Realities and challenges of bullying: a contextualized study in two basic education schools in the Province of Guayas

Abstract

Bullying is a phenomenon that is gaining more and more strength in schools. It is a reality that is expressed worldwide, with Latin America having the highest incidence rate. In Ecuador, at the end of 2018, the figures exceed 1400 cases of bullying studied, which is considered alarming, due to the physical, psychological, and social repercussions that this implies. This article is the result of an investigation that aims to explore this phenomenon in two educational units of the Guayaquil Canton, which constitutes a modest contribution of Social Sciences, in general, and of Psychology in particular, to raising awareness with this problem to reduce and eradicate it. It constitutes an exploratory study, with 89 students of Basic Cycle, whose ages are between 7 and 9 years, and the abbreviated Scale of the CIE-A School Bullying Questionnaire, the Participant Observation, and the Semi-structured Individual Interview with nine teachers of said educational establishments. The results showed the presence of situations of bullying, especially in boys, whose most obvious manifestations are blackmail, mockery, derogatory nicknames, and pressure from a position of power. Symptoms such as anxiety, fear, sweating, and damage to self-esteem are expressed. Teachers recognize these manifestations but feel that they lack pedagogical resources and legal tools to combat them.