Bullying in higher education

The aim of the study was to analyze bullying (target, perpetrator and bystander) in the university environment according to sociodemographic and academic variables (sex, age, origin, level of education and Faculty). The participants were 765 students (72.9% women) of the University of Murcia, who completed the “Questionnaire on harassment among university students” (QAEU in Spanish). The results of the study determined that both men and women were involved in different forms of harassment. Students were more involved as perpetrators between 20 and 24 years of age as compared to those over 30, and undergraduates were more involved than postgraduate students. As target, students aged 20-24 were more involved compared to those above 30 and undergraduate students exceeded postgraduates. However, as bystanders, no significant differences were found according to age. The students of Humanities, Social Sciences and Health Sciences obtained higher values in the subscales evaluated. It is highly advisable to promote programs for the prevention of bullying in universities.