Peer-reviewed article

Bullying Victimisation and Mental Health: The Mediating Role of Peer and Family Social Support.

Shannon C, Higgins K, Kelly G, Mulholland C, Korimbocus B et al. · 1 Aug 2026

Abstract

Introduction Adverse childhood experiences have been consistently linked to a range of mental health related difficulties in adulthood. One such experience is bullying, which has been shown to predict psychotic symptoms. This study aimed to explore whether bullying victimisation in early adolescence is associated with certain mental health outcomes (psychosis, depression and cannabis abuse) and whether this is mediated by the individuals' perception of social support from peers and family. Methods This study performed secondary data analysis of a prospective cohort study, the Belfast Youth Development Study (BYDS). It used longitudinal data from 2087 participants from ages 12-21 years and performed path analysis (using Mplus V8) between bullying and the above mental health outcomes and mediators. Results The results showed a direct path from bullying to psychotic symptoms (estimate = 0.10; SE = 0.0; p = 0.030) as well as an indirect path mediated by peer attachment, parental attachment and depression symptoms (estimate = 0.01; bootstrapped 95% CIs 0.01, 0.02). Conclusion Being bullied in childhood is directly associated with a greater risk of having psychotic symptoms as an adult. There is also an indirect path from bullying in childhood to psychosis symptoms as an adult mediated by peer attachment, parental attachment, and depression. Interventions should be aimed at addressing bullying and strengthening social support from peers and family.