Bullying: A Perspective from Educational Psychology

1
Bullying A Perspective from Educational
Psychology

• Dr Victoria Lewis
• Senior Practitioner Educational Psychologist
• Academic and Professional Tutor
• School of Psychology
• University of Nottingham

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AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

• To consider definitions of bullying and the
  prevalence of bullying in schools
• To consider bullying as a social phenomenon
• To consider potential implications of bullying in
  schools
• To consider the role of educational psychologists
  in facilitating anti-bullying interventions in
  schools

3
ACTIVITY 1 QUESTIONS ABOUT BULLYING

• What is bullying, and what distinguishes it from
  other problem behaviours in schools (for example,
  aggressive behaviour displayed between peers)?
• What is the prevalence of bullying behaviour in
  schools?
• What are the most common forms of bullying
  experienced by children in schools?
• Why is bullying sometimes classed as a social
  phenomenon?
• What are some of the effects of bullying?
• What can psychology offer to the study of
  bullying / anti-bullying strategies in schools?

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WHAT IS BULLYING?

• Definitions
• Bullying is a subtype of aggressive behaviour
  in which the perpetrator exerts power over a
  weaker victim through various means including
  physical size or strength, age or psychological
  advantage, and which is repeated over time
• Vaillancourt, Hymel McDougall (2003)
• Systematic abuse of power which repeatedly and
  deliberately (Smith Sharp 1994) harms others
  (Hazler 1996)

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• Core Elements
• Imbalance of Power
• Intentional
• Repeated over Time
• Orpinas Horne (2006)

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• What Bullying Isnt
• An odd fight or quarrel between children of
  approximately equal strength is not classed as
  bullying
• Sharp Smith (1994)

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• Types of Bullying
• Direct-Physical kicking, hitting, pushing,
  taking belongings
• Direct-Verbal name-calling, taunting, mocking,
  making threats
• Indirect-Relational excluding people from
  groups, deliberately ignoring, gossiping,
  spreading rumours

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THE PREVALENCE OF BULLYING IN SCHOOLS

• UK Study of 230 pupils (6 secondary schools, 6
  primary schools)
• 51 year 5 pupils thought bullying was a big
  problem or quite a big problem in their school
• 51 reported they had been bullied that term
• 28 year 8 pupils thought bullying was a big
  problem or quite a big problem in their school
• Oliver Candappe (2002)

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• Study of 6000 pupils in Sheffield schools (24
  schools)
• 27 primary school pupils and 20 secondary
  school pupils said they had been bullied that
  term
• Whitney Smith (1993)

10

• 3 media based surveys of 7,066 boys and girls
  aged 13-19
• Up to 12-13 had experienced severe bullying
  (time base unspecified)
• The figure rose to 25 for children from minority
  ethnic groups
• Another 42-47 felt they had been less severely
  bullied
• About half the pupils were bullied by a group
• Katz, Buchanan Bream (2001)

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• US study of 15 000 students
• 17 reported having been bullied sometimes or
  more often during the school year
• 19 said they had bullied others sometimes or
  more often
• 6 reported both bullying others and being a
  victim of bullying
• Nansel (2001)

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COMMON FORMS OF BULLYING

• Name-calling was the most prevalent
• Social isolation was also common
• Physical aggression was less common
• Similar levels of bullying reported by boys and
  girls
• There was a higher incidence among black and
  asian students (33) compared with white (26)
  and other ethnic groups (30)
• Oliver Candappe (2002)

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• Verbal and relational forms of bullying occur
  more often than physical bullying (Rivers
  Soutter 1996)
• Verbal bullying was twice as common as physical
  bullying (Craig Pepler 1997)
• Relational bullying was more common among girls
  (Crick Nelson 2002)

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• Cyber Bullying
• Bullying using electronic devices such as mobile
  phones and computers
• 92 students aged 11-16 from 14 London schools
  completed a survey on bullying. 22 had
  experienced cyber bullying at least once. 6.6
  had experienced being bullied in this way in the
  previous two months
• 33 of the sample who had experienced cyber
  bullying had told no one about it
• Anti-Bullying Alliance (2005) Videos)

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• Psychological Theories of Bullying
• Socio-Cognitive Deficits
• Social Learning Theory
• Attachment Theory
• Social Dominance Theory
• Ecological Systems Theory
• Frederickson (2008)

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BULLYING AS A SOCIAL PHENOMENA

• Bullying frequently occurs in the presence of
  peers but the actions of those peers more often
  encourage the bullying than stop it (Craig
  Pepler 1997)
• An audience to bullying is consistent and may
  provide the person doing the bullying with
  positive reinforcement (Olweus 1991)
• The increases in arousal levels when watching
  bullying may encourage children who would
  normally not act aggressively, to become involved
  (Olweus 1991)

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• Peer Involvement
• Peers were involved in 85 of playground bullying
• 54 of peers time was spent reinforcing bullying
  by passively watching
• 21 of peers time was spent actively supporting
  bullies
• 25 of peers time was spent intervening on
  behalf of victims and 75 of these peer
  interventions were successful in stopping
  bullying
• OConnell et al (1990)

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• Bystanders
• The invisible engine in the cycle of bullying
• Twemlow (2001)
• A person who does not actively become involved in
  a situation where someone else requires help
  (Clarkson 1996)
• As the number of bystanders increases the
  likelihood that someone will intervene to stop
  the situation decreases. This is known as the
  diffusion of responsibility (Latane Darley
  1970)

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• Bystander Effect
• May be a diffusion of responsibility Leaving it
  to others to sort out?
• They may find it difficult to support in reality
  Lack of effective strategies?
• May be concerned about their own safety and
  preservation They may fear being bullied
  themselves?
• They may not understand bullying or have the
  skills to intervene effectively
• Craig Peplers (1997)

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• Roles in Bullying
• Bully
• Assistant joins in and assists the person doing
  the bullying
• Reinforcer does not actively attack the victim
  but provides positive feed back to the person
  bullying
• Defender shows anti-bullying behaviour
  comforting the victim taking sides with them and
  trying to stop the bullying
• Outsider stays away not taking sides with
  anyone - allows bullying to continue by silent
  approval
• Victim
• Salmivalli (1996 1999)

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• Typical Characteristics of those who Bully
• Strong need to dominate
• Impulsive and easily angered
• Defiant and aggressive towards other adults
• Shows little empathy
• Physically stronger (if male)
• Olweus 1990
• Not low self-esteem those doing the bullying
  may be among the most popular or socially
  connected children (Olweus 1991)
• Not unpopular (Rodkin 2000)

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QUESTIONING THE NOTION OF A BULLY

• Not a personality trait but a response to a set
  of circumstances (Rivers Soutter 1996)
• 1 in 5 children who bully may have been bullied
  themselves
• Setting events are a very important determinant
  Soutter McKenzie (2000)

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• Typical Characteristics of those Victimised
• Cautious, sensitive, quiet, withdrawn, shy
• Depressed
• Often do not have single good friend
• Physically weaker (if male)
• Olweus 1990
• The pupil may have a particular characteristic
  that makes them stand out
• They may have special educational needs (OMoore
  Hilley 1989)
• Be of a minority community (Sharp Smith 1994)
• May not fit gender stereotypes (Shakeshaft et al
  1995)

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EFFECTS OF BULLYING

• Bullying can cause emotional and physical harm
• Affect learning and attendance
• Young people who commit physical bullying at an
  early age are more likely to become involved in
  violent crime at a later age

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WHAT CAN BE DONE ABOUT BULLYING IN SCHOOLS?

• Prevention
• Reaction
• Support

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• Anti-Bullying Interventions
• Individual
• Group
• Organisational
• Sharp (1999)
• Government Initiatives
• SEAL (Social and Emotional aspects of Learning
  2007)
• Dont Suffer in Silence (2003)

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• Pupils Preferred Responses to Bullying
• Friendships
• Avoidance strategies
• Stand up for themselves
• Oliver Candappe (2002)

28

• Anti-Bullying Interventions with Groups or
  Individuals
• Remedy externalising problems in those who have
  shown bullying behaviour or on the internalising
  problems displayed by victims
• For example, social skills training /
  assertiveness training / anger management
  programmes

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• Individual Pupil Responses to Bullying
• Aggressive escalates the problem
• Passive unconstructive ignores the behaviour
  but meets the bullys demands
• Passive constructive exiting quickly from a
  bullying situation and seeking support from peers
  (may disable a victim)
• Assertive a pupil calmly refuses to comply with
  demands and fails to reinforce bullying behaviour
  (most successful)
• Sharp Cowie (1994)

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• Social Skills Training
• Body language and eye contact
• Assertive statements
• Resisting manipulations and threats
• Responses to name calling
• Enlisting support
• Sharp et al (1994)

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BREAKING THE SILENCE

• Children may fail to inform teachers they are
  experiencing bullying (Craig et al 2000). This
  is especially likely where pupils are older
  (Naylor et al 2001)
• Telling teachers / parents was felt to be risky.
  Many pupils felt it would be easy to talk to a
  friend (68 Y5 71 Y8) (Oliver Candappe (2002)
• Half of children who admitted to having been
  bullied in a private and anonymous questionnaire,
  said they had not told anyone about it, at home
  or at school (Whitney Smith 1993)
• Over a two year period, those who had stopped
  being victims had talked to someone about it
  (67) more often than those who had stayed
  victims (41) Smith and others (2004)

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PEER SUPPORT

• Befriending
• Circle of Friends
• Circle Time
• Conflict resolution
• Peer Tutoring
• Peer Mentoring
• Peer Counselling
• Peer Mediation
• Co-operative Teaching

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• Peer Mentoring
• Involving students directly in solving bullying
  problems
• Peer mentors work with children who may be
  vulnerable (for example, in the dining hall) act
  as befrienders or contact points
• Co-operative Teaching Arrangements
• 16 classes in 2 primary schools
• Small reduction in reported bullying
• Naylor Cowie (1994)

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PROBLEM SOLVING APPROACHES

• No Blame/ Support Group Approach (Young 1998)
• Method of Shared Concern (Pikas 2002 Rigby 2005)

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• No Blame Approach
• Interview with bullied pupil
• Arrange a meeting for all pupils who are involved
• Explain the problem
• Share responsibility
• Identify solutions
• Let pupils take action themselves
• Review
• Maines Robinson (1992)

36

• Pikas Method of Shared Concern
• Stage 1 meeting with group members
• Stage 2 Meeting with person who has been
  bullied
• Stage 3 Further meetings with group members
• Stage 4 Further meetings with all the group
  members
• Pikas (1987)

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WHOLE SCHOOL APPROACHES

• Sheffield Anti-Bullying Initiative
• A whole-school approach
• 23 schools (16 primaries, 7 secondaries)
• Led to an increase in the number of pupils saying
  they hadn't been bullied most evident in
  primary schools
• Smith (1999)

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• Olweus (1991) Bullying Prevention Programme
• Creating a school, and ideally a home environment
  characterised by
• Warmth, positive interest and involvement from
  adults
• Firm limits on unacceptable behaviour
• Consistent application of non-punitive,
  non-physical sanctions for unacceptable behaviour
• Adults who act as authorities and role-models
• Levels of Intervention
• School
• Classroom
• Individual
• Substantial reductions in reported bullying in
  Norway typically 30-50

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• Programme Evaluations
• Some interventions showed decreased bullying
• Results were not always consistent
• Social skills groups reduced bullying in 1 in 4
• Mentoring reduced bullying in 1 of 1 case
• Whole school approaches decreased bullying in 7
  of 10 cases
• Vreeman Carrol (2007)

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CONCLUSIONS

• Bullying is highly prevalent in schools
• Intervention rates may sometimes be low
• There may be insufficient acknowledgement of
  indirect forms of bullying
• Children and young people may be reluctant to
  report bullying
• Schools need to target the role of bystanders in
  the intervention
• Parents and carers can help rehearse effective
  strategies with children
• Reid et al (2004)

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IMPLICATIONS FOR EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGISTS

• Involvement in training and project work
• Research into anti-bullying interventions
• Apply Psychology to understand the type of
  bullying and develop systematised interventions
  based on these understandings
• Encourage anti-bullying intervention to take
  place at different levels, involving the whole
  school community (including parents and carers,
  pupils themselves and midday supervisors)

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REFERENCES

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