Abstract

Quite often, studies investigate the influence of substance abuse and personality on perpetrators of bullying and other aggressive behaviours, especially in intimate relationships, with relatively less attention paid to how such variables could lead to becoming victims of bullying and other aggressive behaviours. This study examined the predictive roles of substance abuse and personality in being a victim of spousal bullying among secondary school teachers in Uyo Metropolis. A total of 200 teachers (123 females and 87 males) were purposively selected from two secondary schools in Uyo Metropolis. Revalidated versions of the Simple Screening Instrument for Substance Abuse (SSI-SA), Big Five Personality Inventory (BFI-10), and Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) Scale were employed to collect data. The study, conducted as a survey utilizing an ex-post facto design, revealed that teachers who abused substances were more susceptible to being victims of spousal bullying than those who did not abuse substances, as indicated by the t-test results (t (198) = - 3.13, p < .05). Additionally, the results (R = 0.52; R2 = 0.44; F(5, 182) = 18.72, p < .05) demonstrated that the Big Five Personality Factors (openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism) collectively predicted the incidence of being a victim of spousal bullying among sampled couples, accounting for 44% of the observed variance. Furthermore, the results (R = 0.36; R2 = .32; F(5, 182) = 23.31, p < .05) indicated that demographic variables (gender, age, duration of marriage, and educational qualification) predicted the incidence of being victims of spousal bullying, accounting for 32% of the observed variance. Based on the study's findings, it is recommended to implement interventions targeting substance abuse within couples, integrate assessments of personality traits into premarital counselling to address potential risk factors for spousal bullying, and offer educational initiatives focusing on relationship dynamics and communication skills to foster mutual respect and understanding

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