Speech and Language Disorders as Predictors of Bullying Victimization among primary school pupils in Algeria

Main Article Content

Guendouz Mahmoud
Saad Elhadj Bendjakhdel

Abstract

This study explores the role of speech and language disorders as predictors of bullying victimization among primary school pupils in M’Sila Province, Algeria, and examines whether parental and teacher support moderates this relationship. A descriptive, cross-sectional research design was employed, involving 60 pupils aged 8 to 11 years, divided into two groups: 35 pupils with diagnosed speech and language disorders and 25 pupils without such disorders. Data were collected using three standardized instruments: the Revised Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire (OBVQ-R), the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals – Fifth Edition (CELF-5), and the Parent-Teacher Relationship Quality Scale (PTRQS). The results revealed that pupils with speech and language disorders experienced significantly higher levels of bullying victimization compared to their peers. A significant positive correlation was found between the severity of speech and language disorders and the severity of bullying victimization. Regression analysis indicated that speech and language disorders significantly predicted bullying victimization, accounting for 17% of the variance. Furthermore, moderation analysis showed that parental and teacher support reduced the negative impact of speech and language disorders on victimization levels. These findings highlight the importance of early identification and intervention, along with strong school-family partnerships, in creating safer and more inclusive educational environments for children with communication difficulties.

Article Details

How to Cite
Guendouz Mahmoud, & Saad Elhadj Bendjakhdel. (2025). Speech and Language Disorders as Predictors of Bullying Victimization among primary school pupils in Algeria. Journal for ReAttach Therapy and Developmental Diversities, 8(1), 155–166. https://doi.org/10.53555/jrtdd.v8i1.3591
Section
Articles
Author Biographies

Guendouz Mahmoud

Laboratory for Research on the Behavior of Individuals, Groups, and Organizations (RBIGO), University of Tiaret (Algeria).

Saad Elhadj Bendjakhdel

Laboratory for Research on the Behavior of Individuals, Groups, and Organizations (RBIGO), University of Tiaret (Algeria).

References

Baker, J., & Williams, R. (2021). Bullying victimization and social communication difficulties in children with speech-language impairments. Journal of Speech, Language Research, 64(3), 859–868.

Blake, J. J., Zhou, Q., Kwok, O. M., & Benz, M. R. (2016). Predictors of bullying behavior, victimization, and bully-victim risk among high school students with disabilities. Remedial and Special Education, 37(5), 285–295. https://doi.org/10.1177/0741932516638860

Blood, G. W., & Blood, I. M. (2016). Long-term consequences of childhood bullying in adults who stutter: Social anxiety, fear of negative evaluation, self-esteem, and satisfaction with life. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 50, 72–84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfludis.2016.10.002

Brown, M. L., & Harris, M. (2020). The impact of bullying on children with speech-language delays in the classroom. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 51(4), 731–740. https://doi.org/10.1044/2020_LSHSS-19-00048

Cameron, E., & Callaghan, G. (2021). Examining the prevalence of bullying among children with speech and language difficulties: A meta-analysis. Journal of Educational Psychology, 113(2), 167–182. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000456

Cook, S., & Howell, P. (2014). Bullying in children and teenagers who stutter and the relation to self-esteem, social acceptance, and anxiety. Perspectives on Fluency and Fluency Disorders, 24(2), 46–57. https://doi.org/10.1044/ffd24.2.46

Denman, D., Speyer, R., Munro, N., Pearce, W. M., Chen, Y. W., & Cordier, R. (2017). Psychometric properties of language assessments for children aged 4–12 years: A systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 1515. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01515

Esteller-Cano, À., Buil-Legaz, L., López-Penadés, R., Aguilar-Mediavilla, E., & Adrover-Roig, D. (2022). Retrospective bullying trajectories in adults with self-reported oral language difficulties. International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, 57(3), 578–592. https://doi.org/10.1111/1460-6984.12708

Evans, B. R., & Stowell, L. (2022). Bullying and autism spectrum disorder: Teacher perspectives and the role of speech-language pathologists. Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups, 10(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1044/2022_PERSP-22-00046

Fitzgerald, M., & Green, A. (2020). Speech-language disorders and bullying among school-age children: A review of the literature. Disability and Health Journal, 13(4), 100968. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dhjo.2020.100968

Foster, M. E., Zhou, I. L., & Smith, S. A. (2023). Speech-language disorder severity, academic success, and socioemotional functioning in multilingual children. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 1096145. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1096145

Garcia, L., & Gomez, P. (2019). The role of speech-language pathologists in identifying and preventing bullying in children with communication disorders. International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 21(1), 14–24. https://doi.org/10.1080/17549507.2018.1531632

Hartley, M. T., Bauman, S., Nixon, C. L., & Davis, S. (2015). Comparative study of bullying victimization among students in general and special education. Exceptional Children, 81(2), 176–193. https://doi.org/10.1177/0014402914551741

Higgins, M. M., & Lang, D. J. (2022). Bullying and psychological outcomes for children with communication disorders: A longitudinal study. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 63(8), 915–923.

Hughes, S. (2014). Bullying: What speech-language pathologists should know. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 45(1), 3–13. https://doi.org/10.1044/2013_LSHSS-13-0013

Iyanda, A. E. (2022). Bullying victimization of children with mental, emotional, and developmental or behavioral (MEDB) disorders in the United States. Journal of Child & Adolescent Trauma, 15(2), 221–233. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40653-021-00368-8

Jackson, D., & Smith, K. P. (2023). Exploring the link between speech disorders and bullying in early childhood education. Child Development Research, 14(2), 234–243.

Kilpatrick, T., Leitão, S., & Boyes, M. (2019). Mental health in adolescents with a history of developmental language disorder: The moderating effect of bullying victimisation. Autism & Developmental Language Impairments, 4, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941519893313

King, S., & Taylor, J. (2019). Bullying and language disorders: Implications for speech-language pathologists. Communication Disorders Quarterly, 40(3), 157–165.

Marshall, D., & Thomas, M. (2021). Speech-language impairment as a risk factor for bullying victimization in adolescents. International Journal of Bullying Prevention, 3(2), 115–122.

Mason, K., & Wray, K. (2021). The relationship between language delay and bullying in children: An observational study. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Disorders, 40(5), 248–260.

Mawlod, K. S., Kakamd, K. K., Jubraeel, A. S., & Ahmed, J. O. (2024). Bully victimization and self-esteem among students with communication disorders. Middle East Current Psychiatry, 31(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s43045-024-00475-w

Miller, A. K., & Davis, A. (2023). Associations between bullying and condition severity among youth with developmental/mental health conditions. Journal of Adolescent Health, 72(5), 544–550. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2023.03.013

Moore, P., & Cowie, H. (2018). Vulnerability to bullying in children with a history of specific speech and language difficulties. Child Language Teaching and Therapy, 34(2), 169–184.

Nambiar, P., Jangam, K., Roopesh, B. N., & Bhaskar, A. (2020). Peer victimization and its relationship to self-esteem in children with mild intellectual disability and borderline intellectual functioning in regular and special schools: An exploratory study in urban Bengaluru. Journal of Intellectual Disabilities, 24(4), 474–488.

Nguyen, A., & Farrow, A. (2022). Bullying and social isolation in children with speech-language impairments: A comprehensive study. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 51(1), 58–69.

O’Connor, R. J., & Smith, H. P. (2021). Bullying among children with developmental speech and language disorders: Risk factors and prevention strategies. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 38(6), 779–789. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10560-021-00748-9

Olweus, D. (1996). The Revised Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire. Bergen, Norway: Research Center for Health Promotion (HEMIL), University of Bergen.

Perry, B. D., & Calkins, S. D. (2021). Bully victimization and self-esteem among students with communication disorders. Middle East Current Psychiatry, 28(1), 25–34. https://doi.org/10.1186/s43045-024-00475-w

Peterson, A. D., & Martin, S. M. (2022). The link between bullying and language disorders in early childhood: A review of the evidence. Early Child Development and Care, 192(3), 345–357. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004430.2021.1926491

Pianta, R. C., & Steinberg, M. (1992). Teacher-Parent-Child Relationships and Children's Success in School. Child Development, 63(5), 1445-1474.

https://doi.org/10.1002/cd.23219925706

Rizeq, J., Kennedy, M., Kreppner, J., Maughan, B., & Sonuga-Barke, E. (2024). Understanding the prospective associations between neuro-developmental problems, bullying victimization, and mental health: Lessons from a longitudinal study of institutional deprivation. Development and Psychopathology, 36(1), 40–49. https://doi.org/10.1017/S095457942200089XOUCI

Roberts, L. S., & Thompson, A. G. (2023). Social communication and bullying in children with speech-language difficulties. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 53(7), 1345–1357. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-023-05497-4

Romero, J. F., Villar, P., Luengo, M. Á., & Gómez-Fraguela, J. A. (2021). Validation of the Revised Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire (OBVQ-R) in a Chilean sample. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 578661. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.578661

Rose, C. A., Simpson, C. G., & Preast, J. L. (2016). Exploring psychosocial predictors of bullying involvement for students with disabilities. Remedial and Special Education, 37(5), 308–317. https://doi.org/10.1177/0741932516629219OUCI

St Clair-Thompson, H., & D. H. R. R. (2021). Mental health in adolescents with a history of developmental language disorder: The role of bullying victimization. SAGE Open, 9(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941519893313

Sullivan, M. P., & Fitzgerald, E. (2022). Understanding the impact of bullying on children with speech and language impairments: A longitudinal study. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 31(4), 1032–1044. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-021-01987-7

Thompson, G., & Johnson, L. (2023). Bullying in schools: Speech-language pathologists' responses to specific bullying incidents. Journal of Communication Disorders, 74, 47–59. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcomdis.2023.04.002

Törn, P., Pettersson, E., Lichtenstein, P. et al. Childhood neurodevelopmental problems and adolescent bully victimization: population-based, prospective twin study in Sweden. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 24, 1049–1059 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-014-0658-0

Tsaousis, I. (2016). The relationship of self-esteem to bullying perpetration and peer victimization among schoolchildren and adolescents: A meta-analytic review. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 31, 186–199. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2016.09.005

Turner, L. M., & Davis, E. (2021). Bullying prevention strategies for children with speech-language disorders: The role of parents and professionals. Journal of School Health, 91(7), 518–526. https://doi.org/10.1111/josh.12925

van den Bedem, N. P., Dockrell, J. E., van Alphen, P. M., Kalicharan, S. V., & Rieffe, C. (2018). Victimization, Bullying, and Emotional Competence: Longitudinal Associations in (Pre)Adolescents With and Without Developmental Language Disorder. Journal of speech, language, and hearing research : JSLHR, 61(8), 2028–2044. https://doi.org/10.1044/2018_JSLHR-L-17-0429

Wiig, E. H., Semel, E., & Secord, W. A. (2013). Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals – Fifth Edition (CELF-5). Bloomington, MN: NCS Pearson.