Citation

Prignitz M, Banaschewski T, Bokde ALW, Desrivieres S, Grigis A, Garavan H, Gowland P, Heinz A, Martinot JL, Paillère Martinot ML, Artiges E, Papadopoulos Orfanos D, Poustka L, Hohmann S, Fröhner JH, Robinson L, Smolka MN, Walter H, Winterer JM, Whelan R, Schumann G, Nees F, Flor H, Consortium OBOTI. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023; 20(13).

Copyright

(Copyright © 2023, MDPI: Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute)

DOI

10.3390/ijerph20136286

PMID

37444132

PMCID

PMC10341197

Abstract

Bullying often results in negative coping in victims, including an increased consumption of alcohol. Recently, however, an increase in alcohol use has also been reported among perpetrators of bullying. The factors triggering this pattern are still unclear. We investigated the role of empathy in the interaction between bullying and alcohol use in an adolescent sample (IMAGEN) at age 13.97 (±0.53) years (baseline (BL), N = 2165, 50.9% female) and age 16.51 (±0.61) years (follow-up 1 (FU1), N = 1185, 54.9% female). General empathic distress served as a significant moderator of alcohol use in perpetrators (F(9, 493) = 17.978, p < 0.01), which was specific for males and FU1. Male perpetrators, who are generally less sensitive to distress, might thus be more vulnerable to alcohol abuse.

Language: en

Keywords

alcohol; distress; adolescence; bullying; empathy