Department of Educational Sciences, 26583University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany.
National Anti-Bullying Research and Resource Centre, Institute of Education, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland.
J Interpers Violence. 2022 Nov;37(21-22):NP21143-NP21164. doi: 10.1177/08862605211056032. Epub 2021 Dec 4.
Hate speech is often discussed and investigated as an online phenomenon, while hate speech among adolescents in the real world (e.g., in schools) has rarely been researched. Consequently, not much is known about potential interpersonal correlates and theoretical frameworks that might help us better understand why adolescents engage in hate speech in offline environments. To add to the literature, this study investigates hate speech perpetration among young people by utilizing the Social Cognitive Theory; more specifically, the association between witnessing and perpetrating hate speech in schools, and whether this relation is weakened or strengthened by anti-hate speech injunctive norms and deviant peer pressure. The sample consists of 1719 young people (45.1% boys, 53.6% girls, 1.3% gender diverse) between 11 and 18 years old ( = 13.96; = .98) from 22 schools in Switzerland. Self-report questionnaires were administered to measure hate speech involvement and adolescents' perception of social norms (i.e., anti-hate speech injunctive norms and deviant peer pressure). Multilevel regression analyses revealed that witnessing and perpetrating hate speech were positively associated. Moreover, injunctive anti-hate speech norms were negatively related and deviant peer pressure positively related to hate speech perpetration. Finally, increasing levels of injunctive anti-hate speech norms weakened the relation between witnessing and perpetrating hate speech, whereas higher levels of deviant peer pressure strengthened this association. The findings demonstrate that the Social Cognitive Theory is a useful framework for understanding hate speech perpetration in schools. The results also highlight the importance of taking into account social norms and interpersonal relationships (e.g., within the class) when designing anti-hate speech prevention programs and not focusing solely on intrapersonal factors.
仇恨言论通常被作为一种网络现象进行讨论和研究，而现实世界（如学校）中青少年的仇恨言论却很少被研究。因此，我们对可能有助于我们更好地理解青少年为何在离线环境中发表仇恨言论的潜在人际相关因素和理论框架知之甚少。为了丰富文献资料，本研究利用社会认知理论调查了年轻人实施仇恨言论的情况；更具体地说，研究了在学校目睹和实施仇恨言论之间的关联，以及反仇恨言论禁令规范和偏差性同伴压力是否会削弱或增强这种关系。该样本由来自瑞士 22 所学校的 1719 名 11 至 18 岁的年轻人（45.1%为男孩，53.6%为女孩，1.3%为性别多样化）组成（ = 13.96； =.98）。采用自陈式问卷来测量仇恨言论的参与情况和青少年对社会规范的感知（即反仇恨言论禁令规范和偏差性同伴压力）。多层次回归分析表明，目睹和实施仇恨言论之间存在正相关。此外，禁令规范的反仇恨言论与仇恨言论的实施呈负相关，而偏差性同伴压力与仇恨言论的实施呈正相关。最后，禁令规范的反仇恨言论水平越高，目睹与实施仇恨言论之间的关系就越弱，而偏差性同伴压力水平越高，这种关联就越强。研究结果表明，社会认知理论是理解学校中仇恨言论实施的有用框架。研究结果还强调了在设计反仇恨言论预防计划时，不仅要考虑到内在因素，还要考虑到社会规范和人际关系（例如在课堂内）的重要性。
