Post-traumatic Stress Levels and Irrational Beliefs in Victims of Bullying: A Case Study of Two Middle School Students.

Abstract

This study aims to reveal the level of exposure to bullying and post-traumatic stress, as well as the type of thoughts in two middle school cases, using the case study method. The semi-structured interview, direct observation, and three scales were applied: the Victimization of Bullying Scale, the Revised Impact of Event Scale, and the Irrational Beliefs Scale. The results showed that both cases suffer from a different degree of bullying and share the fact that the most severe types of bullying are verbal and psychosocial bullying, which is considered severe for both cases. Both cases also suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder to a moderate degree. It is also noted that avoidance after experience is severe for the first case. Also, both cases accept irrational thoughts to a high degree, which appears in their answers to the content of the thoughts, as it appears that both cases seek to be loved and accepted by all members of their family, as well as the idea of seeking approval and appreciation. Despite the difference in gender and economic status of the two cases, they shared the psychological suffering that results from bullying. Many research proposals have been made for further understanding and research on this negative phenomenon.