Can Healthier Contexts Be Harmful? A New Perspective on the Plight of Victims of Bullying

Abstract

With rising awareness of the negative effects of school bullying on victims' psychosocial adjustment, schools worldwide are intervening more to try to reduce bullying among their students. However, even when these interventions succeed (i.e., lead to average decreases in bullying), some children continue to experience victimization. Recent studies suggest that their situation is particularly concerning: The adjustment difficulties commonly experienced by victims of bullying may be exacerbated in social contexts in which less victimization occurs, the proportion of victims has decreased, or an antibullying program is being implemented. The possibility that improved social contexts harm some individuals has been referred to as the healthy context paradox. Although strict evidence of this paradox is pending, in this article, we discuss plausible explanations for it, such as causal attributions for the bullying and opportunities for friendship, as well as possible implications for antibullying interventions.