Grace Skrzypiec

Flinders University · College of Education, Psychology and Social Work

Students (n ¼ 452; ages 12–14 years) attending two South Australian metropolitan high schools completed the 'Living & learning at school: Bullying at school' survey in which they reported ways they were bullied and the strategies they would use to deal with bullying. Results showed that a small proportion of students were bullied in three or more w...

Students (n = 452; ages 12—14 years) attending two South Australian metropolitan high schools completed the ‘Living & learning at school: Bullying at school’ survey in which they reported ways they were bullied and the strategies they would use to deal with bullying. Results showed that a small proportion of students were bullied in three or more w...

The Intentions to Transgress (ITT) model was developed based on the Theory of Planned Behavior and the motivators of crime identified by Agnew (1995). A survey of 512 youths attending South Australian high schools or detained in a youth detention facility, allowed an empirical test of the ITT model where it was found to consistently fit the drug ta...

While the poor psychosocial outcomes of young people who have experienced bullying are well known, the harm associated with experiences that do not meet the bullying criteria is not well understood. The aim of this study was to examine the level of harm associated with experiences of peer aggression, as well as bullying, by directly measuring the f...

As the COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) virus spread across the world, countries took drastic measures to counter the disease by requiring their citizens to home self-isolate i.e., lockdown. While it was not known how young people would cope with the social distancing restrictions, there was concern that the lockdown would have a debilitating effect on youth...

Introduction Previous research showed that bullying experiences are associated with different ways of interpreting and behaving in bullying dynamics. However, it remains uncertain whether these distinctions can already be present during the first step of information processing: the allocation of attention. Aims The study explored attentional patte...

Introduction Victimization and cybervictimization can negatively affect the subjective experience of well‐being. This effect can be mediated by school factors, even if a deep understanding of these factors still needs to be determined. The present study examined how peer network, teacher support, and school connectedness mediated the relationship b...

Background: Bullying and cyberbullying are serious public health concerns that involve more roles beyond the bully and the victim (pro-bullies, defenders, bystanders). However, students often perceive the phenomena as dyadic. Aim: The purpose was to examine students' perceptions of different roles when observing bullying and cyberbullying scenes...

The purpose of this study was to compare the prevalence of motor competence among children and adolescents from two metropolitan cities, one in Portugal and one in Brazil, and analyzed the association between motor competence and weight status and bullying roles. A Cross-sectional and cross-cultural study was applied. The sample comprised 785 child...

The successful integration of technology in teaching is a key component of education. Although prior research highlighted factors fostering the use of technology by teachers, few studies focused on whether these factors vary among teachers of different grade levels and subjects. Moreover, no studies have investigated personal experiences related to...

Lay Description What is already known about this topic The spread of COVID‐19 forced schools to transfer didactic activities into virtual environments. However, distance education presented difficulties in its implementation among teachers. Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and online teaching self‐efficacy played a crucial role in behav...

This research report presents the findings of a study on the wellbeing, mental health and resilience of Maltese school children during the first wave of the pandemic. An online survey examining subjective wellbeing, depression, anxiety, resilience, coping strategies and the positive and negative aspects of the pandemic, was completed by more than 4...

Background/Objective: Despite the great interest that bullying and cyberbullying have received during the last decades, the problem of defining these phenomena is still debated. Recently, this discussion has also been articulated in terms of how young people who are directly involved in bullying and cyberbullying understand these notions. This stud...

ABSTRACT Research is sparse on who targets whom in peer aggression. In this study, we investigated the harm associated with the type of relationship between aggressed and aggressor with an international sample of over 5,000 students aged 11–16, living in 12 nations. Best friends and individuals with whom the respondent had no relationship were the...

Background: Bullying is a serious public issue, which mainly occurs in school with negative consequences for the students involved as victims. Very few teacher-delivered interventions have shown positive changes in the victims. The present study aimed at implementing the P.E.A.C.E. (Preparation, Education. Action, Coping, Evaluation) pack program,...

The aim of the current study was to examine the role of resilience in the victimization experiences of students and their subjective well‐being as well as to explore gender and age‐related effects. Initially, 558 students (52.15% male) from grades 6 to 10 participated in the study completing The Student Aggression and Victimization Questionnaire, T...

Bullying affects the health and development of children and adolescents. This study examined the relationships between depression and students’ profiles in regard to their involvement with bullying (as victim, bully, or bully-victim), among students transitioning to middle school. A total of 408 6th grade students (54.9% girls; mean age = 11.3 year...

RESUMO Objetivo: Determinar a prevalência de vitimização por bullying e possíveis associações com o contexto sociocultural e o sexo de crianças e adolescentes da Austrália, Brasil e Portugal. Métodos: trata-se de um estudo transversal e transcultural, com 377 participantes (média de idade = 11,42; DP = 0,6), que responderam a uma pergunta sobre a p...

The incidence of peer aggression and bullying experienced by all students in the sample, as well as gender and age differences, are provided in this chapter. The findings show that approximately half of the participants were not involved or were not harmed through aggressive acts with peers, while approximately 1 in 4 participants that had been har...

A comparison of countries and explanations in terms of cultural values is presented in this chapter. The findings show countries with the highest (India and The Philippines) and lowest (Taiwan and South Korea) levels of self-reported peer aggression as well as the incidence of different types of peer aggression, gender and year-level variations. Ho...

Reporting on the findings from a study of young people across 11 different world locations (Australia, Mainland China, Greece, India, Indonesia, Italy, Korea, The Philippines, Poland, Spain, and Taiwan), A Global Perspective of Young Adolescents’ Peer Aggression and Well-being looks beyond bullying to assess the harm to mental health and well-being...

This study sought to enlighten our understanding of bullying as well as peer aggression, and the associated harm experienced by young people in Australia. Over 800 middle-school students, aged 11-16 completed the purposebuilt peer aggression and well-being questionnaire that included the SAVQ (Skrzypiec, 2015) and an open-ended qualitative question...

This chapter introduces the issue of peer aggression in schools and provides theory underlying the research on peer aggression and bullying. The purpose of the Peer Aggression and Well-being (PAWB) study was to look beyond bullying and assess the harm to mental health and well-being of young people experiencing peer aggression in all its forms. In...

The Peer Aggression and Well-being (PAWB) study used a mixed method research design. Different educational systems and school practices are highlighted and participants and measuring instruments are described in this chapter. Researchers in each study location provided data on approximately 600 respondents that they deemed representative of middle-...

The harm reported by individuals is not dependent on how the negative experience is labelled (i.e., whether or not it is bullying), and this should be the lens through which peer aggression, including bullying, is viewed. We propose that using labels, as we do for bullying, may inadvertently detract our attention from broader involvement in peer ag...

According to the World Bank, Indonesia has one of the highest prevalence rates of bullying in the world. This study sought to determine the current rates of bullying as well as peer aggression, among school-aged children in Indonesia. Nearly 600 students (n = 559) from South Sulawesi, aged 11-16, completed a peer aggression and well-being questionn...

The relationship between victims and perpetrators has been under-researched. In this study we examined this relationship among a diverse sample of 405 Taiwanese adolescents aged 11 to 16. Our findings revealed that most students’ participation in peer aggression was harmless banter between best friends, friends, and classmates. Approximately 75% of...

Cyberbullying perpetration (CBP) and problematic Internet use (PIU) are the most studied risky online activities for adolescents in the current generation. However, few studies have investigated the relationship between CBP and PIU. Still lacking is a clear understanding of common or differentiated risk and protective pathways for adolescents inter...

Bullying has been identified as a serious problem in secondary schools that undermines students' well-being, school adjustment and learning. The aim of our study is to present the outcomes of an anti-bullying intervention program that places emphasis on the training of students on coping strategies for handling bullying. The program consists of 8 s...

Bullying has been identified as a serious problem in secondary schools that undermines students' well-being, school adjustment and learning. The aim of our study is to present the outcomes of an anti-bullying intervention program that places emphasis on the training of students on coping strategies for handling bullying. The program consists of 8 s...

Bullying has been identified as a serious problem in secondary schools that undermines students’ well-being, school adjustment, and learning. The aim of our study is to present the outcomes of an anti-bullying intervention program that places emphasis on the training of students on coping strategies for handling bullying. The program consists of 8...

Knowledge about the risks of bullying involvement during any year of high school is an important element of interventions for changing the likelihood of being bullied. Three cohorts of Australian students (n = 1,382) were tracked from 7th grade to 11th grade. The study showed that some students continue their involvement in bullying, while in addit...

Knowledge about the risks of bullying involvement during any year of high school is an important element of interventions for changing the likelihood of being bullied. Three cohorts of Australian students ( n = 1,382) were tracked from 7th grade to 11th grade. The study showed that some students continue their involvement in bullying, while in addi...

Schools have a key role in promoting student social and emotional development and are encouraged to serve as a primary source of support, especially for those learners in need of special attention for addressing their needs. Young people’s subjective emotional-social well-being is a general indicator of their mental health status. In this article,...

There is a growing interest in mainland China about schools’ roles in supporting students to develop positive mental health. However, relatively little data have been collected about mainland Chinese students’ mental health. This article reports a collaborative study, by eastern and western researchers, to translate and administer the Strengths and...

There has been substantial research in the United States, Europe, and Australia about factors influencing students’ well‐being. However, such research has been relatively rare in Mainland China. We administered four predictor scales (School Satisfaction, Self‐Concept, Relationships, and Resilience) and three outcome scales (Flourishing, Mental Heal...

This paper reports mainland Chinese students’ self-appraisals about their psychological dispositions whilst at school. Increasing interest has turned to factors such as resilience, wellbeing, flourishing, happiness and satisfaction, which in turn are predicted to be associated with factors such as emotional stability, achieving personal goals, soci...

This intervention involves pre‐ and posttest data collection using a purpose‐designed well‐being questionnaire. The Coping with Bullying and Wellbeing Intervention (CWBWI) is an evidence‐based Australian school program. It focuses on teaching young people to cope with bullying and to develop positive peer relations. The school‐based intervention—im...

The science of prevention and early intervention has taken considerable steps forward in the last decade, including a growing research literature (e.g., see Kelly & Perkins, 2012) and practical advice for policy makers, teachers and educators (e.g., see CASEL, 2016; KidsMatter, n.d.). In this chapter we discuss one area of mental health promotion a...

Increasingly in Australia and overseas, teachers are being asked to deliver interventions designed and developed outside the education arena to improve the mental health and well-being of children. Examples of such school-based interventions include the National Drug Education Strategy (Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy, 2011), KidsMatter Primar...

Educators and government administrators are keen to find interventions to change the rapidly declining enrollments in senior high school mathematics. In 2012, PISA introduced measures to examine the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), a prominent theory from social psychology for encouraging changes in behavior (and perhaps mathematics enrollments)....

Educators in mainland China are increasingly concerned about promoting school students' social and emotional wellbeing. However, there has been little exchange of research between China and western countries about this topic. For example, questionnaires developed in the west have not been generally available to mainland Chinese researchers. We tran...

There is considerable evidence that the interpersonal, organizational, and instructional ‘‘climate’’ of schools strongly influences students’ adjustment across multiple domains of adjustment and behaviour. Research has also typically treated students’ perceptions of school climate as static, baseline predictors of other outcomes variables. Subtle f...

Typically in the past, research has equated the health and well-being of young people and adults with the absence of malfunctioning and disturbance, and one’s mental health was considered satisfactory if a mental health disorder was not diagnosed. However, a more positive approach involves an assessment of well-being by considering the presence of...

This chapter will provide an overview of the international research relating to bullying and victimization with a focus on the Pacific-rim region. Historical, cultural and social factors related to school bullying, victimization and pro-social behaviour will provide a backdrop to the discussion. Consideration will be given to the fact that bullying...

In this chapter consideration will first be given to how ‘well-being’, ‘engagement’ and ‘school connectedness’ impact on student school relationships. Particular attention will be given to understanding the issue of school relationships and to an examination of the concept of friendship and its development. It is now better understood that student’...

This chapter will provide an overview of the international research relating to bullying, victimization and pro-social behaviour. Historical, cultural and social factors related to school bullying, victimization and pro-social behaviour will provide a backdrop to the discussion. While bullying at school has long been recognised as existing in liter...

This chapter will focus on and provide an overview of evidence-based school interventions to address school bullying. A description of a range of international anti-bullying intervention programs will be made. In this chapter we provide a practical example of a coping with bullying intervention developed by the authors and implemented in schools in...

In this chapter an overview for the text will be provided of international wellbeing programs linked with establishing and promoting positive peer relationships in schools. In particular the link between teacher wellbeing and student mental health and wellbeing will be considered. Examples of practical programs for promoting student’s school relati...

It is now more common place that interventions to address well-being and school violence and bullying and promote prosocial behaviour and resilience draw on collaborative school-community partnerships. It is now better understood that theoretical knowledge must be integrated with the knowledge that exists in communities in order to fully understand...

In this chapter we consider schools as ‘settings’ for the implementation of well-being programs. The science of how interventions are taken from the ‘laboratory’ and implemented in the busy world of the school and classroom will be critically examined. A model for the successful implementation of well-being programs developed by the authors will be...

This book focuses on well-being at school in association with positive peer relationships and bullying. Taking an integrative and community-based approach, the book outlines the significance of student-school relationships for well-being and emphasizes the importance of school and classroom climate for promoting well-being. Embedded in research and...

There has been limited consensus on how young people's wellbeing should be measured (O'Hare & Gutierrez, 2012). One approach, suggested by Lau and Bradshaw (2010), is that people's subjective judgments capture the essence of wellbeing. Following from Lau and Bradshaw's approach, in this chapter the authors report on a study that sought young adoles...

Victimisation among students has been identified as a serious problem in Australian schools. This study investigated approaches taken by South Australian middle school students for dealing with victimisation. Over 170 students (aged 11–16) described how they coped with bullying and situations where they needed to take action against bullying. A con...

Students’ wellbeing is an essential component of their ability to function well, not only at school but also in all life domains. Many studies have investigated student wellbeing. However, empirical studies about the wellbeing of students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) are scarce. Furthermore, many studies have adopted a def...

Bullying in schools is an international problem impacting negatively on children’s well-being. Children’s drawings can provide an insight into their emotional states. There is little published literature that uses children’s drawings to gain better understandings of the nature and impact of bullying. We report two studies using indicators of emotio...

There has been limited consensus on how young people's wellbeing should be measured (O'Hare & Gutierrez, 2012). One approach, suggested by Lau and Bradshaw (2010), is that people's subjective judgments capture the essence of wellbeing. Following from Lau and Bradshaw's approach, in this chapter the authors report on a study that sought young adoles...

The purpose of the research reported in this chapter is to provide a theoretically based model to inform educational interventions that aim to divert young people from criminal pathways. This chapter outlines the cross-disciplinary approach used to develop the Intention to Transgress (ITT) model, which draws from leading theories in the disciplines...

Bullying is an international issue that is only just beginning to be researched in India and anecdotal evidence in Punjab, India, has suggested that most schools in the Punjab are in denial about bullying on campus. Our aim was to investigate the nature of bullying in this region using the PhotoStory Method. We sought to discover how young people i...

What are young Australians’ understandings of, and attitudes to, the military and military service? This article describes a pilot study of 320 young Australian university students’ attitudes to the military and military service during a time when Australia was engaged in the Afghanistan war. The main purpose of this study was to develop a survey i...

The question of student engagement in schooling, or adherence to school values, is often conceived in terms of student transgression. Youth has, over time, become a problem to be solved - by parents, teachers and school administrators. This article outlines an engagement with lower socioeconomic status metropolitan schooling in South Australia, see...

Responding to staff concerns about anti-social behaviour among students (n = 311, 50.5% boys, age range 13–16 years) at a low socio-economic Adelaide metropolitan school, we investigated victimisation and bullying and associated patterns of thinking. Two instruments were administered: the How I Think Questionnaire, which measures self-serving cogni...

The aim of the study was to obtain adolescents’ perspectives about why young people offend. Twenty-four Australian male and female offenders and non-offenders offered insights about what, according to them, motivates young people to become involved in crime. Without the use of sophisticated language, participants offered explanations that were well...

In this paper we report on associations between the KidsMatter (2013) two-year mental health promotion initiative in Australian early childhood education and care (ECEC) services and young children’s mental health. Using a mixed method approach, data was collected on four occasions from a nationally representative sample of 111 ECEC services. Findi...

ThE INTENT OF ThIS rEPOrT is to examine the use of the PhotoStory method as a qualitative component of the KidsMatter Early Childhood (KMEC) mixed-method evaluation. One hundred family and staff photographers, at 10 early childhood education and care (ECEC) services across Australia, participated in the PhotoStory study by taking 162 photographs to...

The role of school teachers in promoting students’ mental health is receiving increasing international attention. However, before venturing into schools with new initiatives such as mental health promotion, it is essential to take into account local contextual affordances and constraints. One issue is whether teachers and other school community sta...

The three-way relationship between types of involvement in bullying (as victim, bully or bully–victim), number of friends and mental health status is not well understood. This research aimed to establish whether the mental health status of victims, bullies and bully–victims would fall disproportionately into the abnormal range of the Strengths and...

In this study adolescents offered their insights and perspectives of factors associated with adolescent illicit drug taking intentions. The factors explored were identified using a cross-disciplinary approach involving the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and criminological theories, and these formed the framework for data analysis. Interviews with...

The intent of this report is to examine the use of the PhotoStory method as a qualitative component of the KidsMatter Early Childhood (KMEC) mixed-method evaluation. One hundred family and staff photographers, at 10 early childhood education and care (ECEC) services across Australia, participated in the PhotoStory study by taking 162 photographs to...

In Australia and Greece the issue of school bullying is a significant concern of educators and students. While victims are not to be blamed for being bullied, research suggests that the strategies utilised by victims to cope with bullying may inadvertently reinforce victimisation. This paper will outline the successful Australian “Coping with Schoo...

The three-way relationship between types of involvement in bullying (as victim, bully or bully–victim), number of friends and mental health status is not well understood. This research aimed to establish whether the mental health status of victims, bullies and bully–victims would fall disproportionately into the abnormal range of the Strengths and...

beyondblue is delighted to be part of the KidsMatter Early Childhood initiative. We want children to feel good about themselves, enjoy their school years and develop strong healthy friendships and family relationships. We believe this program has the capacity to give children a strong foundation on which to build resilience and good self-esteem, to...

The photographs in this book are not the work of professional photographers. They were taken by parents and staff from early childhood services around Australia in response to an invitation by the KidsMatter Early Childhood evaluation team. Families were invited to take snapshots of moments in children’s lives that demonstrated social and emotional...

What strategies do students use to cope with bullying and how effective are they? Answers to such questions will not only help students understand how they can cope, but also inform school-wide policies and practices to reduce the incidence of bullying. To do this, schools need evidence on what strategies to focus on to most effectively target thei...

The quality of teachers' knowledge about how people learn influences students' learning outcomes. Similarly, the quality of students' knowledge about how they learn influences their engagement in self-regulated learning and consequently, their learning achievement. There is a gap between research findings that support these two premises and teachin...