Coercive bullying among forensic inpatients: Predictive utility of the VRAG-R for assessing risk of perpetration

Abstract

Coercive bullying (i.e., pressuring a peer to do something they do not want to do) is a widespread problem in correctional and secure forensic settings. Though risk factors for other types of bullying (e.g., physical) have been studied, there is limited research investigating risk factors of coercive bullying. The Violence Risk Appraisal Guide-Revised (VRAG-R) is a well-validated and widely used actuarial risk assessment tool for measuring risk of future violence. Given that risk factors for violence overlap with risk factors for bullying, the present study seeks to investigate whether items within the VRAG-R are associated with coercive bullying perpetration in a sample of 94 forensic inpatients in Canada. Data were collected cross-sectionally across four forensic hospitals using a structured interview format. Using a self-report checklist (through interviews) to measure 18 items of coercive bullying behavior over the previous 3 months, 35 participants (37%) disclosed perpetrating coercive bullying against their peers. Coercive bullying perpetration was significantly and moderately associated with two VRAG-R items: younger age at index offense (AUC = .66) and a history of conduct disorder (AUC = .66), while other items also resulted in medium effects. These findings have important implications for understanding risk of coercive bullying perpetration.