Wendy M Craig

• PhD
• Queen's University

This study evaluated the bidirectional associations between peer defending and social status (perceived popularity and likability) as well as gender and grade differences in these associations. Cross‐lagged panel models were used to assess these longitudinal relationships in a sample comprised of elementary school students (Grades 5–8, N = 301, M a...

Teen dating violence (TDV) is a global public health issue with numerous consequences for physical, psychological, social, and emotional well-being. Thus, prevention of TDV has been a focus of research attention for the past several decades. As part of a comprehensive TDV prevention approach, programs, practices, and policies are needed. Yet, no pr...

Dan Olweus pioneered research on school bullying and identified the importance of, and risk factors associated with, bullying and victimization. In this paper, we conduct a narrative review of the critical notion of power within bullying. Specifically, we discuss Olweus’s definition of bullying and the role of a power imbalance in distinguishing bu...

Witnessing peer victimization is an emotionally salient event, particularly for youth. Given that emotions influence how youth respond to social situations, the emotional experiences of bystanders may influence how they respond to peer victimization. In particular, different defending behaviors may be motivated by different emotional processes amon...

A substantial minority of adolescents experience and use dating violence in their sexual and/or romantic relationships. Limited attention has been paid to exploring theory-driven questions about use and experience of adolescent dating violence (ADV), restricting knowledge about promising prevention targets for diverse groups of youth. To address th...

Peers are critical influencers of adolescent behavior, including defending against peer victimization. The current research explored peer influence processes associated with four different types of peer‐defending behaviors (comforting, reporting, solution‐focused, and aggressive defending behaviors) within early adolescent friendship networks. Link...

Bullying is a peer relational problem that can inflict psychological harm onto both those who are victimized and those who witness it occur. Fostering a positive classroom environment is an important protective factor in preventing bullying. Authoritative classroom climates may protect victimized and bystander youth from negative mental health outc...

The current study evaluated factors that can help to account for the links between peer victimization and distress among 1039 adolescents. We assessed whether rejection sensitivity and self-esteem mediate the longitudinal associations between peer victimization and mental health problems. High school students completed a series of self-report quest...

Purpose The national prevalence of adolescent dating violence (ADV) in Canada is currently unknown. This study presents the first nationally representative Canadian data on prevalence and correlates of ADV victimization and perpetration. Methods This study analyzed data from the 2017/2018 Health-Behavior in School-Aged Children (HBSC) dataset. You...

Defending represents any prosocial behavior taken to assist an individual being victimized. Like other forms of prosocial behavior, defending may be best conceptualized as a multidimensional set of behaviors, including both direct and indirect forms of defending. The objective of the current research was to design and validate the Defending Behavio...

We propose that self-esteem importance has utility in research involving adolescents. Canadian adolescents ages 11–14 years (N =334) were compared to a large sample (N= 1792) and a validation subsample (n= 437) of young adults. Supplementary analyses established that our scale of self-esteem importance showed good psychometric performance among ado...

Background: Adolescent-to-parent psychological aggression is often a precursor to physical aggression toward their parents. Recently, there have been 4 high-profile matricide cases that happened in China. To date, there is limited research in Confucian filial piety culture on child-to-parent psychological aggression, especially toward the mother w...

Bullying and peer victimization are stressful experiences for youth, and are associated with increased risk for psychopathology. Physiological differences in the body’s stress response system may help us to understand vulnerability for depressive symptoms among youth involved with bullying. The current study examined both sympathetic and parasympat...

Emotional reactions to peer victimization may increase risk for subsequent peer victimization. In the present study, we investigated whether shame mediated the development of chronic peer victimization, i.e., young people’s experiences of being bullied persistently across time. We used a multiple mediation model to test the indirect effects of Time...

Peer victimization is a chronic stressor that occurs within the context of peer interactions and has been robustly associated with numerous negative psychological and social adjustment problems. Although increased frequency of peer victimization has been linked to psychosocial problems, few researchers have studied the role of duration and pervasiv...

Although there is evidence to suggest that adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have difficulty interpreting complex social situations, little is known about their understanding of bullying. Given the high rates of victimization in this population, it is important to investigate how adolescents with ASD comprehend bullying. Male adolesce...

Supportive parenting is known to protect against psychosomatic manifestations of distress, yet the mechanisms through which this association operates are less clear. The present study evaluates children’s self-esteem as a mediator, partially explaining the association between parent–child relationship quality and psychosomatic problems from late ch...

In this chapter, we describe the evolution, mechanisms, and impact of PREVNet (Promoting Relationships and Eliminating Violence Network) in Canada. PREVNet is a national network of researchers, youth‐serving organizations, governments, and corporations working together to prevent bullying and promote healthy relationships for Canadian children and...

Background: Youth involved with school bullying are vulnerable to many negative outcomes, including substance use. Research has yet to examine how this vulnerability operates in the context of other individual and neighbourhood differences. The current study aimed to fill this gap by using multilevel modeling to investigate both the individual and...

Bullying is a form of interpersonal trauma that impacts all parties involved, including the youth who witness the bullying. Some bystanders choose to intervene and defend the child being bullied. Defending may be positively associated with psychosocial difficulties because youth are becoming more involved in a traumatic event, or because youth may...

Youth who experience peer victimization are at risk of developing mental health problems. However, little is known about the emotional causal mechanisms linking peer victimization with these negative outcomes. This study investigated whether shame mediated this relationship. At three time points (T1-T3), 396 10- to 13-year-olds completed measures o...

School bullying is widely recognised as an international problem, but publications have focussed on the Western tradition of research. A long tradition of research in Japan and South Korea, and more recently in mainland China and Hong Kong, has had much less exposure. There are important and interesting differences in the nature of school bullying...

The current study explored online preventive coping (privacy settings) and reactive coping (reporting tools) among youth and how the use of these online safety tools related to the frequency of cybervictimization. Surveys were administered to youth in elementary, secondary, and post-secondary school. Results indicated that the prevalence of cybervi...

Emotion socialization by close relationship partners plays a role in adolescent depression. In the current study, a microsocial approach was used to examine how adolescents’ emotions are socialized by their mothers and close friends in real time, and how these interpersonal emotion dynamics are related to adolescent depressive symptoms. Participant...

The purpose of this paper is to conduct a systematic review of cyberbullying intervention programs that are either in current practice and/or have been well documented. There are negative effects associated with cyberbullying including, poor academic, social, and mental health outcomes. Consequently, there is a need to develop evidence-based interv...

Bullying among children and adolescents is a public health concern; victimization is associated with psychological and physical health problems. The purpose of this study is to examine temporal trends in bullying victimization among school-aged children in Europe and North America. Data were obtained from cross-sectional self-report surveys collect...

Objective: Describe and predict sex-stratified trajectories of weight change in youths transitioning from childhood to adolescence. Methods: Using an accelerated longitudinal design, 461 children between 8 and 12 years old at baseline were followed over three years. Body mass index was calculated from self-reported height and weight. Latent clas...

Despite a growing recognition of cultural connectedness as an important protective factor for First Nations (FN) peoples' health, there remains a clear need for a conceptual model that organizes, explains, and leads to an understanding of the resiliency mechanisms underlying this concept for FN youth. The current study involved the development of t...

The present study examined pragmatic language and executive functions (EF) as predictors of peer victimization in three groups: high-functioning adolescent boys with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) (n = 30); typically developing adolescent boys (n = 40); and adolescent boys (n = 22) without ASD with special education needs (SN). Controlling for a...

Central to the definition of bullying is the abuse of power. Power relationships are inherent in social groups, by virtue of differing size, strength, age, socioeconomic status (SES), or social connectedness of individuals. Beyond the influence of these individual characteristics, environmental factors have the potential to affect the power dynamic...

The present study explored the relationships between individual ethnicity and community ethnicity factors and the prevalence of racial bullying. It was hypothesized that individuals belonging to the majority ethnic group in a community were less racially victimized than in a community in which they were minority members. Data were collected from 20...

Being victimized by one's peers is a major problem in adolescence, and research has suggested that individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) may experience higher rates of bullying than their typically-developing (TD) peers. However, it is currently unclear whether adolescents with ASD are victimized more by their peers simply because they a...

Objective: To determine whether adolescents’ use of aggressive media is a risk for dating violence victimization and perpetration, considering extensiveness across media types (TV, movies, music, magazines, Internet) and persistence over 3 years. Method: On three occasions, 1 year apart, 238 boys and 246 girls (mean age 15.06 years) with romantic p...

Although research on cyberbullying has recently begun to emerge, few researchers have used longitudinal data to explore this phenomenon in Canada. Using 1-year longitudinal data from the Health Behavior in School-Aged Children Study conducted by the World Health Organization, we investigated the prevalence and stability and risk factors associated...

The aim of the current study was to explore bystander experiences during bullying episodes among children and youth attending a residential summer camp by investigating rates of witnessing and intervention, as well as individual motivations and characteristics associated with bystander intervention. The majority of children had witnessed bullying a...

The objectives of this project were to: (a) identify early trajectories of delinquency for both boys and girls at ages 8 (Grade 3), 11 (Grade 6), and 14 (Grade 9) in a longitudinal sample of 842 at-risk youth from a multi-informant perspective (i.e., parents, teachers, self-reported youth ratings), and (b) estimate the costs associated with each de...

Although comprehensive and ecological approaches to early childhood prevention are commonly advocated, there are few examples of long-term follow-up of such programs. In this monograph, we investigate the medium- and long-term effects of an ecological, community-based prevention project for primary school children and families living in three econo...

Developmental trajectories in delinquency through adolescence were studied along with family and peer relationship problems. Drawing from eight waves of data over seven years, we conducted trajectory analyses with a sample of 746 students (402 girls; 344 boys). Analyzing girls and boys together, a five-class model emerged: 60% of the adolescents ra...

To examine the role of attributions and coping on children’s victimization over time, 220 children completed questionnaires twice over a 6-month period. Direct and mediational models were tested using regressions, cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Characterological self-blame was positively related to victimization within and across time for bo...

To examine the role of attributions and coping on children’s victimization over time, 220 children completed questionnaires twice over a 6-month period. Direct and mediational models were tested using regressions, cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Characterological self-blame was positively related to victimization within and across time for bo...

To examine the role of attributions and coping on children’s victimization over time, 220 children completed questionnaires twice over a 6-month period. Direct and mediational models were tested using regressions, cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Characterological self-blame was positively related to victimization within and across time for bo...

Responding to international concerns regarding childhood bullying and a need to identify a common bullying measure, this study examines the comparability of children’s self-reports of bullying across five countries. The Pacific-Rim Bullying Measure, a self-report measure of students’ experiences with six different types of bullying behavior and vic...

To examine the developmental eating trajectories of adolescents and identify psychological correlates and risk factors associated with those trajectories. Seven hundred thirty-nine adolescents completed self-reported measures of eating problems, internalizing and externalizing behaviors, alcohol and drug use, peer victimization, and depression. Fiv...

The current study examined the joint contributions of pubertal maturation, parental monitoring, involvement in older peer groups, peer dating, and peer delinquency on dating in a sample of early adolescent boys and girls. The sample consisted of 784 adolescents (394 boys, 390 girls) enrolled in grades 5, 6, and 7 who were followed for one year. In...

The purpose of this study was to determine whether using the Internet for different activities affects the quality of close adolescent relationships (i.e., best friendships and romantic relationships). In a one-year longitudinal study of 884 adolescents (Mean age=15, 46% male), we examined whether visiting chat rooms, using ICQ, using the Internet...

La grande proportion d’étudiants canadiens qui rapportent être témoins d’actes d’intimidation ou d’agression ou qui rapportent être victimes de ces actes confirment que ce type d’actes représente un problème social important. Dans cet article nous décrivons un nouveau réseau (PREVNet- Promoting Relationships and Eliminating Violence) financé par le...

In this paper, we examined the forms and relationship contexts of bullying in adolescence. Using cross-sectional data, we assessed grade and sex differences in self-reports of bullying and sexually harassing peers, as well as reports of dating aggression from1896 students from early to late adolescence. Reports of bullying others were highest aroun...

Objective: This study examines peer and parenting characteristics of 149 boys and girls with and without subclinical attention problems. Method: Multivariate analyses showed that children with attention problems had higher levels of negative peer nominations and conflict and betrayal in friendships, and their parents tended to use higher levels of...

Children and youth with exceptionalities are at increased risk to be marginalized in their peer group because of their exceptionalities; they are hence more vulnerable to victimization by peers who have higher status and more social power. Research also suggests that children and youth with exceptionalities may be more likely to bully others. Witho...

To determine the contribution of individual and area level measures of socioeconomic status (SES) to the occurrence of various injury types among Canadian adolescents. Cross sectional Canadian data were used from two sources: (1) the 2001/02 health behaviour in school aged children survey (individual level SES measures, injury measures), and (2) th...

Impetus for the intervention study, early stages of planning, and funding Over the past decade, Canadians have become increasingly aware of the extent and consequences of bullying problems. Recently, there have been several high-profile cases of Canadian children who have suffered from prolonged victimisation, with severe consequences of suicide, r...

The prevalence of overweight and obesity in children is rising. Childhood obesity is associated with many negative social and psychological ramifications such as peer aggression. However, the relationship between overweight and obesity status with different forms of bullying behaviors remains unclear. The purpose of this article is to examine these...

This book presents an integrated theoretical perspective on antisocial behavior for readers who are seeking a more thorough understanding of juvenile delinquency. The authors have integrated what they have learned from recent empirical and conceptual advances in evolutionary psychology, behavioral genetics, and developmental psychology--three field...

Using a modified version of Olweus' victimization (Student Questionnaire, 1993) scale, 1,241 children in Grades 5 to 7 from diverse socioeconomic neighborhoods were classified into four distinct trajectories of victimization: non-victims, late onset victims, stable victims, and desisters. MANCOVAS investigated how changes in victimization across di...

Bullying is a relationship problem in which power and aggression are used to cause distress to a vulnerable person. To assess and address bullying and victimization, we need to understand the nature of the problem, how the problem changes with age and differs for boys and girls, the relevant risk factors (those individual or environmental indicator...

Recently researchers have made efforts to reduce the incidence of bullying in the schools using a systemic or Whole School Approach. Reports on the efficacy of antibullying programs have produced variable, but promising, results. The present study examined the short-term outcome of an antibullying program by comparing children (grades 1-8) attendin...

This study examined the stability of belonging to a gang in early adolescence, the behaviour profiles, family characteristics, and friendships of nongang and gang members. The subjects in the present study were originally part of a larger sample of boys. One hundred and forty-two boys who had a complete data set at ages 11, 12, 13, and 14 were sele...

The goal of this study was to examine sexual harassment in early adolescence. Available data indicate that peer to peer sexual harassment is prevalent in high school and is associated with psychosocial problems for both victims and perpetrators. For the present study, we adopted a developmental contextual model to examine the possibility that this...

This study examined peer intervention in bullying using naturalistic observations on school playgrounds. The sample comprised 58 children (37 boys and 21 girls) in Grades 1 to 6 who were observed to intervene in bullying. Peers were present during 88% of bullying episodes and intervened in 19%. In 47% of the episodes, peers intervened aggressively....

It has recently been argued from studies of adults that chronically antisocial offenders constitute a discrete class of individuals. If this is true, it is likely that the class can be identified in childhood. Taxometric analyses were applied to items assessing antisociality in children. These items were similar in content to several established me...

Research suggests that victims of bullying may lack skills in emotional regulation, a process which facilitates coping with provocative situations to lessen the stress of negative emotions (Cicchetti, Ackerman, & Izard, 1995). The present study examined the emotional regulation and display patterns of victims during classroom bullying episodes. Chi...

In the present study, the effects of both contextual and individual factors on attitudes toward bullying among prospective teachers were examined. Contextual factors included type of aggression and the condition of having witnessed bullying. Individual factors included sex, age, empathy, sex role orientation and belief in a just world. A MANCOVA re...

Research suggests that victims of bullying may lack skills irt emotional regulation, a process which facilitates coping with provocative situations to lessen the stress of negative emotions (Cicchetti, Ackerman, & Izard, 1995), The present study examined the emotional regulation and display patterns of victims during classroom bullying episodes. Ch...

Peers have both positive and negative influences on children; therefore, considerable attention has focused on assessing peer relationships and friendships through childhood and adolescence. The present article provides an overview of the main methods of assessing peer relationships. The adaptive nature of children's peer relations has been assesse...

The purpose of this research was to describe bullying on the playground The subjects were children observed either bullying or being victimized on the playground. Bullying episodes were identified with 90% inter-rater agreement. Bullying occurred regularly on the playground, approximately once every seven minutes and was of short duration, 38 secon...

The objective of the study was to examine sex and grade differences among bullies, victims, bully/victims, and comparison children on physical, verbal, and indirect aggression and victimization and on depression and anxiety. 546 children (254 boys and 292 girls) in grades five through eight participated in the study. Children completed the Bully/Vi...

Naturalistic observations were made of 17 aggressive and 22 nonaggressive children in Grades 1 to 6, filmed with video cameras and remote microphones on school playgrounds. Observers coded interactive behaviors, affective valence, and play states. Aggressive children displayed more verbal and physical aggression, more prosocial behaviors, and highe...

Two experiments were conducted comparing the identification accuracy of children aged 3–15 years (N = 307) and undergraduates (N = 384) using target-present and target-absent simultaneous and sequential lineups and showups. Correct identification rates tended not to vary across either age of subject or identification procedure. However, children sh...

The well-established finding that siblings growing up in the same family turn out to be very different from one another has puzzled psychologists and behavior geneticists alike. In this theoretical note we describe the possible ontogeny and phylogeny of a sibling differentiation mechanism. We suggest that sibling competition for parental investment...

This study predicted stable social maladjustments of ages 10, 11, and 12 from teacher behavioral ratings in kindergarten and a measure of family demographics. Kindergarten teachers rated 1,034 boys on hyperactivity, aggression, inattention, anxiety-withdrawal, and prosocial behavior. Sociodemographic information was collected from the parents. At a...

This article describes a methodology that is uniquely suited to study peer interactions, particularly those of aggressive children. To date, researchers have used laboratory and naturalistic observations to investigate children's aggressive interactions. To overcome difficulties such as the constraints of laboratory situations and reactivity to pro...

This paper describes the development of the Toronto Anti-Bullying Intervention. The effectiveness of the Anti-Bullying Intervention was examined with quantitative and qualitative data gathered before and 18 months after its implementation. The results of this research confirm that bullying continues to be a pervasive problem in Toronto schools. The...