Within the Participant Roles framework in bullying, this study aims at investigating: (a) the individual characteristics (pro-victim attitudes, perceived personal responsibility for intervention in support of the victim and coping strategies) of defenders and passive bystanders; (b) the relation between the two roles and peer acceptance in primary and middle-school students. Defenders reported more pro-victim attitudes and higher personal responsibility for intervention than passive bystanders. Moreover, defenders use more problem solving and internalizing strategies, and are more accepted than bystanders. These results have important implications for anti-bullying programs.
Keywords: Bullying, defenders, passive bystanders, attitudes, responsibility, coping, acceptance