Research suggests that teachers tend to explain school bullying in terms of the traits of individual pupils, and to consider relational bullying less serious than direct bullying. In addition, teachers are said to be less likely to intervene in relational bullying, and to take less action against indirect bullying than direct bullying. This meansthat preventive work against bullying in schools often does not take sufficient account of the social ecology of bullying. The aim of this study is to explore three pupils’ experiences of social marginalisation, loneliness, and bullying within the social context of a Swedish elementary school.

The findings are based on ethnographic fieldwork with 34 pupils and 7 teachers in two sixth-grade classes (i.e., ages 11-12) at one Swedish elementary school. The findings were analysed using methods from constructivist grounded theory and through the lens of Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory of human development as well as critical bullying studies.

The findings underline that pupils may experience a range of bullying interactions, both “direct” and “indirect”, and demonstrate that pupils draw from a range of differential points of reference so as to socially evaluate both themselves, their classmates, and their peers. Pupils might thus be socially devalued, cut off, and forced to find themselves socially marginalised, left out, and bullied.

The findings have important implications for teachers and other school personnel, who need to look beyond the forms of “direct” bullying, and to consider the interdependent processes of the bullying ecology more thoroughly.