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Bullying may contribute to a drop in high school students' grades, especially if they're high achievers, a new study has found.
Researchers compared the grade point averages (GPAs) of 9,590 students from 580 US high schools. The students were asked if they experienced bullying in Grade 10.
Compared to kids who were not bullied, kids who were bullied experienced a 0.049 drop in their GPA between Grades 9 and 12, according to the study.
"This effect, though small, is highly significant and suggests that bullying negatively affects GPA even after factoring in previous grades, family background and school characteristics often associated with achievement, which are all variables the study controls for," lead author Lisa M. Williams, a doctoral student in sociology at Ohio State University, said.
Because this study was presented at a medical meeting, the data and conclusions should be viewed as preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.
More information
The Nemours Foundation suggests how teens can deal with bullying.
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