Systematic review of academic bullying in medical settings: dynamics and consequences

PurposeTo characterise the dynamics and consequences of bullying in academic medical settings, report factors that promote academic bullying and describe potential interventions.DesignSystematic review.Data sourcesWe searched EMBASE and PsycINFO for articles published between 1 January 1999 and 7 February 2021.Study selectionWe included studies conducted in academic medical settings in which victims were consultants or trainees. Studies had to describe bullying behaviours; the perpetrators or victims; barriers or facilitators; impact or interventions. Data were assessed independently by two reviewers.ResultsWe included 68 studies representing 82 349 respondents. Studies described academic bullying as the abuse of authority that impeded the education or career of the victim through punishing behaviours that included overwork, destabilisation and isolation in academic settings. Among 35 779 individuals who responded about bullying patterns in 28 studies, the most commonly described (38.2% respondents) was overwork. Among 24 894 individuals in 33 studies who reported the impact, the most common was psychological distress (39.1% respondents). Consultants were the most common bullies identified (53.6% of 15 868 respondents in 31 studies). Among demographic groups, men were identified as the most common perpetrators (67.2% of 4722 respondents in 5 studies) and women the most common victims (56.2% of 15 246 respondents in 27 studies). Only a minority of victims (28.9% of 9410 victims in 25 studies) reported the bullying, and most (57.5%) did not perceive a positive outcome. Facilitators of bullying included lack of enforcement of institutional policies (reported in 13 studies), hierarchical power structures (7 studies) and normalisation of bullying (10 studies). Studies testing the effectiveness of anti-bullying interventions had a high risk of bias.ConclusionsAcademic bullying commonly involved overwork, had a negative impact on well-being and was not typically reported. Perpetrators were most commonly consultants and men across career stages, and victims were commonly women. Methodologically robust trials of anti-bullying interventions are needed.LimitationsMost studies (40 of 68) had at least a moderate risk of bias. All interventions were tested in uncontrolled before–after studies.

A Causal Model of the Mutual Relationships Between Academic Bullying, Suicidal Thinking, and Psychological Immunity Among University Students

The research aims to identify the causal model that explains the relationship between academic bullying, psychological immunity, and suicidal thinking among university students. Besides, it recognizes gender differences in research variables. The sample has consisted of (134) male and (139) female students from Prince Sattam bin Abdul-Aziz University and King Faisal University for the academic year 2020-2021. The researcher prepared the academic bullying scale and the suicidal thinking scale, and the psychological immunity scale was taken from the study of Al-Takhaina. The study has shown a statistically significant correlation between academic bullying and suicidal thinking. There are statistically significant differences between males and females in academic bullying and suicidal thinking favoring females. The results have also shown statistically significant differences between males and females in psychological immunity favoring males. The research recommends launching counseling and training programs for both bullies and bullying victims to gain insight into their behaviors and rectify them.