Addressing Measurement Issues Related to Bullying Involvement

Abstract.

In this article, we address measurement issues related to select aspects of bullying involvement with the goal of moving psychometrically sound measurement practices toward applied bullying research. We first provide a nontechnical introduction to psychometric considerations in measuring bullying involvement, highlighting the importance of establishing measurement equivalence across contexts and intervention conditions. We then discuss different forms of data collection for antibullying-intervention evaluation, interinformant agreement, and benefits of using information from multiple reporters. In the third section, we address the importance of using valid and reliable measures of the different forms of bullying, particularly when measuring bullying involvement across development. Finally, we advocate for studying the larger peer ecology by capturing the different ways in which youth actively or passively participate in bullying incidents. We conclude with a brief consideration of how psychometrically sound measurement of bullying involvement can inform the development of appropriate, effective, evidence-based bullying interventions.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Deborah M. Casper

Deborah M. Casper is an assistant professor of human development and family studies at the University of Alabama. She earned her PhD in family studies and human development from the University of Arizona. Before beginning her doctoral work at the University of Arizona, she was a school counselor and worked with K–12 students both within the United States and abroad. Her research focuses on the dynamics of peer relations and interactions. More specifically, she investigates the intersection of friendship and antipathy and the interactions that occur within the peer-group context (e.g., bullying, aggression, victimization, prosociality, assisting, and defending) that maintain or transform these relationships. She is also interested in scale development and the application of methodologies that are best suited for developmental research.

Diana J. Meter

Diana J. Meter is a doctoral candidate in family studies and human development at the University of Arizona. Broadly, her research investigates peer relations and social development among youth with a focus on peer victimization and bullying among children and adolescents. Her work aims to investigate the effects of involvement in peer victimization and bullying in different roles and contexts, as well as how peer victimization and bullying involvement can be affected by and also affect adjustment, peer relationships, and parent–child relationships. She encourages the use of advanced analytic techniques in developmental research, which lead to more valid, generalizable, and useful results.

Noel A. Card

Noel A. Card is an associate professor in the measurement, evaluation, and assessment (MEA) program at the University of Connecticut. Before joining the MEA faculty in 2014, he received his PhD in clinical psychology from St. John's University, completed a postdoctoral fellowship in quantitative psychology at the University of Kansas, and spent 8 years as a member of the faculty of human development and family studies at the University of Arizona. His substantive research investigates social development, with specific foci on peer relations and aggressive behavior during childhood and adolescence. His quantitative research interests include meta-analysis, longitudinal data, and dyadic data. He is especially interested in promoting rigorous methodologies in developmental research through the emerging subdiscipline of developmental methodology.