Psychological features of victims and initiators included in the bullying structure

Aim. To analyze the personality characteristics of the victims and initiators included in the bullying structure.
Methodology. With the help of methods and techniques, the following indicators were investigated: to identify the presence and severity of cognitive distortions, the questionnaire of I.S. Luchinkina “Cognitive distortions during Internet communication” was used; the method of V. Boyko was used to diagnose the type of communicative attitude; the “Suicide risk questionnaire” modified by T.N. Razuvaeva designed to diagnose suicide risk.
Results. The results allow us to distinguish three subgroups of adolescents, taking into account their role position in the bullying structure:
1. The group of initiators characterized by cognitive distortions by the type of dichotomous thinking and labeling. According to the parameters of the features of communication with peers and communicative attitudes, open cruelty and justified negativism were revealed. According to the parameters of suicidal intentions, demonstrativeness, the breakdown of cultural barriers, maximalism, and a high anti-suicidal factor were identified.
2. Assistants who are characterized by cognitive distortions of the type of catastrophization. According to the parameters of communicative attitudes, the respondents of this group revealed open cruelty. Maximalism and a high anti-suicidal factor are their characteristic features.
3. Victims who are characterized by cognitive distortions such as dichotomous thinking and emotional reasoning. According to the parameters of communication features, attitudes were found according to the type of open cruelty, justified negativism and negative personal experience. Demonstrativeness, affectivity, uniqueness, the breakdown of cultural barriers and a high anti-suicidal factor are inherent for them.
Research implications. The theoretical and practical significance consists in revealing the problem of bullying prevention in social groups is still relevant, but has not yet been sufficiently studied. Existing approaches usually take into account the peculiarities of the development of the group where bullying cases occur. However, the individual characteristics of a person in a bullying situation are often not taken into account at all or are not taken into account enough. The study of individual personality traits can help in the development of more effective methods of bullying prevention.

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