Visual attention and role recognition in bullying vignettes in preadolescents and adults

Background: Bullying research has traditionally relied on self-reported measures such as questionnaires and interviews. Previous studies have shown developmental differences in attention mechanisms, with adults relying more on top-down processing and younger individuals on bottom-up attention. However, it remains unclear whether these differences extend to bullying scene observation and how they influence the perception of different bullying roles. Aims: This study examined differences in visual attention (total fixation duration, visit count, fixation count) and verbal recognition of bullying roles between preadolescents and adults. Sample: The study included 80 participants: 37 preadolescents (Mage = 10.11, SD = 1.10) and 43 adults (Mage = 30.72, SD = 4.89). Methods: Participants viewed 12 vignette-based bullying scenes while their eye movements were recorded using an eye tracker. They then provided verbal descriptions of each observed vignette. Results: Both groups primarily fixated on bullies and victims, reinforcing the centrality of the bully-victim dyad. However, adults allocated significantly more attention to the other roles and described them with greater accuracy than preadolescents. In particular, in adults, defenders and pro-bullies attracted more fixations, visits, and total fixation time, while bystanders received more total fixation time. Conclusions: The findings suggest that adults process bullying situations in a more structured and holistic manner, likely due to top-down attentional mechanisms shaped by social experience. These developmental differences highlight the crucial role of adults in fostering awareness of all bullying roles among preadolescents, emphasizing the need for interventions that encourage broader role recognition beyond the bully-victim dynamic.