Concurrent and prospective associations between bullying victimization and substance use among Australian adolescents

Highlights

• This study examined concurrent and longitudinal associations between bullying victimization and substance use among Australian adolescents.

• Bully-victim status at age 13 was associated with risky drinking and cannabis use at age 15.

• Associations between bullying victimization and substance use were evident for bully-victims but not passive victims.

Abstract

Background

Adolescence is a vulnerable time for both substance use and bullying involvement; however, there is limited research on substance use among adolescent victims of bullying. This study aimed to examine concurrent and prospective associations between bullying and substance use, differentiating between passive-victims, bully-victims and ‘pure’ bullies.

Method

Associations between bullying involvement and substance use at baseline and 24 months post-baseline were examined in a cohort of adolescents in Australia. Bullying victims were divided into passive-victims (those who get bullied and do not bully others) and bully-victims (those who both get bullied and bully others). Perpetrators of bullying were divided into ‘pure’ bullies (those who bully others but do not get bullied), and bully-victims (as above). Outcomes examined were past six month use of alcohol (any drinking; risky drinking), tobacco, and cannabis.

Results

While there was no evidence of an association between bullying victimization and/or perpetration and substance use at baseline, there was evidence of an association between bullying and substance use 24 months post-baseline. Specifically, there was evidence of increased odds of risky drinking and cannabis use for the bully-victim group.

Conclusions

Bully-victim status at age 13 was associated with substance use at age 15, controlling for concurrent bullying involvement at age 15. Bully-victims are a particularly high-risk group that could benefit from targeted substance use preventive interventions. Reducing bullying is of great importance in reducing substance use and other harms among adolescents.

Introduction

Adolescence is a time of substantial structural and functional development; importantly, it is also a period of heightened vulnerability for risky behaviours (Stanis and Andersen, 2014, Steinberg, 2007). One such behaviour often initiated during adolescence is substance use (AIHW, 2014). Early initiation of substance use has been associated with an increased risk for substance use disorders in adolescence and adulthood (Hingson et al., 2006, Magid and Moreland, 2014, Ystrom et al., 2014). Substance use disorders can result in significant harm to both the individual and wider society. Findings from the 2010 Global Burden of Disease study indicate that illicit drug use disorders combined with alcohol use disorders accounted for two percent of disability-adjusted life years worldwide (Whiteford et al., 2013).

Another problem behaviour often seen among adolescents is bullying. Bullying is a specific form of aggression that involves repeated negative actions with the intent of causing harm, and typically involves an imbalance of power (Olweus, 2000, Smith and Brain, 2000). Bullying during childhood and adolescence has been associated with negative impacts on social, psychological and physical wellbeing, even into adulthood (Arseneault et al., 2010, Copeland et al., 2013, Copeland et al., 2014, Currie et al., 2012, Nansel et al., 2004, Sigurdson et al., 2014, Stapinski et al., 2014). Bullying during adolescence is of particular importance, due to the significant role of peer relationships during this stage of development (Perren et al., 2010, Steinberg and Morris, 2001). Clearly, bullying can be considered a significant stressful or negative life event, which is one of the key risk factors for substance use disorders (Stanis and Andersen, 2014).

A thorough understanding of the relationship between bullying and substance use has important implications for the reduction of harm among those involved, as well as the wider society. There is good evidence that bullying perpetration is associated with substance use (Berthold and Hoover, 2000, Carlyle and Steinman, 2007, Hemphill et al., 2011, Kim et al., 2011, Luukkonen et al., 2010, Moore et al., 2014, Nansel et al., 2001, Niemala et al., 2011, Sigurdson et al., 2014, Sourander et al., 2000, Vieno et al., 2011, Wang et al., 2012). However, the association between bullying victimization and substance use remains unclear. While there is evidence of general externalizing problems among victims of bullying, research specifically examining the association between bullying victimization and substance use is inconclusive, with limited and often conflicting research in this area (Cook et al., 2010, Espelage et al., 2013, Ivarsson et al., 2005, Kelly et al., 2015, Reijntjes et al., 2011). While some studies have found an increased risk of substance use among victims (Peleg-Oren et al., 2012, Sigurdson et al., 2014, Tharp-Taylor et al., 2009, Topper et al., 2011, Vieno et al., 2011), others have found a negative association or no association at all (Alikasifoglu et al., 2007, Archimi and Kuntsche, 2014, Copeland et al., 2013, Desousa et al., 2008, Forero et al., 1999, Hemphill et al., 2011, Kaltiala-Heino et al., 2000, Liang et al., 2007, Moore et al., 2014, Nansel et al., 2004, Nansel et al., 2001).

Further research is needed to clarify the relationship between bullying victimization and substance use. It is possible that the inconsistency in the literature is partly due to the lack of differentiation between ‘passive-victims’ (those who get bullied and do not bully others) and ‘bully-victims’ (those who both get bullied and bully others). Bully-victims have been found to be a particularly disordered group, frequently shown to have more externalizing problems than passive-victims and ‘pure’ bullies (Burk et al., 2011, Cook et al., 2010, Copeland et al., 2013, Forero et al., 1999, Haynie et al., 2001, Ivarsson et al., 2005, Kelly et al., 2015, Klomek et al., 2011, Kumpulainen and Räsänen, 2000, Nansel et al., 2001, Schwartz, 2000, Sourander et al., 2007). It may be the case that passive-victims are not at increased risk of substance use, but bully-victims are. Therefore, these groups need to be examined separately. Another limitation in research on substance use and bullying is the lack of longitudinal research, precluding the examination of temporal relationships between bullying and substance use. This study aims to extend previous research in the area by examining longitudinal associations between bullying victimization and substance use among adolescents, differentiating between passive-victims, bully-victims and ‘pure’ bullies.