Bullying and cyberbullying among adolescents: associations with somatic symptoms, psychiatric symptoms, and sleep disturbance (psychosocial effects of bullying in adolescents)

Although the psychological consequences of peer and cyberbullying have been extensively documented, their associations with somatic and sleep-related symptoms remain comparatively underexplored. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between exposure to bullying or cyberbullying and the severity of somatic symptoms in adolescents. This cross-sectional study included 166 adolescents aged 11 to 18 years who presented to the Pediatric Health and Diseases Outpatient Clinic of Başakşehir Çam and Sakura City Hospital in Istanbul, between February and May 2025. Participants completed standardized self-report instruments assessing experiences of bullying and cyberbullying, somatic complaints, sleep disturbances, anxiety and depressive symptoms, and self-esteem. Among the 166 participants (51.2% female; mean age, 15.16 years), boys reported significantly higher physical bullying scores (p = 0.007), while girls reported significantly higher emotional symptom scores (p = 0.041). Physical and cyber victimization demonstrated modest decreases with age, whereas sleep difficulties, anxiety, and depressive symptoms showed slight increases. Victimization was weakly but positively correlated with somatic symptoms, sleep disturbances, anxiety, and behavioral problems, and weakly negatively correlated with self-esteem, indicating modest but statistically significant associations. Bullying perpetration was also associated with poorer peer relationships and reduced prosocial behaviors. Bullying and cyberbullying were weakly yet significantly associated with somatic complaints and psychological difficulties among adolescents. Further longitudinal studies are needed to elucidate causal mechanisms underlying these relationships.