This study examined the association between bullying and cyberbullying, both in victims and aggressors, and students’ perceived competence in English as a foreign language. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 444 Spanish students (50.00% boys, mean age = 13.27 ± 1.64 years). Perceived English competence was assessed using the Questionnaire of English Self-Efficacy (QESE), while involvement in bullying and cyberbullying was measured with the European Bullying Intervention Project Questionnaire (EBIP-Q) and the European Cyberbullying Intervention Project Questionnaire (ECIP-Q). Associations were analyzed using ANCOVA and binary logistic regression, controlling for age, BMI, maternal education level, and weekly physical activity. The results showed that cyberbullying victimization was consistently associated with lower self-perceived competence in all English skills, particularly among boys, who reported scores up to 12.1% lower and were up to 6.3 times more likely to report low self-efficacy in writing. Girls also showed a higher risk, with up to 5.6 times more likelihood of low scores in oral expression. As for aggression, boys involved in both traditional and cyberbullying showed significant reductions in all language domains, especially in writing and reading. Girls demonstrated a more specific pattern, with negative associations mainly in cyberaggression, showing significantly lower self-efficacy competence in all four skills. These findings highlight the need for gender-sensitive interventions that promote emotional safety and reinforce students’ self-efficacy in language learning. Educational programs involving students, teachers, and families are recommended to foster confidence, reduce fear of errors, and create supportive environments for communicative practice.
Redecillas et al. (Sat,) studied this question.