Adolescent Bullies in Early Adulthood (1 CE)

Number of Credits: 1

This course is for: Clinical Psychologists, Counselors, and Marriage & Family Therapists

Course By: Ken Springer, PhD

Content By:  Kretschmer, T., Veenstra, R., Branje, S., Reijneveld, S., Meeus, W. H. J., Dekovic, M., Koot, H. M., Vollebergh, W. A. M., & Oldehinkel, A. J. (2018). How competent are adolescent bullying perpetrators and victims in mastering normative developmental tasks in early adulthood? Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 46, 41-56.

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-017-0316-3

Course Description: Studies on adolescent bullies and their victims have not systematically explored how well these individuals master normative adult tasks. In this article, the researchers present two longitudinal studies that examined whether adolescent bullying and victimization predict outcomes in early adulthood in the areas of romantic relationship status, educational attainment, work status, financial competence, and law-abiding behavior. In both studies, perpetrators of bullying in early adolescence were less likely to abide by the law and more likely to smoke in early adulthood, although these associations were weaker when taking into account differences in demographics, IQ, and psychopathology. In addition, the two studies indicated that by early adulthood, adolescent victims of bullying were less competent with respect to education, work, and personal finances, and more likely to smoke. The results have practical implications for the support of adolescents involved in bullying as they transition to early adulthood.

Learning Objectives:

1. Understand the rationale for the studies as well as the longitudinal approach to data collection
2. Describe the main findings of each study concerning associations between involvement in bullying during adolescence and mastery of normative tasks in early adulthood
3. Integrate the strengths and limitations of each study, and summarize the practical implications for supporting the development of adolescents involved in bullying

Course Outline:

• Read and understand How competent are adolescent bullying perpetrators and victims in mastering normative developmental tasks in early adulthood?
• Review the Course Description and Learning Objectives
• Understand the need for examining how well adolescent bullies and their victims master normative adult tasks
• Understand how self-report measures were used to collect data from participants at multiple time points in each study
• Analyze the relationships identified in each study between adolescent bullying or victimization and competence in early adulthood
• Integrate the two studies' key findings, strengths, limitations, and clinical implications
• Work through the post-test questions, using the article as the sole basis for your answers
• Revisit the article for any missed questions and/or to better understand the relationship between involvement in bullying during adolescence and mastery of normative tasks in early adulthood

Approvals: