Bullying is a stressful phenomenon with many effects on the mental and social health of a child. This study examined the association of bullying and stress in children and adolescents. The participants were 574 students from the 5 th and 6 th grades of the primary school and from the three grades of junior high school. The Olweus Bully Victim Questionnaire was used as a measurement of bullying and the Adolescent Stress Questionnaire (ASQ) and Stress in Children (SiC) were used as a measurement of stress in junior high school and primary school children respectively. 26.3% of children reported being victims of bullying, 7.8% reported engaging in bullying behaviour and 34.7% had been both victims of bullying and had engaged in bullying behavior. 31.2% had no role in the phenomenon. Verbal bullying was the most frequent form of bullying (22%) followed by hidden manipulation of social relationships to hurt or socially exclude the victim (19%). Bullying frequency was the most potent determinant of victims’ stress. Higher distress in bullies was associated with a higher frequency of bullying behavior and more stopping behaviors by adults especially if bullies reported less social support or had many adult-type responsibilities in their lives. Stress management programs to reduce bullying should be the central axis of intervention as stress not only constitutes a mediating factor in bullying but it is also associated with the phenomenon.
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