Bullying Behaviors Scale (BBS): Development and Psychometrics Evidences

Abstract This work aimed to develop the Bullying Behaviors Scale (BBS), checking evidences of validity and reliability. 455 elementary school students from public and private schools in Parnaíba (PI), Brazil, participated in the study. Their mean age was 11.3, being mostly female (53.5%). All participants completed a preliminary version of the measure, composed by 30 items, and demographic questions. A Principal Axis Analysis was performed (PAF; Varimax rotation), the Scree test, and parallel analysis indicated the existence of a four-factor structure, consistent with the literature (verbal, physical, relational and virtual). Next, a new PAF was performed, establishing the extraction of four factors, which account for 47.7% of total variance, and Cronbach alphas ranged from .60 to .79. These findings reveal that the BBS meets favorable evidence of validity and reliability, and it is suitable for use in future studies aiming to understand the antecedents and consequences of bullying.