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A content analysis of school anti-bullying policies: A follow-up after six years
Abstract
An analysis was undertaken of 217 English school anti-bullying policies, from 169 primary schools and 48 secondary schools, using a 34-item scoring scheme. Findings were compared with an analysis of 142 schools six years earlier. Overall schools in the current analysis had about 49% of the items in their policies, a modest increase over the previous study. Most included a definition of bullying and statements about improving school climate but many schools did not mention other important aspects, and there was low coverage of cyberbullying, homophobic bullying, bullying based on disabilities, or faith; teacher–pupil bullying; responsibilities beyond those of teaching staff; following up of incidents; and specific preventative measures such as playground work, peer support, inclusiveness issues, and bullying to and from school. Several improvements in policies, significant for 20 out of 34 criteria were noted. Findings are discussed in terms of national policy, and ways to support schools in maximising the potential of their policies for reducing bullying.
... On average, schools had about 40% of the items in their policies. In 2008, six years later, Smith et al. (2012) reported a follow-up in the same county; they analysed 217 policies, from 169 primary schools and 48 secondary schools. A slightly expanded 34-item scoring scheme was used. ...
... Woods and Wolke (2003) found few associations of policy scores with measures of bullying in 34 English primary schools, but the criteria used for scoring policy quality in this study are debatable (see Smith et al., 2008). Smith et al. (2012) related policy scores to pupil self-report survey data on perceptions of and experiences of bullying, available for 78 schools. Most were not significant, although schools with high scores for the section on strategies for preventing bullying did have significantly fewer pupils reporting bullying others (and also fewer being bullied, though non-significantly). ...
... The first aim was to analyse anti-bullying policies from a wide sample of schools in England, to see how satisfactory their coverage was. The researchers used a slightly revised and expanded version of the scoring scheme from Smith et al. (2012) and Purdy and Smith (2016). The study also compared coverage in primary and secondary schools. ...
... PISA (OECD, 2019a, b) noted that developing and implementing an appropriate policy is critical for tackling bullying. More generally, the development of a robust anti-bullying policy and associated governmental legislation is widely recommended as a central component of successful intervention programs (e.g., Bauman et al., 2008;Else-Quest et al., 2010;Smith et al., 2008;Smith et al. 2012;Sullivan, 2010). However, previous research has produced mixed results (Hall, 2017;Llorent et al., 2021;Smith et al., 2012). ...
... More generally, the development of a robust anti-bullying policy and associated governmental legislation is widely recommended as a central component of successful intervention programs (e.g., Bauman et al., 2008;Else-Quest et al., 2010;Smith et al., 2008;Smith et al. 2012;Sullivan, 2010). However, previous research has produced mixed results (Hall, 2017;Llorent et al., 2021;Smith et al., 2012). Furthermore, we know of no previous studies based on cross-national measures of policy development and implementation. ...
... Indeed, OECD emphasized the importance of developing appropriate policy frameworks to combat bullying. However, Smith et al. (2012;also see Llorent et al., 2021) reported that substantial differences between schools in the quality of antibullying policies were unrelated to bullying and victimization prevalence. Hall's (2017) systematic review reported mixed results on the relation between anti-bully policies and victimization prevalence. ...
School victimization issues remain largely unresolved due to over-reliance on unidimensional conceptions of victimization and data from a few developed OECD countries. Thus, support for cross-national generalizability over multiple victimization components (relational, verbal, and physical) is weak. Our substantive–methodological synergy tests the cross-national generalizability of a three-component model (594,196 fifteen-year-olds; nationally -representative samples from 77 countries) compared to competing (unidimensional and two-component) victimization models. We demonstrate the superior explanatory power of the three-component model—goodness-of-fit, component differentiation, and discriminant validity of the three components concerning gender differences, paradoxical anti-bullying attitudes (the Pro-Bully Paradox) whereby victims are more supportive of bullies than of other victims, and multiple indicators of well-being. For example, gender differences varied significantly across the three components, and all 13 well-being indicators were more strongly related to verbal and particularly relational victimization than physical victimization. Collapsing the three components into one or two components undermined discriminant validity. Cross-nationally, systematic differences emerged across the three victimization components regarding country-level means, gender differences, national development, and cultural values. These findings across countries support a tripartite model in which the three components of victimization—relational, verbal, and physical—relate differently to key outcomes. Thus, these findings advance victimization theory and have implications for policy, practice, and intervention. We also discuss directions for further research: the need for simultaneous evaluation of multiple, parallel components of victimization and bullying, theoretical definitions of bullying and victimization and their implications for measurement, conceptual bases of global victimization indices, cyberbullying, anti-bullying policies, and capitalizing on anti-bullying attitudes.
... For the first time, OECD (2019) collected country-level data on antibullying policies (i.e., national and school action plans to prevent bullying). The authors noted that policy development and implementation are critical ingredients to reducing victimization and a central component of many intervention programs (e.g., Smith et al., 2012;Sullivan, 2010). However, the national bully policy index derived from the data did not correlate significantly with any victimization component (Table 2), although it did correlate with antibullying attitudes. ...
... Because these results contradict widely endorsed strategies about the importance of antibullying policies, they need to be compared with other studies on antibullying policies (conducted in individual countries). One of the most important of these was the detailed content analysis of antibullying policies in 217 English schools (e.g., Smith et al., 2012; also see Llorent et al., 2021). For each school, antibullying policies were evaluated on a 34-point checklist. ...
... However, contrary to expectations, the quality of the antibully policies was not significantly related to any student-reported measure of bullying or victimization. This led Smith et al. (2012) to conclude that "school policy in itself is unlikely to impact much on levels of bullying" (p. 68)-a finding consistent with the PISA2018 results. ...
Peer victimization at school is a worldwide problem with profound implications for victims, bullies, and whole-school communities. Yet the 50-year quest to solve the problem has produced mostly disappointing results. A critical examination of current research reveals both pivotal limitations and potential solutions. Solutions include introducing psychometrically sound measures to assess the parallel components of bullying and victimization, analyzing cross-national data sets, and embracing a social-ecological perspective emphasizing the motivation of bullies, importance of bystanders, pro-defending and antibullying attitudes, classroom climate, and a multilevel perspective. These solutions have been integrated into a series of recent interventions. Teachers can be professionally trained to create a highly supportive climate that allows student-bystanders to overcome their otherwise normative tendency to reinforce bullies. Once established, this intervention-enabled classroom climate impedes bully-victim episodes. The take-home message is to work with teachers on how to develop an interpersonally supportive classroom climate at the beginning of the school year to catalyze student-bystanders' volitional internalization of pro-defending and antibullying attitudes and social norms. Recommendations for future research include studying bullying and victimization simultaneously, testing multilevel models, targeting classroom climate and bystander roles as critical intervention outcomes, and integrating school-wide and individual student interventions only after improving social norms and the school climate.
... Previous studies conducted content analysis of antibullying policies. In their two studies on anti-bullying policies in England, Smith et al. (2012Smith et al. ( , 2008) devised a scoring scheme to assess policies. In the first study (Smith et al. 2008), the authors found that most policies included definitions of bullying with reference to its different forms and a statement on how parents will be informed when incidents of bullying occur. ...
... However, few schools included mentions of responsibilities of those other than the teachers, following up incidents, record keeping, and preventative measures. In their follow up study (Smith et al. 2012), the authors noted several improvements in policies. However, still missing from most of the policy documents were specific forms of bullying, such as cyberbullying and teacher-student bullying as well as special preventative measures, such as peer support. ...
... In this section, we describe the elements of a cyber-safety policy which the policy documents of the schools are analysed against. The elements are based on previous research on cyber-safety (Chalmers et al. 2016 (Smith et al. 2012;Smith et al. 2008). Moreover, the categories are based on the cyberbullying framework for educators proposed by Mentions how incidents will be handled and followed up Include the procedures that will be implemented in different situations and according to the intensity of the offense and how the incident will be followed up. ...
With the increased level of technology usage in schools and the move to online learning, many schools had to re-evaluate the content of their cyber-safety policy and review it to ensure it works within and beyond the schools’ premises. This study aimed to analyse the cyber-safety policies of twenty private schools in Dubai, an emirate in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Five main categories were considered for the content analysis of the policy documents including definitions, preventive measures, reporting and responding to incidents, connection to other policies and mention of existing legislation. Upon the analysis of the policy documents, it was found that while some addressed cyber-safety issues, the focus remained more on cyberbullying incidents. Besides, the development of the cyber-safety policies is lacking the input from the concerned authorities whose ultimate responsibility is to develop the major policies and guidelines to be adopted by schools.
... Specifically, research has shown that cyberbullying can cause brief and long-term periods of psychological distress for both victims and bullies (Reijntjes, Kamphuis, Prinzie, & Telch, 2010) and in extreme situations can even lead to suicide (Tokunaga, 2010). As a result, the risk factors associated with cyberbullying are quickly becoming recognized by educational researchers and policy makers worldwide as they look to emerging legislation for prevention and appropriate consequences (Nansel et al., 2001;Smith et al., 2012). ...
... For example, teachers are permitted to confiscate any tools leading to bullying (e.g., smartphones). In addition, it is a legal requirement for schools to have an anti-bullying policy and there is a consensus among educators and researchers that schools should also be legally required to have a cyberbullying policy or at least to provide for it within existing policies (Diamanduros, Downs, & Jenkins, 2008;Smith et al., 2012). This conveys the school's dedication to the prevention of all types of bullying (Pearce et al., 2011;Samara & Smith, 2008;Smith et al., 2012) and provides a comprehensive procedure to follow if an incident of cyberbullying is reported (Kift et al., 2010;Smith et al., 2012). ...
... In addition, it is a legal requirement for schools to have an anti-bullying policy and there is a consensus among educators and researchers that schools should also be legally required to have a cyberbullying policy or at least to provide for it within existing policies (Diamanduros, Downs, & Jenkins, 2008;Smith et al., 2012). This conveys the school's dedication to the prevention of all types of bullying (Pearce et al., 2011;Samara & Smith, 2008;Smith et al., 2012) and provides a comprehensive procedure to follow if an incident of cyberbullying is reported (Kift et al., 2010;Smith et al., 2012). However, schools in the UK are slow to create such policies and Smith et al. (2012) found that cyberbullying was inadequately mentioned in school policies within the UK with only a 23% increase from 2002 to 2008. ...
Cyberbullying is a worldwide problem affecting mental health, education, safety and general well-being for individuals across the globe. Despite the widespread availability of the Internet, research into prevalence rates of cyberbullying in Qatar is lacking and legislating for the crime has been slow to develop. Recently there have been some positive initiatives in the country such as a Cybercrime Prevention Law, the development of a National ICT Strategy, and a website detailing safe practice guidelines for Internet usage. However, the implementation and usage of these initiatives are still limited and there is a lack of awareness of cyberbullying in Qatar. As a result, the risk factors and consequences among school-aged children are unknown. The current paper presents an evaluation of the legislative and public policy solutions to cyberbullying available in Qatar, and outlines the critical challenges that could potentially face educators in shaping best practice guidelines for the future.
... Anti-bullying policies can either be contained in the behaviour policy or be a separate policy (Thompson and Smith, 2011). School policies vary in scope (Smith, Kupferberg, Mora-Merchan, Samara, Bosley & Osborn, 2012), but provide a framework for the school's response involving the whole school community: pupils, teachers, learning mentors, school support staff, governors and parents/carers. Smith et al. (2012) found most policies contained a definition of bullying; statements about the improvement of school climate; and how sanctions relate to the type and severity of the incident. ...
... School policies vary in scope (Smith, Kupferberg, Mora-Merchan, Samara, Bosley & Osborn, 2012), but provide a framework for the school's response involving the whole school community: pupils, teachers, learning mentors, school support staff, governors and parents/carers. Smith et al. (2012) found most policies contained a definition of bullying; statements about the improvement of school climate; and how sanctions relate to the type and severity of the incident. Few policies included cyberbullying, homophobic bullying, and bullying based on disability or faith, or procedures to follow up on incidents, and specific preventative measures (e.g. ...
... and implementation of an appropriate policy is a critical ingredient for tackling bullying. More generally, the development of a strong anti-bullying policy and associated governmental legislation is widely recommended as a central component of successful intervention programs (e.g., Bauman et al., 2008;Eslae et al., 1998;P. K. Smith et al., 2008;P. K. Smith et al. 2012;Sullivan, 2010). However, P. K. Smith et al. (2012) reported that substantial differences between schools on the quality of anti-bullying policies were unrelated to bullying and victimization prevalence. In a systematic review, Hall (2017) reported mixed results in the relation between the quality of anti-bully policies and victimization ...
... K. Smith et al. 2012;Sullivan, 2010). However, P. K. Smith et al. (2012) reported that substantial differences between schools on the quality of anti-bullying policies were unrelated to bullying and victimization prevalence. In a systematic review, Hall (2017) reported mixed results in the relation between the quality of anti-bully policies and victimization prevalence. ...
Current victimization studies and meta-analyses are based mainly on a unidimensional perspective in a few developed OECD countries. This provides a weak basis for generalizability over multiple victimization (relational, verbal, physical) components and different countries. We test the cross-national generalizability (594,196 fifteen-year-olds; 77 countries) of competing victimization models. In support of our three-component model, differentiating the multiple components of victimization facilitated understanding: gender differences (girls experience less physical and verbal victimization and stronger anti-bullying attitudes, but relational differences are small); paradoxical anti-bullying attitudes (physical victims have less –not more--anti-bullying attitudes); and well-being (policy/practice focuses primarily on physical victimization, but verbal and relational victimization effects are larger). These key findings provide theoretical advances with implications for policy, practice, and intervention.
... However, an international systematic review examining the effectiveness of school bullying policies, found that while bullying policies may be effective at reducing bullying, they need to be implemented across the school with a high level of fidelity (Hall, 2017 Woods and Wolke (2003) found in England that while comprehensive school bullying policies reduced direct bullying experience in the playground, even schools with the most detailed school policies on bullying still exhibited high levels of relational bullying and victimisation. In the context of cyberbullying, some research has reported some effectiveness on school anti-bullying policies with an increasing trend on reported effectiveness and content Smith et al., 2012;Purdy & Smith, 2016). ...
... As mentioned in Chapter 3, a content analysis across 142 schools in one county in England found that schools had approximately 40% of items in their policies that related to anti-bullying content . In a follow up study six years later, Smith et al., (2012) did an analysis of 217 school anti-bullying policies in England from 169 primary schools and 48 secondary schools. The findings suggested a modest increase of school policy addressing antibullying content, with a further increase in anti-bullying content found across 100 primary and post primary schools in Northern Ireland (Purdy & Smith, 2016). ...
Due to the rise and availability of digital technologies, the nature of
bullying has moved from traditional face-to-face bullying to via
communication technologies. These bullying behaviours online are
collectively known as cyberbullying. Cyberbullying results in negative
outcomes for those involved and is increasingly presenting a cause for
concern in the educational setting. The research takes a sequential
exploratory mixed method approach to address the aims of the thesis looking
at (1) how prospective and current teachers perceive cyberbullying when
making judgements about how to manage and respond to it, and (2) how
young people perceive cyberbullying according to the key factors that
teachers considered when making judgements about how to manage
cyberbullying.
Initially, a systematic review was conducted to review the existing
literature regarding teachers’ perceptions of and responses to cyberbullying.
Study 1 was a qualitative thematic analysis of data from nine prospective
teachers exploring how they would address cyberbullying. Study 2 was a
qualitative thematic analysis of data collected from 63 teachers from 10 focus
groups across primary, secondary, and college educational levels. Study 2
explored how teachers perceived and managed cyberbullying in the school.
Together the findings from the earlier studies informed Study 3, a
quantitative exploration on how young people from England (N = 1438, 11- to
20-year-olds) perceive and respond to cyberbullying based on the criteria
identified by teachers that may inhibit intervention. 4
Findings from across the studies reported in the thesis suggest that
prospective and current teachers recognise that cyberbullying is an
escalating issue that presents a problem in the school environment. The
teachers also utilised different strategies to manage cyberbullying,
particularly in the context of bullying severity and the unique characteristics
associated with cyberbullying. The research also found that young people do
respond to cyberbullying differently based on the publicity of the act, the
anonymity of the bully, the type of cyberbullying perpetrated, and the extent
the victim is upset. Through a sequential exploratory mixed method
approach, the empirical research presented in the thesis offers a unique
contribution to the literature and extends the knowledge base on how
cyberbullying is managed in the school environment.
... En un estudio de seguimiento, Smith et al. (2012) muestran que la mayoría de los criterios de calidad de las políticas anti-bullying han mejorado años después. Entre los hallazgos de su estudio, se ha encontrado una relación significativa entre una puntuación alta en las estrategias de prevención del acoso en las políticas escolares y una menor agresión de acoso según los autoinformes. ...
... Análisis de regresión logística con los diferentes roles de ciberacoso predicho por el plan de convivencia, las competencias socioemocionales y el grupo étnico-cultural (6) 0.09 (6) 22.84 (6) ** * p < 0.05 ** p < 0.01 competencias no depende de los documentos, lo que abre nuevas reflexiones sobre la utilidad de los documentos formales escritos en los centros escolares o el proceso de promoción de las competencias socioemocionales en las escuelas. Como muestran estudios anteriores, estas políticas pueden ser útiles (Smith et al., 2012), pero es posible que algunos centros escolares diseñen los documentos como un requisito burocrático y no sigan estos documentos a diario. Las hipótesis de este estudio fueron parcialmente rechazadas, debido a que una alta calidad de los planes de convivencia no se relacionó con puntuaciones altas en las competencias socioemocionales de los estudiantes. ...
Resumen
Las políticas escolares están diseñadas para promover un clima escolar positivo, pero se sabe poco sobre su efectividad. Este estudio tiene como objetivo describir la relación entre la calidad de los documentos del plan de convivencia y las competencias socioemocionales, el acoso escolar y ciberacoso en los estudiantes. Este estudio ex post facto, transversal y descriptivo, se ha realizado con una encuesta a una muestra representativa de 2.139 adolescentes. Los documentos del plan de convivencia de los centros participantes varían en cantidad y calidad en el cumplimiento de cada criterio. Según las evidencias de este estudio, promover un clima escolar positivo a partir del documento del plan de convivencia es conveniente, ya que la agresión del acoso escolar podría reducirse. Los hallazgos de este estudio tienen implicaciones en la política escolar y en las reformas educativas.
... In a follow-up study, Smith et al. (2012) found that most of the quality criteria of antibullying policies improved years later. Among the findings of their study, a significant relation was found between a high score in strategies for bullying prevention in school policies and lower self-reported bullying perpetration. ...
... Therefore, promotion of these competencies does not depend on the documents, which opens up new reflections about the utility of written formal documents at schools or the process of promoting social and emotional competencies into schools. As shown by previous studies, these policies can be useful (Smith et al., 2012), but it is possible that some schools design the documents as a bureaucratic requirement and schools do not follow these documents on an everyday basis. The hypotheses of this study were partially rejected, because a high-quality of school climate policy documents was not related to high scores in social and emotional competencies of the students. ...
Some school policies are designed to promote a positive school climate, but little is known about their effectiveness. This study aims at describing the relation among the quality of school climate policy documents, social and emotional competencies, bullying and cyberbullying in students. This ex-post-facto cross-sectional and descriptive study was conducted using a survey of a representative sample of 2139 adolescents. School climate policy documents varied greatly in the quantity and quality of accomplishment in each criterion. According to the evidence from this study, promoting a positive school climate from the school climate policy document is worthy, as bullying perpetration could be reduced. The findings of this study have implications for school policy and educational reforms.
... Studies have also indicated that schools differed in the implementation (and thus, effectiveness) of anti-bullying policies (Smith et al. 2008(Smith et al. , 2012. A content analysis of anti-bullying policies by Smith et al. (2008) found that only half of participating secondary schools had policies that discussed when or how parents would be informed of bullying. ...
... A content analysis of anti-bullying policies by Smith et al. (2008) found that only half of participating secondary schools had policies that discussed when or how parents would be informed of bullying. A follow-up study 6 years later suggested an improving picture with 91.7% of secondary school antibullying policies referring to this action (Smith et al. 2012). However, they found little change in the proportion of policies which included advice for parents about bullying, with 51.9% of secondary schools in the 2008 study doing this compared to 52.1% in the 2012 study. ...
Bullying at school can be a distressing experience for children. It is also likely to be distressing for their parents. In spite of this, research in the field of school bullying and peer victimisation has tended to overlook the experience of parents when their child is bullied. This study explored school bullying from the parent’s perspective. Twenty-one parents took part in semi-structured focus groups and interviews to share their experiences. Thematic analysis of the interview transcripts identified two main themes: ‘perceived institutional factors’ and ‘being a good parent’. It was found that parents viewed their principal role as protecting their child; they referred to this as an instinct and fundamental to them being a good parent. However, during their attempts to help their child, many parents talked about difficulties working with schools and this triggered frustration and distrust towards teachers. The findings highlight the importance of communication between parents and teachers and ensuring that parents are kept informed of progress when teachers are trying to address the problem. Additionally, the findings indicate that parents may hold different views to teachers about their role in school bullying situations. This would suggest that parents looking at the situation from the teacher’s perspective, and vice versa, could help to build better parent–teacher relationships when tackling school bullying.
... include the quality of school anti-bullying policies (Smith et al., 2012), and the existence of anti-bullying laws, which have been associated with reduced rates of being both bullied and cyberbullied across 25 states in the USA (Hatzenbuehler et al., 2015). In addition, as considered below, school-based anti-bullying programs have some effect (Gaffney et al., 2019a). ...
This article starts by giving a short introduction to school bullying – definition, types, roles. age and gender differences, and effects. It then takes a historical perspective, summarising how there have been some four or five phases of the research program, as it developed since the 1970s. A very rapid, growth of publications is noted in recent decades, and some likely reasons for this are mentioned. The content of these publications is then considered. What has this volume of work achieved? Following a mention of the ecological perspective, and cultural differences, a consideration is made of school-based interventions and the extent of their success. The article ends with some thoughts on issues and challenges for future investigation.
... Relational bullying warrants as much attention as other forms of bullying in anti-bullying policies and interventions; Smith et al (2012) established that the majority (78.3%) of school policies they examined referenced relational bullying, although it did not feature as often as physical or verbal bullying. The interviews with young people highlighted an overall sense of dissatisfaction about how relational bullying was dealt with, but there was an acknowledgement that school staff members were well placed to help with bullying behaviours. ...
... Relational bullying warrants as much attention as other forms of bullying in anti-bullying policies and interventions; Smith et al (2012) established that the majority (78.3%) of school policies they examined referenced relational bullying, although it did not feature as often as physical or verbal bullying. The interviews with young people highlighted an overall sense of dissatisfaction about how relational bullying was dealt with, but there was an acknowledgement that school staff members were well placed to help with bullying behaviours. ...
Background
Bullying among young people has been acknowledged as a public health concern. Relational bullying is the systematic manipulation and damage of peer relationships; the way in which it is perceived can influence detection and interventions, in view of this, relational bullying warranted further exploration from the perspectives of young people.
Aim
To understand the experience and perception of relational bullying among young people.
Methods
A qualitative approach underpinned the undertaking of 11 face-to-face interviews with young people aged 12–18 years. Data was thematically analysed.
Findings
Seven themes emerged: The complexity of defining bullying, The role of friends; Negative impacts, Social media, Normalisation, Personal resources to aid navigation, External resources to aid navigation.
Conclusions
Factors that help and hinder the navigation of relational bullying were identified, the family playing a crucial role in mitigating the negative effects. The findings have the potential to be relevant to other forms of bullying.
... Disabled young people, including those with dwarfism, remain 'at risk' of bullying during schooling, both in the United Kingdom (UK) (Chatzitheohari, Parsons, and Platt 2016; Jones et al. 2012) and across the globe (Rose and Espelage 2012;Swearer and Hymel 2015), despite extensive research on the underlying roots of bullying (Horton 2016;Thornberg 2015) and the (in)effectiveness of anti-bullying policies (Smith et al. 2012). A lack of social skills, social capital, communication skills and behavioural difficulties among disabled young people are often centred as the main predictors of bullying (Hebron, Humphrey, and Oldfield 2015). ...
This paper explores the first-hand accounts of disablist school violence experienced by young people with dwarfism during their secondary education in the United Kingdom. A narrative, qualitative methodology was utilised, which turned nineteen young people with dwarfism into the storytellers of their schooling experiences. Drawing together a poststructuralist approach to bullying and Critical Disability Studies, it presents and discusses stories of physical, cultural and systemic violence they experienced, as well as their resistance to it. In doing so, it challenges dominant discourses around disability and school violence, including the representation of disabled young people as ‘passive victims’ of school violence or disability being the trigger of such violence. Finally, it provides a sociological analysis of such violence, shifting the focus from the individualistic blame to the cultural, institutional and systemic underpinnings of such violence and the role of disablism in its perpetuation.
... Consequently, writers seek to identify the various methods that can be utilized with the view of addressing this issue. Migliaccio & Raskauskas (2013) employed the "video-discussion model to increase the students awareness of bullying, a curricula (Jones & Augustine, 2015;Smith et al., 2012) and shared concern approach as an anti-bullying intervention (Wurf, 2012;Jones & Augustine, 2015;Rigby, 2014), small groups discussions facilitated by adults (Smith & Smith, 2014). The quality circle approach (Smith et al., 2010), the zero tolerance model and the early intervention method (Roberge, 2012), direct sanctions, restorative practice mediation, support group method (Rigby, 2014), community-based programs (Holt et al., 2013). ...
... This has enhanced various gaps, such as a limited number of tools to assess bullying at school, what might be useful to develop further empirical-based interventions with a good contextual knowledge [6]. However, the paradigm is changing, and more systematic actions are starting to rise worldwide [40][41][42]. Currently, one of the most widely adopted approach is the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP; [15]), a comprehensive and system-wide program designed to reduce peer violence and achieve better relations among school-aged children and adolescents [43]. ...
Besides its several threats to health, welfare, social and academic development and performance of kids and teenagers, school bullying remains highlighted as one of the most relevant related challenges for educational, behavioral and legal sciences worldwide. Moreover, the lack of research on the field and the crucial but unattended need to count on psychometrically suitable and valid tools to detect school bullying make difficult understanding its contexts, dynamics and possible solutions. Objective The aim of this study was to thoroughly present in detail the psychometric properties and validity issues of the School Bullying Questionnaire (CIE-A) among secondary students. Methods A regionwide sample of 810 (47.2% girls) secondary students attending to 21 schools across the Valencian Community (Spain), aged M = 14.40 (SD = 1.61) years, responded to a paper-based questionnaire containing the 36-item version of the CIE-A and various scales related to psychosocial health and wellbeing, used as criterion variables. Results The outcomes of this study suggest that the CIE-A has a clear factor structure, an optimal set of item loadings and goodness-of-fit indexes. Further, that CIE-A has shown good internal consistency and reliability indexes, coherent associations with other mental health and academic performance variables, and the possibility to assess gender differences on bullying-related factors among secondary students. Conclusion The CIE-A may represent a suitable tool for assessing bullying in a three-factorial approach ( i . e ., victimization, symptomatology, and intimidation), offering optimal psychometric properties, validity and reliability insights, and the potentiality of being applied in the school environment. Actions aimed at improving the school coexistence and the well-being of secondary students, targeting potential bullied/bully profiles or seeking to assess demographic and psychosocial correlates of bullying among teenagers, might get benefited from this questionnaire.
... Of note, individual characteristics that set a student apart from the prevailing group are likely to increase the risk of bullying. However, social factors including minority cultural status, sexual/ gender diversity, disability and religious diversity are strongly linked with increased bullying and warrant attention in school anti-bullying interventions (Smith et al., 2012). School bullying has been found to emerge in the early years of primary school and tends to peak around 11-14 years. ...
... However, important aspects such as coverage of responsibilities beyond teaching staff, following up of incidents, management of records, and preventative strategies such as © 2020 CRES Volume 12, Number 2, November 2020 pp playground work and peer support were not fully covered. A follow-up study after six-years found a modest improvement in their anti-bullying policies, but there was still low coverage of homophobic bullying, cyberbullying, bullying based on disabilities and faith (Smith et al., 2012). This is of concern, as the presence of comprehensive anti-bullying policies is important in providing parents and educators with clear guidelines on bullying and protecting the well-being of children (Goryl et al., 2013). ...
Practitioners' perceptions and understanding of bullying in schools is vital and can help to tackle bullying. The aim of this study is to investigate perceptions, attitudes, and challenges towards bullying amongst 135 practitioners (psychologists, social-workers, and medical professionals) (56.9% women; mostly aged 26-50 years) in Qatar. The practitioners answered self-report questionnaires on the definition, causes, and consequences of bullying as well as the presence of bullying and anti-bullying policies at their workplace. The findings revealed that practitioners have a clear understanding of the definition, causes, and consequences of bullying and recognise bullying and cyberbullying as a problem in Qatari students. Higher bullying knowledge and experience were related to higher perception of bullying as a problematic behaviour, better identification of bullying characteristics, more support of anti-bullying laws, and more bullying guidelines in their workplace. There is a great need for practitioner training in issues concerning bullying and to design suitable anti-bullying policies and interventions in schools.
... Monks, Robinson, and Worlidge (2012) report cyberbullying involvement of 20.5% for self-identified victims and 5% identified as perpetrators of cyberbullying for a sample with an age range of 7À11. Despite this, and the considerable evidence for cyberbullying prevalence in upper age ranges, cyberbullying still is only moderately regarded in antibullying policies in primary (32%) and secondary (52%) educational establishments in the United Kingdom (Smith et al., 2012). Future longitudinal research concerning a sample that includes younger children and adolescents would be more effective and practical for researching prevalence rates of cyberbullying. ...
Global development of digital technologies has provided considerable connectivity benefits. However, connectivity of this scale has presented a seemingly unmanageable number of potential risks to psychological harm especially experienced by children and adolescents; one such risk is cyberbullying. This chapter will initially address the origins of bullying, leading into an overview of cyberbullying. A review of the unique characteristics of online communication will shed light on the ongoing debate concerning cyberbullying being potentially more than an extension of traditional bullying. Current research findings encompassing prevalence, types of behavior, consequences, and the roles within cyberbullying activity will be discussed to guide future interventions to reduce the risk of vulnerability for children and adolescents. In parallel, this chapter also considers the relative and perhaps distorted risk perception that young people have of becoming a cybervictim. Finally, this chapter acknowledges current understanding to support future digital and social evolvement.
... The current results also call into question the common practice of adopting any given anti-bullying intervention or prevention program from another cultural context to another. The results presented here suggest that their utility may also depend on potential cultural or ethnic values and perceptions Smith et al., 2008Smith et al., , 2012). ...
Bullying in schools is a widespread phenomenon, witnessed worldwide, with negative consequences for victims and perpetrators. Although it is an international issue, there are several issues with cross-national and cross-cultural/ethnic research that can make comparisons between countries and cultures/ethnic groups difficult including language, cultural perception, and/or methodological issues. As statistical techniques rapidly develop, there may be more scope to be statistically creative in how we assess the utility of one tool across different groups such as cultures, nations, etc. At the very least, an attempt to do this should be paramount in studies investigating different groups (e.g., from different countries) at one time. This study investigated bullying and victimization rates in a large cross-ethnic and -country comparison between adolescents from four countries and five different ethnic groups including: Israel (Jewish Israelis and Arab Palestinian Israelis), Palestine (the Gaza Strip), Germany, and Greece. A total of 3,186 school children aged 12–15 years completed self-report questionnaires of peer bullying/victimization. A stepwise data analytic approach was used to test comparability of the psychometric properties: (1) Structural equivalence contributes to the valid use of the instrument in cultural contexts other than the one for which the instrument has been developed. Structural equivalence is a necessary condition for the justification of indirect or direct comparisons between cultural groups. (2) Additionally, structural isomorphism is necessary to demonstrate that the same internal structure of the instrument applies to the cultural and individual levels. Findings support the internal structural equivalence of the questionnaire with the exception of the Palestinian sample from the Gaza Strip. Subsequently, exploratory factor analysis on the cultural level structure revealed a one-factor structure with congruence measure below 0.85. Thus, no evidence was found for internal structural isomorphism suggesting that no direct comparisons of cultural samples was justified. These results are discussed in detail and the implications for the international research community and cross-national/-ethnic comparison studies in bullying are addressed.
... Hence, it is anticipated that poor psychological health will lead to lower aspirations because of its association with poor motivation, lack of energy, and reduced expectations (Rothon, Arephin, Klineberg, Cattell, & Stansfeld, 2011). Consequently, educational and health professionals, schools, and governmental policies should build programmes to tackle bullying (El Asam & Samara, 2016;Foody & Samara, 2018;Smith & Samara, 2003;Smith, Smith, Osborn, & Samara, 2008;Smith et al., 2012). Health practitioners (e.g., psychologists and doctors) should also take into account bullying by peers and siblings with its different forms and subgroups when assessing psychopathology amongst children and adolescents as these could be affected by victimization (Samara et al., 2017). ...
Background
Refugee children might have experienced violent and traumatic events before settling into a new country. In the United Kingdom, the number of refugee children is increasing; however, little is known about their psycho‐social and physical well‐being.
Aim
This study aims to investigate the psychological well‐being and behaviour of refugee children compared to British‐born children on a number of psychological, social, behavioural, and health‐related issues and to investigate the role of friendship as a protective factor.
Samples
This study utilized a sample of 149 refugee children recruited from two charities, 79 of which are children aged 6–10 years and 70 older refugee children aged 11–16 years. The study also included 120 non‐refugee children recruited from primary schools aged 6–10 years.
Methods
This is a cross‐sectional study that investigates the psycho‐social well‐being of refugee children compared to non‐refugee British‐born children. The study explored symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder, emotional and behavioural problems (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire), self‐esteem, friendships and popularity, bullying and victimization, physical health, and psychosomatic problems.
Results
Young refugee children reported more peer problems, functional impairment, physical health, and psychosomatic problems compared to the control children and older refugee children groups. On the other hand, older refugee children had lower self‐esteem (academic and social self‐peers) compared to the younger refugee children group. The differences between the groups were explained by friendship quality, number of friends, peer bullying/victimization, or sibling bullying/victimization except for physical health and psychosomatic problems.
Conclusions
While refugee children were found to be at risk on various levels, the findings also point to the fact that social relationships including friendship quality and number of friends played an essential protective role. Conversely, bullying was a risk factor that explained many of the refugees’ problems. These findings pave the way for future research to further probe into the well‐being of refugee children in the United Kingdom while also targeting relevant intervention schemes specifically tailored to address their needs.
... Per policies/legislation in some countries (e.g. UK), schools need to have their own anti-bullying policies and interventions (Cosgrove & Nickerson, 2017;Smith et al., 2012). Bullying prevention and intervention strategies in schools can be revealed by examining these school-based anti-bullying policies. ...
This study aimed to investigate teachers’ perspectives on the implementation and effectiveness of anti-bullying strategies in schools. A total of 538 primary and secondary school teachers from 22 schools in Taiwan agreed to participate in this study. They were asked to rate self-developed questionnaires regarding the implementation and perceived effectiveness of anti-bullying strategies in their schools. The Rasch measurement method was adopted to both analyse the data and ensure the validity and the reliability of the evidence. The results of this study showed that strategies like patrolling, reporting and appeal measures as well as school safety facilities had high levels of implementation and perceived effectiveness. Strategies with both low implementation and low perceived effectiveness included classroom decorations with anti-bullying elements, bullying prevention brochures and establishing anti-bullying committees within schools. Strategies regarding anti-bullying lectures for teachers and analysing the results of bullying prevention for further improvement were perceived as effective strategies with low implementation. Strategies with high implementation but low perceived effectiveness included anti-bullying slogans and posters, regular surveys and student competitions. In addition, it was shown that teachers’ perceived effectiveness can correlate with and impact their implementation of anti-bullying strategies. Researchers and practitioners can refer to teachers’ perceived effectiveness and implementation of anti-bullying strategies to design bullying prevention programmes.
... Schools play an important role in student's social lives and it is at school that various behaviors are manifested. Bullying interventions and prevention strategies often take the form of anti-bullying policies (Smith et al., 2012) and/or school-wide educational programs. School-wide programs often include both policy and prevention strategies with a view to changing attitudes and behaviors in all parties involved (i.e., teachers, students, practitioners and parents). ...
This paper explores the possibilities created by modern technologies to prevent bullying and antisocial behaviors. The live of modern generations is inseparable from the mass media and advanced ICT. In this context, anti-social and pro-social behavior of young people was shown and defined. Then, a review was made how new technologies can be used in (cyber)bullying prevention and interventions strategies. Technology-based solutions were divided into two groups: (1) preventative solutions and therefore applicable before bullying occurs and (2) reactive solutions, which are aimed at helping victim, bystanders and others to deal with bullying. Some of presented activities are an extension of the activities already known in the field of peer violence prevention from the face to face context to the online environment. The examples of technology-based solutions presented in the text have a different degree of complexity. In some cases, they boil down to one simple operation, in another they mean long-term conduct. Based on the information presented in this article, the conclusion is that new technologies may be used in raising awareness about bullying phenomenon, for developing socio-emotional skills and some bullying preventative and reactive solutions. However, these strategies need to be combined with others in a way to build a thoughtful and comprehensive program, as well as more research is needed in this area to verify their real effects
... Community factors such as disorder and safety in the neighborhood were found to be related to bullying victimization and perpetration (Espelage, Bosworth, & Simon, 2000;Holt, Turner, & Exum, 2014). Whole-school anti-bullying policies are commonly implemented in schools around the world to eradicate bullying ( Smith et al., 2012;Woods & Wolke, 2003). Research has shown that parenting and the family environment are related to lower levels of bullying (Baldry & Farrington, 2000;Bowes et al., 2009;Cava, Musitu, Buelga, & Murgui, 2010;Gomez-Ortiz, Romera, & Ortega-Ruiz, 2016). ...
Bullying and cyberbullying are damaging aggressive behaviors in which some children and adolescents intentionally inflict frequent and long term harm on peers who become victimized. The number of studies on bullying is high and a lot of knowledge has already been gathered. Nevertheless, there are still many gaps in knowledge that need to be addressed. Research on protective factors and effective interventions is still in its relatively early stages. This systematic review of meta-analyses on protective factors against bullying and cyberbullying was conducted to synthesize knowledge and discover the most important community, school, family, peer and individual protective factors. After systematic searches and the application of inclusion and exclusion criteria, 18 meta-analyses with 128 effect sizes were included and analyzed. Forest plots were constructed and median effect sizes were calculated for each group of protective factors. Self-oriented personal competencies were the strongest protector against victimization. Low frequency of technology use protected from involvement in cyberbullying. Good academic performance and other-oriented social competencies were the strongest protective factors against perpetration. Positive peer interaction was the strongest protective factor against being a bully/victim. These findings can be useful to improve anti-bullying programs, policy and practice.
... As Arseneault points out, in England and Wales, all schools must legally have some kind of antibullying policy. Although there has been no evaluation of the effectiveness of this at a national level, there are some modest indications that high quality policies are associated with less bullying (Smith, Kupferberg et al., 2012). So far as schoolbased interventions are concerned, the Ttofi and Farrington review, cited, provided new standards in carrying out a meta-analysis of intervention studies and also in examining components of effective interventions; nevertheless, some of their conclusions (about disciplinary methods, use of peers and age appropriateness of interventions) are debatable (Smith, Salmivalli, & Cowie, 2012;Yeager, Fong, Lee, & Espelage, 2015). ...
Arseneault's review is a timely reminder of the strong evidence for the negative impact of school bullying, especially although not only on the victims of it. It is particularly important in dealing with the evidence for causal links, mechanisms and possible moderating factors. In this Commentary, I raise some issues about the definition of bullying; the importance of separating out the bully/victim category; differing impacts of types of victimisation, and notably cyber victimization, perhaps interacting with gender; and evidence on school antibullying policies and impact of interventions.
... It is crucial that such education starts early and is brought in rapidly, reinforced by the lawyers' belief that there is no need to wait for the phenomena to get any worse than it currently is. It is also important that schools include cyberbullying within their anti-bullying policies, as this is often insufficiently covered [54]. It was implied by a practitioner psychologist that bullying and cyberbullying are not completely preventable, which may very well be the case; however, a lot can be done to prevent the majority of bullying happening. ...
Bullying and cyberbullying have severe psychological and legal consequences for those involved. However, it is unclear how or even if previous experience of bullying and cyberbullying is considered in mental health assessments. Furthermore, the relevance and effectiveness of current legal solutions has been debated extensively, resulting in a desire for a specific legislation. The purpose of this study is to investigate the psychological and legal components of bullying and cyberbullying. This is a qualitative research that includes interviews with five practitioner psychologists and four lawyers in the United Kingdom (UK). Thematic analysis revealed three main themes. One theme is related to the definition, characteristics, and impact of bullying and cyberbullying and the need for more discussion among the psychological and legal professions. Another theme is related to current professional procedures and the inclusion of questions about bullying and cyberbullying in psychological risk assessments. The third theme emphasised the importance of intervention through education. Two key messages were highlighted by the lawyers: ample yet problematic legislation exists, and knowledge will ensure legal success. The study recommends the necessity of performing revisions in the clinical psychological practices and assessments, and the legal policies regarding bullying and cyberbullying. In addition to improving legal success, this will reduce bullying prevalence rates, psychological distress, and psychopathology that can be comorbid or emerge as a result of this behaviour.
... Indeed, policy development could come from looking at other countries where more extensive research has been conducted in the area. For example, in England and Northern Ireland it is a legal requirement to have an antibullying policy in schools (Purdy & Smith, 2016;Smith & Samara, 2003), the effectiveness of which has been studied over time (Smith, Mahdavi, et al., 2008;Smith, Smith, Osborn & Samara, 2008;Smith et al., 2012). Samara and Smith (2008) investigated schools' use of these strategies in the United Kingdom, the effect of required legal policies and the antibullying pack provided by the government in 1996 and 2002. ...
Background:
Bullying research has gained a substantial amount of interest in recent years because of the implications for child and adolescent development.
Aim and sample:
We conducted a meta-analysis of traditional and cyberbullying studies in the Republic and North of Ireland to gain an understanding of prevalence rates and associated issues (particularly psychological correlates and intervention strategies) among young people (primary and secondary school students).
Method:
Four electronic databases were searched (PsychArticles, ERIC, PsychInfo and Education Research Complete) for studies of traditional bullying and cyberbullying behaviours (perpetrators, victims or both) published between January 1997 and April 2016.
Results:
A final sample of 39 articles fit our selection criteria. CMA software was used to estimate a pooled prevalence rate for traditional/cyberbullying victimization and perpetration. A systematic review on the psychological impacts for all types of bullying and previously used interventions in an Irish setting is also provided.
Conclusions:
The results demonstrate the influence moderating factors (e.g., assessment tools, answer scale, time frame) have on reported prevalence rates. These results are discussed in light of current studies, and points for future research are considered.
... Debe destacarse que el factor que más impacta en este orden horizontal de la convivencia es la victimización. Ser maltratado, atacado, golpeado o, en definitiva, victimizado, ha sido el problema de la convivencia escolar más ampliamente investigado en los últimos años (Casas, Del Rey, & Ortega-Ruiz, 2013;Baldry & Farrington, 2007;Smith et al., 2012;Ttofi & Farrington, 2011). Estos resultados refrendan la larga trayectoria de estudios que muestran hasta qué punto se mejora el clima y la convivencia escolar cuando se reduce la victimización (Ttofi & Farrington, 2011;Williams & Guerra, 2007). ...
En este estudio, se desarrolla y valida la Escala de Convivencia Escolar que integra gran parte de las perspectivas existentes en la literatura científica sobre este tema. El principal objetivo de la investigación fue contrastar empíricamente la validez del constructo. La muestra estuvo compuesta por 3 146 estudiantes de educación primaria y secundaria obligatoria de Andalucía (España). Mediante análisis factoriales exploratorios y confirmatorios, se contrastó la idoneidad de un modelo explicativo de la convivencia escolar compuesto por ocho dimensiones. El resultado pone de manifiesto la importancia en el constructo de la gestión y el ejemplo de buenas relaciones que el profesorado ofrece al alumnado, así como la necesidad de incluir en él aspectos positivos y negativos de la misma.
... A follow-up investigation conducted six years later (Smith et al. 2012) showed that anti-bullying policies had improved on most of the criteria, although they should still be worked on in different schools. This study also focused on the possible relationships between the inclusion and quality of different dimensions in the anti-bullying policies and the actual involvement in bullying of the students. ...
This compact resource synthesizes current research on bullying in the schools while presenting strengths-based approaches to curbing this growing epidemic. Its international review of cross-sectional and longitudinal studies unravels the complex dynamics of bullying and provides depth on the range of negative outcomes for bullies, victims, enablers, and victims who bully. Chapters on protective factors against bullying identify personal competencies, such as empathy development, and keys to a positive school environment, featuring findings on successful school-based prevention programs in different countries. Throughout, the authors clearly define bullying as a public health/mental health issue, and prevention as a deterrent for future antisocial and criminal behavior.
... A follow-up investigation conducted six years later (Smith et al. 2012) showed that anti-bullying policies had improved on most of the criteria, although they should still be worked on in different schools. This study also focused on the possible relationships between the inclusion and quality of different dimensions in the anti-bullying policies and the actual involvement in bullying of the students. ...
Personal protective factors classified into social, emotional, and moral competencies have been described in Chap. 3. Children with better competencies are less likely to be involved in bullying. Nevertheless, bullying is a very complex phenomenon that is influenced by the individual, social, and contextual factors. There is always an interaction between the individual and the environment. While, some children are more vulnerable than others to get involved in bullying, specific circumstances are also needed.
... Research has shown that schools with clear, detailed rules which clarify appropriate and inappropriate conduct have helped to accomplish numerous goals, such as the reduction of bullying and delinquency ( Battistich, Solomon, Kim, Watson, & Schaps, 1995;Catalano, Oxford, Harachi, Abbott, & Haggerty, 1999;Youniss, Yates, & Su, 1997). This testifies to the importance of policies that outline behavioral expectations as a primary protective factor for youth conformity to antibullying standards in place ( Smith et al., 2012;Smith, Smith, Osborn, & Samara, 2008), especially if shared within a culture that provides relational support and positive adult-student interactions ( Cernkovich & Giordano, 1992;Glover, Cartwright, Gough, & Johnson, 1998;Resnick, Harris, & Blum, 1993). To be based on a deterrence model, such rules contribute to a person's knowledge of what constitutes bullying, increase the perceived probability of being caught if one participates in bullying behaviors, and outline the potential consequences that will follow ( Potter & Krider, 2000). ...
While decades of criminological research have returned mixed results when it comes to deterrence theory, deterrence-informed policies continue to proliferate unabated. Specific to bullying among adolescents , many U.S. states have recently passed new laws – or updated old ones – increasing potential punishment for youth who abuse others. Police are becoming involved in bullying incidents more than ever before, and schools across the country are implementing new policies and procedures as a result of statewide mandates to crack down on the problem. Parents, too, are being pressured to respond to bullying or risk being prosecuted themselves. To assess whether youth are actually being deterred by these methods and messages, data were collected from approximately 1,000 students from two middle schools on their perceptions of punishment from various sources, as well as their bullying and cyberbullying participation. Results suggest that students are deterred more by the threat of punishment from their parents and the school, and least deterred by the threat of punishment from the police.
With the rise in cyberbullying incidents that sometimes result in high school student fatalities, schools are under pressure to curb the aggression. Students have been identified as ill-equipped to manage cyberbullying. At the same time, school anti-cyberbullying policies that are key to eradicating the social issue have been noted as lacking, weak and inadequate – often due to teachers’ need for more experience in developing such policies and the complexity of legislation for this group. This article proposes a conceptual framework that can be used to develop effective school anti-cyberbullying policies that are compliant with laws. A systematic literature review methodology was adopted to synthesise the literature. The literature review revealed that the policy content should include attributes such as cyberbullying definition and reporting. Such policies should be developed in a consultative approach with stakeholders in the school environment and external to the school, such as policy experts, participating. This article further identifies communication of the anti-cyberbullying policy as a key element to ensuring effectiveness. Lastly, we identified the regular review of the policy as critical in keeping it effective and compliant with laws. When changes are made, these should be communicated further.KeywordsCyberbullyingAnti-cyberbullyingSchool anti-cyberbullying policyStudents
Any institutional policy will only be a paper tiger unless the intended recipients of the policy know and understand it. Student anti-bullying policies at universities in Australia have been researched to determine the quality and usability of the content, but research is lacking in how students understand and use these policies. Bullying amongst students has been identified globally as an issue at universities; however, little has been done to determine students’ knowledge and experience of bullying and the related policies and services universities provide. The aim of this paper is to fill that gap in knowledge, with the hope that by understanding a student’s perspective, identified blocks to reporting may be eliminated. This study surveyed 297 Australian university students about their knowledge of their university’s anti-bullying policies existence and location, their personal and witnessed experienced of bullying, how they handled it, and their knowledge and thoughts on how bullying information is presented to students at their university. The results found students lacked knowledge about anti-bullying policies and practices in their university. The results also highlighted assumptions students make about what their university offers in regard to policies and services. This paper indicates that universities need to publicise their policies and better educate their students on bullying and their related anti-bullying policies.
Bullying involvement may have an adverse effect on children’s educational outcomes, particularly academic achievement. However, the underlying mechanisms and factors behind this association are not well-understood. Previous meta-analyses have not investigated mediation factors between bullying and academic achievement. This meta-analysis examines the mediation effect of cognitive-motivational factors on the relationship between peer victimization and academic achievement. A systematic search was performed using specific search terms and search engines to identify relevant studies that were selected according to specific criteria resulting in 11 studies encompassing a sample total of 257,247 children (10 years and younger) and adolescents (11 years and older) (48–59% female). Some studies were longitudinal and some cross sectional and the assessment for each factor was performed by various methods (self, peer, teacher, school and mixed reports). Children involved in bullying behaviour were less likely to be academically engaged (k = 4) (OR = .571, 95% CI [.43, .77], p = .000), to be less motivated (k = 7) (OR = .82, 95% CI [.69, .97], p=.021), to have lower self-esteem (k = 1) (OR = .12, 95% CI [.07, .20], p=.000) and lower academic achievement (k=14) (OR = .62, 95% CI [.49, .79], p = .000). Bullying involvement was also significantly related to overall cognitive-motivational factors (k=17, OR= .67, 95%CI [.59, .76], p=.000). Cognitive-motivational factors, taken together, mediated the association between bullying victimisation and academic achievement (k = 7,OR = 0.74, 95% CI (0.72, 0.77), p = 0.000). Bullying victimisation was negatively related to cognitive-motivational factors, which, in turn, was associated with poorer academic achievement. These findings were moderated by the design of the studies, assessment methods for the bullying reports, mediators and outcomes, country, age of children in the sample and/or types of bullying. The findings are of relevance for practitioners, parents, and schools, and can be used to guide bullying interventions. Interventions should focus on improving internal and external motivational factors including components of positive reinforcement, encouragement, and programs for enhancing academic engagement and achievement amongst children and adolescents.
Policy is an important part of prevention and intervention when it comes to peer bullying amongst university students. Therefore, the contents of these policies need to be informative and easy to find, understand and use. With the United Kingdom having a low prevalence of peer bullying at university when compared to other countries, determining whether the quality of a university student anti-bullying policy is related to the prevalence, may help universities in other countries reduce bullying prevalence. This study adds to the body of knowledge by analysing the content and usability of student anti-bullying policies of 39 universities in the UK. The results were then compared to the results of a similar study conducted with Australian universities, to determine similarities and difference, and where improvements could be made. Through this, and future studies, it is hoped that a relationship can be determined between the quality of university student anti-bullying policies, and the prevalence of bullying. It is also hoped that the results of this study will allow universities to identify where their policy may be improved and promote the importance of having a bully-free culture on campus.
Building Better Schools with Evidence-based Policy: Adaptable Policy for Teachers and School Leaders provides an extensive set of free-to-use policies for building better schools.
The policies included in this book cover a broad range of popular topics for schools that are not readily accessible, and each policy is built on theory, driven by research, and created by and experts. Each policy is based on substantial evidence and this is ensured through the inclusion of contributors who are active and highly reputable in their respective field. Most schools are obliged to write and maintain policy and not all school leaders have the required skills, time or expertise to do this effectively. Building Better Schools with Evidence-based Policy: Adaptable Policy for Teachers and School Leaders is a time-saving resource for schools. It aims to address the reported research to practice gap in education by delivering accessible evidence-based practice in a ready-to-use adaptable format. All policies within this book are designed to be adapted and tailored to the unique diversity and needs of each school as reflected by the context and the people that make up the school community.
This book is relevant to every person who works in a school - worldwide. Users of this book can rest assured that each policy has been carefully formulated from the current understandings of best practice. This is a practical innovation and an example of how schools can use research-evidence in their day-to-day practices.
Download here: https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/oa-edit/10.4324/9781003025955/building-better-schools-evidence-based-policy-kelly-ann-allen-andrea-reupert-lindsay-oades?refId=632274ab-eee7-4293-bb4a-6c1366715472
Bullying has been a topic widely researched in schools and the workplace, however, comparatively there is a paucity of research into bullying among university students. This is an oversight, as bullying may also have negative consequences for university students, ranging from anxiety to suicidal ideation. Anti-bullying policies are an important part of bullying prevention and intervention, however, due to Australian Federal legislation, policies for students are not mandatory at universities. To be an effective prevention and intervention strategy, anti-bullying policies and procedures should be informative, supportive, well publicised, and student user friendly. Through analysing the anti-bullying policies and procedures from 39 Australian universities, using a 37-item analysis tool adapted from Purdy and Smith as well as thematic analysis, this study aims to determine if Australian universities are providing students with the information and support they need to be able to report bullying to their university and study in a safe environment. Both strengths and weaknesses were found in 37 individual universities’ student anti-bullying policies and procedures, as well as overall trends displayed by universities Australia-wide. The overall paucity of information and consistency, as well as the poor user-friendliness of many of the documents, highlights the need for changes to be made. Without the reform of student anti-bullying policies and procedures in Australian universities, students will be unsupported and ill-equipped to identify and report bullying. Universities will also run the risk of gaining a bad reputation and not promoting a bully-free culture for students in which to learn and socialise.
Teaching has been identified as one of the most stressful professions, with a high attrition rate resulting from teacher stress and burnout. This chapter addresses the problem of how to enhance teaching quality and effectiveness by providing teachers with professional development in stress management, specific to the stressors of teaching. Existing research has clearly identified the key stressors for teachers, and evidence-based stress management approaches have been shown to be effective in mitigating teacher stress and improving teaching quality. However, there is little evidence that such professional development approaches have become integrated into the teacher training or continuing professional development curricula for teachers. Consequently, the aim of this chapter is to provide an overview of how teaching quality can be improved with a professional development framework of targeted approaches in stress management, which are aligned with the needs of individual teachers and whole schools.
Im vorliegenden Kapitel wird darauf eingegangen warum Mobbingnachsorge sowohl für Opfer als auch Täter wichtig ist und wie sie auf verschiedenen Ebenen gestaltet werden kann. Die Kombination verschiedener Maßnahmen ist für eine umfassende Nachsorge empfehlenswert, weshalb im Folgenden die Grenzen zwischen Intervention, Prävention und Nachsorge fließend sind.
Online victimization via cyberbullying and cyberstalking are plaguing our young online users. These tormenting and intrusive behaviors have infiltrated relationship formation, online communication and social identity. Friends and romantic partners have become increasingly dependent on the use of technology to initiate relationships. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the current state of these online crimes and the involvement of youth and young adults. We will consider current responses by our criminal justice system, as well as our educational and community groups. Based on what is currently implemented and its success factor, we will make our assertions about the effectiveness of scholastic work and its influence on what we are doing to combat these forms of cybervictimization.
Until now, sexuality has been treated as a specialist topic or area of specialist social work practice. This book cuts across all areas of the discipline. It examines the relationship between sexuality, sexual identities and intimacies and the life course, and showcases a range of issues pertinent to social work through these lenses. It opens up new possibilities for better understanding sexuality in social work, and contains empirical work and theorising about sexuality, intimacy and gender not currently found in a traditional course on life course theory and practice.
The chapters position new areas of scholarship in sexuality including trans perspectives, masculinities, bisexuality and the voices of other gender and sexual minority populations within a life course trajectory. Empirical research picks up on the broader public health and well-being agenda with a strong focus on challenging normative theories to promote human rights and justice for marginalised individuals and groups.
Sexuality, Sexual and Gender Identities and Intimacy Research in Social Work and Social Care will significantly enhance any core texts on life course theory and practice, anti-oppression and anti-discriminatory theories for professionals. It should be considered essential reading for academics, practitioners and undergraduate and postgraduate students.
Schools have a duty of care to all students and to directly prevent and intervene with bullying amongst children and adolescents. The emergence of cyberbullying escalates this responsibility as the strategies that have become appropriate at national levels for bullying do not always parallel over to online environments. The impact on mental health is the most obvious concern for those responsible for reducing bullying, however, input from psychologists and mental health professionals is scant and often limited on this topic. This paper outlines what bullying is and the devastating impact it can have on the mental health of those involved. It will outline the most common anti-bullying initiatives as well as the current psychological and educational techniques, which could also be used to alleviate distress associated with bullying involvement. We will focus specifically on the role of mindfulness techniques and argue for more of such exercises to be included in whole-school bullying programmes. We conclude by arguing the need to investigate components relevant to both mindfulness and anti-bullying programmes (e.g., empathy, perspective-taking) as active ingredients for reducing the impact of bullying on mental health.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning (LGBTQ) youth face hostile and exclusionary learning environments. A qualitative phenomenographic method involving semi-structured interviews of seven secondary school administrators was conducted to identify perceptions of experiences creating a safe and inclusive environment for students who identified as LGBTQ. The findings of the study were examined from the conceptual foundation developed from Ouellett (1996) and Quinlivan and Town (1999) who proposed that a heteronormative culture dominates the U.S. school system that perpetuates the marginalizing of non-gender conforming students. The three emergent perceptions identified included: (a) providing safe spaces while working to create an inclusive environment; (b) promoting student awareness and acceptance of diversity; and (c) challenging heteronormativity within the context of formal policies and procedures.
Background:
Although nearly all states in the United States require school districts to adopt anti-bullying policies, little research examines the effect of these policies on student bullying and health. Using a statewide sample, we investigated associations between the quality of school district anti-bullying policies and student bullying involvement and adjustment.
Methods:
School district anti-bullying policies (N = 208) were coded for their quality based on established criteria. District-level data were combined with student reports of bullying involvement, emotional distress, and school connectedness from a state surveillance survey of 6th, 9th, and 12th grade students (N = 93,437).
Results:
Results indicated that policy quality was positively related to bullying victimization. Furthermore, students reporting frequent perpetration/victimization who also attended districts with high-quality policies reported more emotional distress and less school connectedness compared with students attending districts with low quality policies. Although statistically significant, the magnitude of these associations was small.
Conclusions:
Having a high-quality school district anti-bullying policy is not sufficient to reduce bullying and protect bullying-involved young people. Future studies examining policy implementation will inform best practices in bullying prevention.
This study investigated the relationship among adolescents’ (n = 621) reports of perpetrating sexual and gender-based harassment and their beliefs about whether these behaviors cause harm, are wrong, or are prohibited by school policies. Results evidenced that beliefs about wrongness and harm were related to perpetration frequency; however, perceptions of harassment policies were largely unrelated to behaviors. Further, beliefs that these behaviors cause harm to victims mediated the relationship between judgments of wrongness and perpetration of several harassing behaviors. These findings support the need for harassment prevention strategies that align with adolescents’ social–cognitive development and emphasize how such behaviors cause harm, even when harm is not intended. This study demonstrates that adolescents’ beliefs about whether various forms of sexual and gender-based harassment are harmful and wrong significantly predicts less perpetration of those forms of harassment. Notably, adolescents’ beliefs about school policies prohibiting such harassment were largely unrelated to their harassment perpetration. These findings suggest that strategies aimed at reducing harassing behaviors may benefit from a focus on perpetrators’ moral reasoning and attributions of harm.
This paper draws on findings from a European project ‘Rights through alliances: Innovating and networking both within homes and schools’ (RAINBOW-HAS) conducted 2013-2015. It built collaboration between six European Union countries to analyse and improve the rights of children and youth regarding sexual orientation and gender identity in educational settings. The main focus of discussion derives from a secondary discourse analysis following thematic analyses of the qualitative interviews undertaken with a range of different families, schools and community associations across these European countries, which provide a snapshot of contemporary practice. We discuss the relative silence of social work in challenging homophobic and transphobic bullying, given their potential in promoting family and young people’s engagement.
The current study investigated whether the quality of school anti-bullying policies allows the drawing of any conclusions about the extent of bullying problems in schools. That is, do schools with a more detailed anti-bullying policy have lower rates of bullying? A total of 2377 children in primary schools (six year olds/year two: 1072; eight year olds/year four: 1305) were individually interviewed using a standard interview about bullying experiences. A detailed content analysis scheme that closely followed the core whole-school intervention approach was carried out on a total of 34 schools: 24.5% of the children reported being directly victimised very frequently and 45.9% reported being relationally victimised frequently or very frequently. No correlation between the content and quality of anti-bullying policies and the prevalence of direct bullying behaviour was found. Conversely, an inverse relationship was found for relational bullying behaviour: schools with the most detailed and comprehensive anti-bullying policies had a higher incidence of relational bullying and victimisation behaviour. Inspection of school anti-bullying policies per se provides little guide to the actual amount of direct bullying behaviour in schools.
This article reviews individual risk factors for bullying, especially gender, age, aggressiveness, low intelligence and achievement, hyperactivity-impulsiveness, low empathy, low self-esteem, depression, unpopularity, and physical and biological features. It also reports individual, family and socio-economic predictors and correlates of bullying discovered in a longitudinal survey of 411 London boys. The most important individual risk factors are low impulsiveness and low empathy, and they could be targeted in cognitive-behavioural skills training programmes.
Cyberbullying describes bullying using mobile phones and the internet. Most previous studies have focused on the prevalence of text message and email bullying.
Two surveys with pupils aged 11-16 years: (1) 92 pupils from 14 schools, supplemented by focus groups; (2) 533 pupils from 5 schools, to assess the generalisability of findings from the first study, and investigate relationships of cyberbullying to general internet use. Both studies differentiated cyberbullying inside and outside of school, and 7 media of cyberbullying.
Both studies found cyberbullying less frequent than traditional bullying, but appreciable, and reported more outside of school than inside. Phone call and text message bullying were most prevalent, with instant messaging bullying in the second study; their impact was perceived as comparable to traditional bullying. Mobile phone/video clip bullying, while rarer, was perceived to have more negative impact. Age and gender differences varied between the two studies. Study 1 found that most cyberbullying was done by one or a few students, usually from the same year group. It often just lasted about a week, but sometimes much longer. The second study found that being a cybervictim, but not a cyberbully, correlated with internet use; many cybervictims were traditional 'bully-victims'. Pupils recommended blocking/avoiding messages, and telling someone, as the best coping strategies; but many cybervictims had told nobody about it.
Cyberbullying is an important new kind of bullying, with some different characteristics from traditional bullying. Much happens outside school. Implications for research and practical action are discussed.
This study charts reports of nasty or threatening text and email messages received by students in academic years 7 and 8 (11–13 years of age) attending 13 secondary schools in the North of England between 2002 and 2006. Annual surveys were undertaken on behalf of the local education authority to monitor bullying. Results indicated that, over five years, the number of pupils receiving one or more nasty or threatening text messages or emails increased significantly, particularly among girls. However, receipt of frequent nasty or threatening text and email messages remained relatively stable. For boys, being a victim of direct‐physical bullying was associated with receiving nasty or threatening text and email messages; for girls it was being unpopular among peers. Boys received more hate‐related messages and girls were primarily the victims of name‐calling. Findings are discussed with respect to theoretical and policy developments, and recommendations for future research are offered.
This paper describes findings from recent research in the UK on one particular type of bullying, that linked to sexuality and the assumed sexual orientation of the victim - namely homophobic bullying. A survey involving 307 secondary schools throughout England and Wales showed that awareness of general bullying among school staff was almost universal. Most respondents also knew of homophobic verbal bullying, and over one in four were aware of homophobic physical bullying. Existing school policies on bullying and confidentiality rarely referred to lesbian and gay issues. Respondents identified barriers to tackling homophobic bullying, but most thought schools were appropriately placed to provide information on lesbian and gay issues. Study recommendations include: modernising national policy, supporting local teachers and policy-making in schools through training, new initiatives in citizenship education, and encouraging schools to build collaborative relationships with other local community agencies.
The article presents a descriptive review of the various patterns of association with school bullying that were revealed in a survey of over 26,000 children aged 11-16 in South Wales. The survey examined risks and protective factors for young people and included a question about being a bully and another about being bullied. Following regression analyses, significant associations were found between being a bully and various attitudinal and behavioural factors. There was a modest but ambiguous association with socio-economic status, and no independent association with minority ethnicity. There was a strong independent association between being a bully and being bullied. Some comment is made about the implications of the findings for policy, including the apparently positive effect (as revealed in the survey data) of schools being perceived by children as having clear rules on bullying.
This report considers aspects of the management of change as illustrated in 25 secondary schools which have progressed along different paths to implement an anti-bullying policy for their pupils. The extent of staff ownership is an important element in the eventual success of a scheme because it can promote a shared value system and ensure consistency in policy application. Implementation through teaching and learning is outlined. However, problems arising from the subjectivity of policy interpretation and contextual pressures are likely to affect outcomes and the importance of effective and continuing evaluation is outlined. The success of policy, as opposed to cultural, influences is considered through the use of questionnaire results and analysis of OfSTED reports. The paper concludes that policy creation does make some difference to school experience for pupils but ongoing revision is needed and that the fundamental culture of the school is more important than the policy in securing change.
Schools in England are legally required to have an anti‐bullying policy, but the little research so far suggests that they may lack coverage in important areas. An analysis of 142 school anti‐bullying policies, from 115 primary schools and 27 secondary schools in one county was undertaken. A 31‐item scoring scheme was devised to assess policy. Overall, schools had about 40% of the items in their policies. Most included improving school climate, a definition of bullying including reference to physical, verbal and relational forms, and a statement regarding contact with parents when bullying incidents occurred. But many schools did not mention other important aspects, and there was low coverage of responsibilities beyond those of teaching staff; following up of incidents; management and use of records; and specific preventative measures such as playground work and peer support. There was infrequent mention of homophobic bullying, and of cyberbullying. There was little difference between policies from primary and secondary schools. Findings are discussed in terms of national policy, and ways to support schools in maximising the potential of their policies for reducing bullying.
This survey aims to give a broad overview of the way peer support is currently used in English primary and secondary schools, and to highlight common patterns. Regional strata samples of schools were selected from an online database. Questionnaire data were obtained from 240 schools (130 primary and 110 secondary), of which 186 had peer support schemes. An adjusted estimation (which makes some correction for non‐response error) suggests that 62% of schools are using a structured peer support scheme. The survey results also give an indication of some common patterns and commonalities in the characteristics of existing schemes, as well as some differences between primary and secondary schools. The implementation of peer support is often multi‐dimensional, particularly in secondary schools after a scheme had been running for some time. The findings are discussed in relation to previous research and in terms of the nature of school‐based peer support programmes.
Surveys were carried out to assess the UK government’s anti‐bullying pack Don’t suffer in silence in 1996 (after the first edition) and 2002 (after the second edition), to investigate what schools are doing about bullying, and the effect of anti‐bullying policies becoming a legal requirement. Schools in England were approached, randomly but within the constraint of having a spread across geographical regions. In 1996 109 schools and in 2002 148 schools were asked about school policy, interventions, and bullying frequency. Most schools moved from having a bullying policy as part of a broader policy on behaviour and discipline, to having a separate anti‐bullying policy. More schools attempted to survey the extent of bullying and there were changes in the use of particular interventions. Most interventions were rated as moderately useful. Some variations in use and satisfaction between different school levels were found. The implications of anti‐bullying work at schools and its success are discussed.
Background. The relationship between teachers and pupils as a possible medium for bullying behaviour has not figured significantly in research into this area, despite possible consequences with regard to levels of aggressive behaviour generally within schools.
Aims. It was argued that bullying might not be restricted to peer-abuse, but that it may manifest across the peer divide, which for the purposes of this study has been referred to as ‘cross-peer abuse’. The study specifically examined the ‘cross-peer abuse’ of teachers by their pupils, and primarily aimed to establish incidence. Secondary considerations were also mooted, however, concerning gender differences, and length of service.
Samples. This study acquired data regarding the incidence of bullying against teachers by pupils (N=101) from the teaching staff of seven urban high schools.
Methods. Questionnaires were distributed to teaching staff. The questionnaire was explicit in its definition of bullying, in order to pre-empt subjective perceptions of the behaviour.
Results. The results indicate a probability that an incidence of cross-peer abuse — definable as bullying against teachers by their pupils — exists, both from teachers' self reported data, and that reported regarding their colleagues. Higher incidence for females was found not to be the case. Predictions that less experienced teachers may be more at risk were supported.
Conclusions. The results are sufficiently convincing to suggest that the problem is more pervasive than anticipated, and would warrant more substantive research. If, as has been implied by some research, bullying follows a cyclic pattern, then the role of the teacher within that cycle may be regarded as significant. As an additional stress factor for teachers, there may be significant implications for future legal redress, if bully-abuse by pupils could be established as an intrinsic part of such medical difficulties.
To test whether school, neighborhood, and family factors are independently associated with children's involvement in bullying, over and above their own behaviors that may increase their risk for becoming involved in bullying.
We examined bullying in the Environmental Risk (E-Risk) Longitudinal Twin Study, a nationally representative 1994-1995 birth cohort of 2,232 children. We used mother and teacher reports to identify children who experienced bullying between the ages of 5 and 7 years either as victims, bullies, or bully-victims. We collected information about school characteristics from the Department for Children, Schools and Families. We collected reports from mothers about children's neighborhood and home environments and reports from mothers and teachers about children's internalizing and externalizing problems when they were 5 years old.
Multinomial logistic regressions showed that over and above other socioenvironmental factors and children's behavior problems, school size was associated with an increased risk for being a victim of bullying, problems with neighbors was associated with an increased risk for being a bully-victim, and family factors (e.g., child maltreatment, domestic violence) were associated with all groups of children involved in bullying.
Socioenvironmental factors are associated with children's risk for becoming involved in bullying over and above their own behaviors. Intervention programs aimed at reducing bullying should extend their focus beyond schools to include local communities and families.
Evaluation of anti-bullying pol-icies in schools in Wales: Final report
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Epstein, D., Dowler, A., Mellor, D.J., & Madden, L. (2006). Evaluation of anti-bullying pol-icies in schools in Wales: Final report. Cardiff: Welsh Assembly Government.
House of Commons Education and Skills Committee: Bullying. Third report of session
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House of Commons. (2007a). House of Commons Education and Skills Committee: Bullying. Third report of session 2006–07.
Unacceptable pupil behaviour: A survey analysed for the National Union of Teachers
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Neill,, S.R.StJ. (2001). Unacceptable pupil behaviour: A survey analysed for the National Union of Teachers. Warwick: Institute of Education, University of Warwick.
House of Commons Education and Skills Committee: Bully-ing: Response to the Committee's third report of session
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Safe to learn (section: How to create and implement a whole-school anti-bullying policy) Retrieved from http:// www.teachernet.gov.uk/wholeschool/behaviour/tacklingbullying/safetolearn/executivesum- mary/policy/ Department for Education (DfE). (2010a) Tackling school bullying
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