Validation of the Educator-Targeted Bullying Measurement

Previous research and practitioners typically concentrate on a limited operational definition of bullying when examining educators’ experiences with bullying in higher educational institutions (HEIs). This study employs the term Educator-Targeted Bullying (ETB) to denote a more precise variable, owing to the narrow definition of academic bullying. This study aims to validate a 47-item instrument that assesses three forms of bullying-related stress among academics in higher education institutions. Upon reviewing previous literature on educator bullying, three prevalent forms are identified: workplace bullying, cyberbullying, and teacher-targeted bullying. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to evaluate factorial structures based on a total of 210 survey responses. This study categorises seven dimensions of ETB: student direct bullying, devaluation bullying, indirect private bullying, pictorial cyberbullying, task bullying, relational cyberbullying, and student physical bullying. Consequently, the factors significantly influence the operational definitions of educator bullying.