Humiliation and Anger as Emotional Mediators of Behavioral Responses to Bullying Victimization

In bullying victimization settings, this research examines how emotional responses of humiliation and anger are influenced by key cognitive appraisals and how they relate to various behavioral tendencies. Two cross-sectional studies were conducted using self-report surveys to collect the data and structural equation modeling to test the hypothesized models. Study 1 included 1,347 participants, and Study 2 included 1,199 participants. To address sample diversity, potential gender differences in the variables of interest were explored. Both studies revealed that bullying victimization was linked to humiliation through the internalization of self-devaluation and perceived malice, whereas anger was more strongly linked to perceived malice than to self-devaluation. Humiliation and anger acted as significant mediators between bullying victimization and behavioral tendencies, with humiliation being related to non-confrontation and anger to both aggressive and non-aggressive confrontation. Regarding gender differences, the findings across both studies revealed consistent patterns, with men showing stronger relationships between perceived malice and humiliation, as well as between anger and aggressive confrontation. In conclusion, humiliation and anger appear to play distinct roles as emotional mediators in bullying victimization dynamics. A deeper understanding of these psychological processes may contribute to the development of more effective coping strategies for victims and inform anti-bullying programs in institutional settings.