Personality and neuropsychological correlates of bullying behavior

The psychological and neuropsychological correlates of bullying behavior were examined in a group of 41 middle school students (age range 11–15 years) and group-matched controls. The students were identified as bullies by school administrators, their teachers, and self-ratings. Parents of children in both groups completed the Coolidge Personality and Neuropsychological Inventory, a 200-item, DSM-IV-TR aligned, parent-as-respondent, standardized measure. It was found that bullying behavior was associated more with DSM-IV-TR Axis I diagnoses of conduct disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and depressive disorder than in matched controls. Bullying behavior was also correlated more with Axis II diagnoses of passive–aggressive, histrionic, paranoid, and dependent personality disorders than in matched controls. Bullying behavior was also more correlated with measures of neuropsychological dysfunction and executive function deficits. An implication of these findings is that traditional short-term psychotherapeutic interventions for bullying behavior may be of limited value given the complex nature of the associated psychopathology.