victimization in childhood and adolescence: A meta-analytic investigation. School Psychology Quarterly, 25(2), 65–83. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0020149.

Correia, I., & Dalbert, C. (2008). School bullying: Belief in a personal just world of bullies, victims, and defenders. European Psychologist, 13(4), 248–254. https://doi.org/10.1027/1016-9040.13.4.248.

Correia, I., Kamble, S. V., & Dalbert, C. (2009). Belief in a just world and well-being of bullies, victims and defenders: A study with Portuguese and Indian students. Anxiety, Stress & Coping: An International Journal, 22(5), 497–508. https://doi.org/10.1080/10615800902729242.

Craig, W. M., Henderson, K., & Murphy, J. G. (2000). Prospective teachers’ attitudes toward bullying and victimization. School Psychology International, 21(1), 5–21. https://doi.org/10.1177/0143034300211001.

Cubela Adoric, V., & Kvartuc, T. (2007). Effects of mobbing on justice beliefs and adjustment. European Psychologist, 12(4), 261–271. https://doi.org/10.1027/1016-9040.12.4.261.

Dalbert, C. (1997). Coping with an unjust fate: The case of structural unemployment. Social Justice Research, 10(2), 175–189. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02683311.

Dalbert, C. (1999). The world is more just for me than generally: About the personal belief in a just world scale’s validity. Social Justice Research, 12(2), 79–98. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022091609047.

Dalbert, C. (2001). The justice motive as a personal resource: Dealing with challenges and critical life events. Critical issues in social justice. New York, NY: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.

Dalbert, C. (2002). Beliefs in a just world as a buffer against anger. Social Justice Research, 15(2), 123–145. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1019919822628.

Dalbert, C. (2013). Schlussfolgerungen für das Handeln von LehrerInnen [Conclusions for the action of teachers]. In C. Dalbert (Ed.), Gerechtigkeit in der Schule (pp. 145–152). Wiesbaden: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-531-93128-9_8.

Dalbert, C., & Donat, M. (2015). Belief in a just world. In J. D. Wright (Ed.), International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences (2nd ed., pp. 487–492). Oxford: Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-097086-8.24043-9.

Dalbert, C., & Radant, M. (2004). Parenting and young adolescents’ belief in a just world. In C. Dalbert & H. Sallay (Eds.), The justice motive in adolescence and young adulthood. Origins and consequences (pp. 11–25). London: Routledge.

Dalbert, C., Schneidewind, U., & Saalbach, A. (2007). Justice judgments concerning grading in school. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 32(3), 420–433. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2006.05.003.

Dalbert, C., & Stöber, J. (2002). Gerechtes Schulklima [Just school climate]. In J. Stöber (Ed.), Skalendokumentation zum Projekt “Persönliche Ziele von SchülerInnen in Sachsen-Anhalt” (Hallesche Berichte zur Pädagogischen Psychologie Nr. 3) (pp. 11–25). Halle (Saale): Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, Department of Educational Psychology.

Dalbert, C., & Stoeber, J. (2005). The belief in a just world and distress at school. Social Psychology of Education, 8(2), 123–135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-005-1835-2.

Dalbert, C., & Stoeber, J. (2006). The personal belief in a just world and domain-specific beliefs about justice at school and in the family: A longitudinal study with adolescents. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 30(3), 200–207. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025406063638.

Dette, D., Stöber, J., & Dalbert, C. (2004). Belief in a just world and adolescents’ vocational and social goals. In C. Dalbert & H. Sallay (Eds.), The justice motive in adolescence and young adulthood: Origins and consequences (pp. 11–25). London: Routledge.

Donat, M., Dalbert, C., & Kamble, S. V. (2014). Adolescents’ cheating and delinquent behavior from a justice-psychological perspective: The role of teacher justice. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 29, 635–651. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-014-0218-5.

Donat, M., Knigge, M., & Dalbert, C. (2018). Being a good or a just teacher: Which experiences of teachers’ behavior can be more predictive of school bullying? Aggressive Behavior, 44, 29–39. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.21721.

Donat, M., Peter, F., Dalbert, C., & Kamble, S. V. (2016). The meaning of students’ personal belief in a just world for positive and negative aspects of school-specific well-being. Social Justice Research, 29(1), 73–102. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11211-015-0247-5.

Donat, M., Umlauft, S., Dalbert, C., & Kamble, S. V. (2012). Belief in a just world, teacher justice, and bullying behavior. Aggressive Behavior, 38(3), 185–193. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.21421.

Due, P., & Holstein, B. E. (2008). Bullying victimization among 13 to 15 year old school children: Results from two comparative studies in 66 countries and regions. International Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health. https://doi.org/10.1515/IJAMH.2008.20.2.209.

Due, P., Holstein, B. E., Lynch, J., Diderichsen, F., Gabhain, S. N., Scheidt, P., et al. (2005). Bullying and symptoms among school-aged children: International comparative cross sectional study in 28 countries. European Journal of Public Health, 15(2), 128–132. https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/cki105.

Dzuka, J., & Dalbert, C. (2007a). Student violence against teachers: Teachers’ well-being and the belief in a just world. European Psychologist, 12(4), 253–260. https://doi.org/10.1027/1016-9040.12.4.253.

Dzuka, J., & Dalbert, C. (2007b). Aggression at school: Belief in a personal just world and well-being of victims and aggressors. Studia Psychologica, 49(2007), 313–320.

Ellis, A. A., & Shute, R. (2007). Teacher responses to bullying in relation to moral orientation and seriousness of bullying. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 77(3), 649–663. https://doi.org/10.1348/000709906X163405.

Frisén, A., Hasselblad, T., & Holmqvist, K. (2012). What actually makes bullying stop? Reports from former victims. Journal of Adolescence, 35(4), 981–990. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2012.02.001.

Hafer, C. L. (2000). Investment in long-term goals and commitment to just means drive the need to believe in a just world. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 26(9), 1059–1073. https://doi.org/10.1177/01461672002611004.

Hafer, C. L., & Bègue, L. (2005). Experimental research on just-world theory: Problems, developments, and future challenges. Psychological Bulletin, 131(1), 128–167. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.131.1.128.

Hawker, D. S. J., & Boulton, M. J. (2000). Twenty years’ research on peer victimization and psychosocial maladjustment: A meta-analytic review of cross-sectional studies. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 41(4), 441–455. https://doi.org/10.1111/1469-7610.00629.

Hofer, M., Pekrun, R., & Zielinski, W. (1986). Die Psychologie des Lerners [The psychology of the learner]. In B. Weidenmann, A. Krapp, & M. Hofer (Eds.), Pädagogische Psychologie (pp. 219–276). München: Psychologie Verlags Union.

Kahileh, R., Felix, P., & Dalbert, C. (2013). Gerechte-Welt-Glaube, Gerechtigkeitserleben und Schulerfolg [Belief in a just world, justice experiences, and school success]. In C. Dalbert (Ed.), Gerechtigkeit in der Schule (pp. 55–71). Wiesbaden: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-531-93128-9_3.

Kanders, M. (2000). Das Bild der Schule aus der Sicht von Schülern und Lehrern II. Beiträge zur Bildungsforschung und Schulentwicklung [The picture of school from the perspective of students and teachers II. Contributions to the educational research and school development]. Dortmund, Germany: IFS-Verl.

Katz, A., Buchanan, A., & Bream, V. (2001). Bullying in Britain: Testimonies from teenagers. East Moseley, Surrey: Young Voice.

Lerner, M. J. (1977). The justice motive: Some hypotheses as to its origins and forms. Journal of Personality, 45(1), 1–52. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6494.1977.tb00591.x.

Lerner, M. J. (1980). The belief in a just world: A fundamental delusion. Perspectives in social psychology. New York, NY: Plenum Press.

Lind, E. A., & Tyler, T. R. (1988). The social psychology of procedural justice. Critical issues in social justice. Boston, MA: Springer.

Lipkus, I. M., Dalbert, C., & Siegler, I. C. (1996). The importance of distinguishing the belief in a just world for self versus for others: Implications for psychological well-being. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22(7), 666–677. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167296227002.

Lipkus, I. M., & Siegler, I. C. (1993). The belief in a just world and perceptions of discrimination. The Journal of Psychology, 127(4), 465–474. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223980.1993.9915583.

Lüdtke, O., Trautwein, U., Kunter, M., & Baumert, J. (2006). Reliability and agreement of student ratings of the classroom environment: A reanalysis of TIMSS data. Learning Environments Research, 9, 215–230. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10984-006-9014-8.

Messick, D. M., Bloom, S., Boldizar, J. P., & Samuelson, C. D. (1985). Why we are fairer than others? Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 21(5), 480–500. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1031(85)90031-9.

Nartova-Bochaver, S., Donat, M., Astanina, N., & Rüprich, C. (2018). Russian adaptations of General and Personal Belief in a Just World Scales: Validation and psychometric properties. Social Justice Research, 12(4), 61–84. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11211-017-0302-5.

Oberski, D. L. (2014). lavaan.survey: An R package for complex survey analysis of structural equation models. Journal of Statistical Software, 57, 1–27. https://doi.org/10.18637/jss.v057.i01.

OECD. (2017). PISA 2015 Results (Vol. III). Paris: OECD Publishing.

Olweus, D. (1978). Aggression in the schools: Bullies and whipping boys. Washington, DC: Hemisphere.

Olweus, D. (1993). Bullying at school: What we know and what we can do. Understanding children’s worlds. Malden, MA: Blackwell.

Olweus, D. (1997). Bully/victim problems in school: Facts and intervention. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 12(4), 495–510. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03172807.

Olweus, D. (1999). Norway. In P. K. Smith (Ed.), The nature of school bullying: A cross-national perspective (pp. 28–48). London, New York: Routledge.

Olweus, D. (2011). Gewalt in der Schule: Was Lehrer und Eltern wissen sollten - und tun können [Violence at school: What teachers and parents should know – and can do] (4th ed.). Bern: Huber.

Otto, K., Boos, A., Dalbert, C., Schops, D., & Hoyer, J. (2006). Posttraumatic symptoms, depression, and anxiety of flood victims: The impact of the belief in a just world. Personality and Individual Differences, 40(5), 1075–1084. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2005.11.010.

Pepler, D. J., Craig, W. M., Connolly, J. A., Yuile, A., McMaster, L., & Jiang, D. (2006). A developmental perspective on bullying. Aggressive Behavior, 32(4), 376–384. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.20136.

Peter, F., & Dalbert, C. (2010). Do my teachers treat me justly? Implications of students’ justice experience for class climate experience. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 35(4), 297–305. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2010.06.001.

Peter, F., Donat, M., Umlauft, S., & Dalbert, C. (2013). Einführung in die Gerechtigkeitspsychologie [Introduction to justice psychology]. In C. Dalbert (Ed.), Gerechtigkeit in der Schule (pp. 11–32). Wiesbaden: Springer.

Pornprasertmanit, S., Miller, P., Schoemann, A., & Rosseel, Y. (2014). semTools: Useful tools for structural equation modeling. R package version 0.4-6. http://CRAN.R-project.org/package=semTools.

Rigby, K. (1997). Attitudes and beliefs about bullying among Australian school children. The Irish Journal of Psychology, 18(2), 202–220. https://doi.org/10.1080/03033910.1997.10558140.

Rigby, K., & Slee, P. T. (1993). Dimensions of interpersonal relation among Australian children and implications for psychological well-being. The Journal of Social Psychology, 133(1), 33–42. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224545.1993.9712116.

Rosseel, Y. (2012). lavaan: An R package for structural equation modeling. Journal of Statistical Software, 48, 1–36. https://doi.org/10.18637/jss.v048.i02.

Rosseel, Y. (2017). Multilevel structural equation modeling with lavaan. Workshop, Zuerich, Switzerland. Retrieved from http://users.ugent.be/~yrosseel/lavaan/zurich2017/MULTILEVEL/lavaan_multilevel_zurich2017.pdf.

Rutkowski, L., & Svetina, D. (2014). Assessing the hypothesis of measurement invariance in the context of large-scale international surveys. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 74, 31–57. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164413498257.

Scheithauer, H., Hayer, T., & Petermann, F. (2003). Bullying unter Schülern: Erscheinungsformen, Risikobedingungen und Interventionskonzepte [Bullying among students: Forms, risk conditions, and intervention concepts]. Klinische Kinderpsychologie: Vol. 8. Göttingen, Germany: Hogrefe.

Scheithauer, H., Hayer, T., Petermann, F., & Jugert, G. (2006). Physical, verbal, and relational forms of bullying among German students: Age trends, gender differences, and correlates. Aggressive Behavior, 32(3), 261–275. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.20128.

Sittichai, R., & Smith, P. K. (2018). Bullying and cyberbullying in Thailand: coping strategies and relation to age, gender, religion and victim status. Journal of New Approaches in Educational Research, 7(1), 24–30. https://doi.org/10.7821/naer.2018.1.254.

Smith, P. K. (2014). Understanding School Bullying: Its Nature and Prevention Strategies. London: SAGE Publications.

Smith, P. K., Madsen, K. C., & Moody, J. C. (1999a). What causes the age decline in reports of being bullied at school? Towards a developmental analysis of risks of being bullied. Educational Research, 41(3), 267–285. https://doi.org/10.1080/0013188990410303.

Smith, P. K., Morita, Y., Junger-Tas, J., Olweus, D., Catalano, R. F., & Slee, P. (Eds.). (1999b). The nature of school bullying: A cross-national perspective. London: Routledge.

Strelan, P. (2007). The prosocial, adaptive qualities of just world beliefs: Implications for the relationship between justice and forgiveness. Personality and Individual Differences, 43(4), 881–890. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2007.02.015.

Strelan, P., & Sutton, R. M. (2011). When just-world beliefs promote and when they inhibit forgiveness. Personality and Individual Differences, 50(2), 163–168. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2010.09.019.

Tani, F., Greenman, P. S., Schneider, B. H., & Fregoso, M. (2003). Bullying and the Big Five: A study of childhood personality and participant roles in bullying incidents. School Psychology International, 24(2), 131–146. https://doi.org/10.1177/0143034303024002001.

Teuschel, P., & Heuschen, K. W. (2013). Bullying: Mobbing bei Kindern und Jugendlichen [Bullying: Mobbing in children and adolescents]. Stuttgart: Schattauer.

Thorkildsen, T. A., Nolen, S. B., & Fournier, J. (1994). What is fair? Children’s critiques of practices that influence motivation. Journal of Educational Psychology, 86(4), 475–486. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.86.4.475.

Tomaka, J., & Blascovich, J. (1994). Effects of justice beliefs on cognitive, psychological, and behavioral responses to potential stress. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67, 732–740. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.67.4.732.

Umlauft, S., & Dalbert, C. (2017). Justice experiences and feelings of exclusion. Social Psychology of Education, 20(3), 565–587. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-017-9387-9.

Wachs, S., Jiskrova, G. K., Vazsonyi, A. T., Wolf, K. D., & Junger, M. (2016). A cross-national study of direct and indirect effects of cyberbullying on cybergrooming victimization via self-esteem. Psicología Educativa, 22(1), 61–70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pse.2016.01.002.