Being disliked and bullied: A case revealing interplay between peer status and bullying

Abstract

To better understand chronic bullying, this school ethnographical case study mapped peer rejection processes that fuel bullying. The study focused on a case of a victimized 13-year-old girl and analysed observations of the classroom social interactions, interviews with teachers and students' essays. Thematic analysis elucidated how students, together with the class teacher, constructed the girl as having annoying personal characteristics, being a misfit to the group, and as being on the bottom of the classroom hierarchy. Next, it suggested how these processes made her more vulnerable to being bullied and not defended by teachers or classmates. The study showed that interventions in chronic bullying need to not only stop bullying, but also target the social processes underlying peer rejection.