The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated anxiety and triggered a new and specific COVID-19 anxiety in all age groups, especially in adolescence. The aim of the present study was to identify differences between anxiety and COVID-19 anxiety in profiles of positive outcomes by using the Positive Youth Development (PYD) framework (i.e., the Five Cs of competence, confidence, character, caring, and connection) on a sample of 1,977 adolescents from Slovenia (57.4% females; M_age = 15.34 years) from lower- and upper-secondary schools. Latent profile analysis revealed four distinctive profiles: High PYD, Self-efficacious, Socio-emotional, and Low PYD. The High PYD profile reported lower anxiety and moderate COVID-19 anxiety; the Self-efficacious profile reported lower anxiety and the lowest COVID-19 anxiety; the Socio-emotional profile reported moderate anxiety and the highest COVID-19 anxiety; and the Low PYD profile reported higher anxiety and moderate COVID-19 anxiety. The study findings suggest that higher levels of competence, confidence, and connection can mitigate anxiety, while higher levels of caring are associated with COVID-19 anxiety. Nonetheless, the study supports the promotion of all Five Cs of the PYD framework to prevent anxiety, COVID-19 anxiety, and maladaptive developmental outcomes. The study provides important insights into profiling responses to extreme situations, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

This study investigates the profiles of students involved in different forms of victimization using a person-centered approach. It examines the associated psychosocial characteristics, including bullying perpetration, peer support, self-perceived personality, loneliness, social self-concept, and negative affect. A sample of 2081 students (59% girls; M _age = 15.49, SD = 1.51) was analyzed. Latent profile analysis (LPA) identified three distinct profiles based on experiences of verbal, relational, and cyber victimization: nonvictims (89.8%), moderate victims (5.3%), and severe victims (4.9%). The analysis revealed significant differences among the profiles, with severe victims exhibiting the poorest psychosocial outcomes, characterized by high levels of loneliness, negative affect, and poor social self-concept. Moderate victims showed similarities to nonvictims in most characteristics, yet their role in bullying perpetration suggests they might be bully-victims. Nonvictims demonstrated the most favorable psychosocial profile. These findings indicate that victimization experiences are heterogeneous, with severe victims being the most negatively impacted. The study highlights the importance of differentiating between levels of victimization in research and practice to better address the needs of affected students. Future research should further explore the nuanced roles of moderate victims and the implications for intervention strategies.

Adolescence is crucial for shaping social behavior, with peers influencing popularity and likability. While some adolescents use bullying to gain popularity, prosocial behavior often underlies likability. Yet, little is known about bistrategic control, where youth combine aggression and prosocial actions. This study used a multilevel person‐centered approach to identify latent profiles based on peer‐reported bullying, prosocial behavior, popularity, and likability, examined differences in bystander behavior, social status goals, and insecurity, and further explored how these individual‐level profiles differ across classrooms and align with classroom‐level bullying and prosocial social status norms. Data from 6379 Slovenian adolescents in 328 classes revealed five profiles: Unpopular bullies, Popular bullies, Bistrategic, Prosocial, and Uninvolved. At the classroom level, two distinct profiles emerged, differing in the prevalence of Uninvolved, Prosocial, Bistrategic, and Popular bully students.

The complexities of individual (developmental changes) and contextual (change of school) factors interact during a school level transition period. The current study focuses on one aspect of possible difficulties, namely anxiety, and one potential support mechanism, specifically social support from family and peers, and their interplay during the school year when transitioning to a higher level of education. The study monitors anxiety levels of Slovene students (N = 115, 69.6% females) and the role of their social support through their transition using a longitudinal design with four time points—at the beginning of the school year, at the middle of the school year, at the end of the school year, and at the beginning of the new school year after the transition—in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings from an unconditional growth model show a significant difference in anxiety at the initial measurement, while the change in time is insignificant. The findings show that peer support is a significant predictor of anxiety at all four time points and that family support is a significant predictor of anxiety at three of the four time points (not significant at the end of school year). Students who report a higher sense of peer and family support report less anxiety. As identified in the study, social support is an important protective factor for higher anxiety levels; therefore, it is important to provide mechanisms of social support during a transition and throughout the pre- and post-transition school years.

Priročnik za načrtovanje krepitve vključujoče razredne in šolske klime ter preprečevanja in odzivanja na medvrstniško nasilje v osnovni šoli poglobljeno predstavlja pojav medvrstniškega nasilja in njegove dejavnike. V priročniku so prav tako predstavljene ključne ugotovitve kvantitativne in kvalitativne raziskave, ki jo je raziskovalna skupina izvedla v okviru projekta Socialni kontekst kot dejavnik medvrstniškega nasilja: kako z oblikovanjem pozitivne vrstniške kulture prispevati k vključujoči šoli?. V priročniku so predstavljene z dokazi podprte smernice za preprečevanje in odzivanje na medvrstniško nasilje, namenjene učiteljem, svetovalnim delavcem in ostalim strokovnim delavcem ter učencem na osnovnih šolah. Predstavljeni so tudi primeri dobrih praks.