Student, Staff, & Parent Perspectives on
Bullying:
Implications
for School-wide
Bullying
Prevention
Bullying Prevention
Catherine Bradshaw, Ph.D., M.Ed.
Associate Professor, Department of Mental Health
Associate Director, Johns Hopkins Center for the Prevention of Youth Violence (CDC)
Co-Director, Johns Hopkins Center for Prevention & Early Intervention (NIMH)
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
cbradsha@jhsph.edu
July 2010
Overview
 Summary of research on bullying
- Definitions, forms & effects
 Integrating PBIS with bullying prevention
- Things you can do to prevent bullying through
PBIS
 Resources on bullying
Defining Bullying
 Aggressive behavior that intends to cause
harm or distress
 Usually is repeated over time
 Occurs in a relationship where there is an
imbalance of power or strength
(HRSA, 2006; Limber & Alley, 2006; Olweus, 1993)
Why Focus on Bullying?
Growing National & Local Concerns
 High profile cases and specific incidents (Leary et al., 2003;
Verlinden et al., 2000)
 Increased awareness of negative effects
- Social-emotional & mental health (Nansel et al., 2001)
- Academic performance (Glew et al., 2005)
- Health (Fekkes et al., 2006)
 44 states have passed legislation related to bullying
(Limber & Alley, 2006; NY Times, 2010)
 Maryland General Assembly Bills Passed (2008)
 Safe School Reporting Act of 2005 - Sunset repeal (HB1209)
 Safe Schools Reporting Act - Teacher report (HB1158)
 Bullying and Cyber-Bullying - Develop model policies & programs (HB199)
Prevalence of Bullying
 Being bullied 1 or
more times in the last
month
– Elementary – 48%
– Middle – 47%
– High – 39%
 Frequent involvement
in bullying (2+ in last month)
– Elementary – 31%
– Middle – 31%
– High – 26%
 Ever bully someone
else
– Elementary – 24%
– Middle – 45%
– High – 54%
 Witnessing bullying
during the last month
– Elementary – 58%
– Middle – 74%
– High – 79%
N=25,119 (Students grades 4-12; December 2005). Also see: Bradshaw et al., 2007, 2008; Nansel et al., 2001;
O’Brennan, Bradshaw & Sawyer, 2009; Spriggs et al., 2007; Finkelhor et al., 2010.
Forms of Bullying
Direct
 Hitting, kicking, shoving, spitting, stealing
 Taunting, teasing, sexual comments
 Threatening, obscene gestures
Indirect
 Getting another person to bully someone for you
 Spreading rumors
 Deliberately excluding someone from a group or
activity
 Cyberbullying
Forms of Bullying
How were you bullied within the last month?
(N=25,119 students grades 4-12)
Cyberbullying
 Study of 3,767 children (grades 6-8)
 Prevalence
- 25% of girls and 11% of boys had been cyberbullied at least once
- 13% of girls and 9% of boys had cyberbullied someone else at least once
 Common methods of cyberbullying
-
Instant messaging: 67% (8th graders more)
Chat rooms: 25%
E-mail: 24%
Website: 24%
Text messaging: 15% (8th graders more)
 Who did the cyberbullying?
-
Student at school (53%)
Didn’t know (48%)
Friend (37%)
Sibling (13%)
 Appears to be different from other forms of bullying
(Kowalski et al., 2007; Spriggs et al., in press)
Types of Cyberbullying
• Flaming: online fights with angry language
• Harassment: repeatedly sending mean or insulting
messages
• Denigration: sending gossip, rumors
• Outing: sharing secrets or embarrassing information
• Trickery: tricking someone to sharing secrets
• Impersonation: pretending to be someone else, while
posting damaging material
• Exclusion: cruelly excluding someone
• Cyberstalking: intense harassment that includes
threats and creates fear
Sexting
• Sending or forwarding sexually explicit photos, videos
or messages from a mobile phone or other digital
device.
• Approximately 20% teens aged 12-18 have engaged in
sexting, by either sending or receiving sexually
suggestive text messages or email with nude or nearly
nude photos or videos of themselves or someone they
know.
• Students and staff must be alerted that they could be
breaking the law if they create, forward or even save
this type of message.
Pew Research Center (2009); Cox Communications (2009);
National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy (2008)
Gender and
Development Differences
 Males generally more likely than females to
be both perpetrators and victims
 Except cyberbullying, which may be more
common among girls
 Physical forms more common among boys
 Indirect (relational) about equal for males and
females
 Tends to peak in middle school
 Except cyberbullying, which appears to increase
through high school
(Nansel et al. JAMA, 2001)
Location of Bullying
Where were you bullied within the last month?
N=25,119 (Students grades 4-12; December 2005)
Immediate Effects of Bullying
When you were bullied, were you:
Note. This question was not asked of elementary children.
Effects of Bullying for
Victims & Perpetrators
Social-Emotional Problems
 V - Anxiety & Depression (Eagan & Perry, 1998)
 P - Aggressive behavior & attitudes supporting retaliation (Bradshaw et al., 2008)
 P - Suicidal ideation (Rigby, 1996; van der Wal et al., 2003)
Physical Illness (Fekkes et al., 2003)
 V - Headaches (3 times as likely)
 V - Problems sleeping (twice as likely)
 V - Abdominal pain (twice as likely)
Academic Performance & Engagement
 V&P - Absenteeism, avoidance of school, dropout (Smith et al., 2004; Rigby, 1996)
 V&P - Dislike school, feel less connected to others at school, & lower grades
(Bradshaw et al., 2008; Eisenberg et al., 2003)
 V&P - Perceive climate to be less favorable & feel unsafe at school (Bradshaw et al., 2008)
 V&P - Lower class participation - leads to lower achievement (Buhs et al., 2006)
(Note. V = Victim, P = Perpetrator)
Perceptions of Safety By Frequency of
Involvement in Bullying
Response to Bullying
When you were bullied, what did you do?
N=25,119 (Students grades 4-12; Waasdorp & Bradshaw, under review)
of Staff Respondents
Percent
Prevalence Rate
Reporting
% Staff
Staff Perceptions & Student Reports of the
Prevalence of Frequent Bullying
HS Student Report
(22.7%)
MS Student Report
(32.7%)
ES Student Report
(33.7%)
Percent of Students Perceived By Staff to Be Frequently Bullied
(Bradshaw et al., 2007, SPR)
Student vs. Staff Perceptions
Students (N=15,185)
Staff (N=1,547)
 Seen adults at school watching  Said they would intervene
bullying and doing nothing
if they saw bullying
– Middle – 43%
– 97%
– High – 54%
 Believe adults at their school
 Believe have effective
are NOT doing enough to stop
strategies for handling
or prevent bullying
bullying
– Middle – 58%
– 87%
– High – 66%
 Believe that teachers who try to  Believe they made things
stop bullying only make it
worse when they
worse
intervened
– Middle – 61%
– 7%
– High – 59%
(% “agree” to “strongly agree”)
(Bradshaw et al., 2007, SPR)
Staff Victimization
 22% of (all) staff reported having been bullied
at their school (as adults)
 8.8% by another staff
 7.7% by parent
 6.3% by student
 Rates highest for middle school staff
 34% MS, 21% HS, 17% ES
 53% reported having been bullied as a child
(Bradshaw et al., 2007, SPR)
Staff Experiences with Bullying
 Staff Efficacy: Staff who had effective strategies
 Thought bullying was less of a problem
 Thought their school was doing “enough” to prevent
bullying
 Were more likely to intervene
 Were less likely to make the situation worse
 Felt safer at school
 Felt like they belonged at school
(Bradshaw et al., 2007, SPR)
Parent Perceptions of Bullying
• My child has witnessed
bullying during the last month
– Elementary – 27.0%
– Middle – 48.1%
– High – 43.1%
• Believe students who misbehave
at school get away with it
– Elementary – 20.2%
– Middle – 46.2%
– High – 52.3%
• Bullying is a problem at my
child’s school
– Elementary – 12.6%
– Middle – 38.7%
– High – 40.6%
• Believe adults at their child’s
school are NOT doing enough to
stop or prevent bullying
– Elementary – 17.4%
– Middle – 41.4%
– High – 40.6%
(N=1,495 parents in December 2008; Waasdorp & Bradshaw, under review)
Parent Perceptions of Bullying
% Parents
When your child was bullied, what did you do?
(N=773 parents of victimized children, Waasdorp & Bradshaw, under review)
More on Parent Perceptions
• Inverse association between parents’ perception of the
school and response to bullying
– Parents are less likely to talk to their child if they perceive a more
positive school climate.
– Parents are less likely to contact the school if they perceive a more
positive school climate
• Suggests that either
– 1) parents are taking a more ‘hands-off’ approach to their child’s victimization if they
perceive the school climate positively;
– 2) schools need to actively seek out/encourage parents to discuss bullying with their
children as well as feel comfortable contacting the school
• When the child was indirectly victimized (rumors,
exclusion) parents were less likely to contact the school as
compared to when their child was overtly victimized.
(N=773 parents of victimized children, Waasdorp & Bradshaw, under review)
Is Bullying on the Increase?
• Some recent data suggest a slight decrease in
bullying (e.g., Finkelhor et al., 2010; Spriggs et al., 2007)
• However, cyberbullying may be on the increase
– May be due to greater access to technology (phones,
Internet)
– Issues related to ‘sexting’ also appear to be on the
increase
Frequent Victim
N/S: p > .05
Witnessed Bullying (past month)*
p < .001, 2 = .062
Cyber-Bullied (in Last Month)*
p < .01, Partial 2 = .048
Perceive Bullies as Popular*
p < .001, 2 = .050
Challenges in Bullying
Prevention
 Cultural acceptance
 “Rite of passage”
 Normative - continues into adulthood and workplace
 Ambiguity in the definition and labeling of
“bullying”
 Adult vs. youth perceptions
 Victim vs. perpetrator perceptions
 Television and media portrayal
 Combating stereotypes
What the Research Says about
Classroom Management
• Poorly Managed Classrooms
– increases opportunity for bullying
– place all students at increased risk for behavior problems
– signals to students that the class is out of control
– are rated by students as having poorer climate & unsafe
– limit opportunities for learning
– use more reactive / punitive rather than proactive /
positive management strategies
(Aber et al., 1998; Ialong et al., 1999; Koth, Bradshaw & Leaf, 2008; Mitchell, Bradshaw & Leaf, in press)
Integrating Programs & Services: A Multi-Component
Whole-School Approach to Prevention
Common “Misdirections” or
Cautions in Bullying Prevention
and Intervention
•
•
•
•
Zero tolerance (student exclusion)
Conflict Resolution/Peer Mediation
Group treatment for children who bully
Simple, short-term solutions
Ten Elements of Best
Practice in Bullying
Prevention & Intervention:
With A PBIS twist
(HRSA, Stop Bullying Now & Olweus, 1993; Olweus et al., 2007; Ross, Horner & Stiller, 2007)
http://www.pbis.org
#1: Focus on the social
environment of the school
• Requires a change in the school climate and in
norms for behavior.
• A comprehensive, school-wide effort involving
the entire school community is needed.
• PBIS is an excellent framework to launch a
bullying prevention effort.
#2: Collect and review local
data to determine need related
to bullying, climate & violence
• Review SWIS/ODR data
• Administer an anonymous survey to students
– Benefits of a survey:
• Findings may help to motivate staff, parents to address
issue
• Findings will help to target specific interventions
• Will provide important baseline data from which to
measure improvement
#3: Garner staff and parent
support for prevention
• Early and enthusiastic support from the
principal is critical.
• Commitment from a majority (80%) of
classroom teachers is essential.
– Teachers who are committed to bullying
prevention are more likely to fully implement
programs
#4: Form a group to
coordinate and integrate the
school’s prevention activities
• Should be representative of the school community
(or organization):
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
administrator
teacher from each grade
counselor
non-teaching staff (e.g. bus driver)
school-based health professional
parent
community member
• PBIS team / SIT / subcommittee?
#5: Train all staff how to
intervene effectively
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Administrators
All Teachers
Health & mental health professionals
Support Staff
Custodians
Bus Drivers
Lunchroom Supervisors
Playground aides
#6: Establish and enforce
school rules and policies
related to bullying
• Many schools do not have explicit rules against bullying.
• Rules should guide the behavior of children who bully
AND children who witness bullying.
• Monitor and acknowledge students for engaging in
appropriate behavior both inside and outside the
classroom.
• Provide specific instruction and pre-correction to prevent
bullying behavior from being rewarded by victims or
bystanders.
• Consistently use positive and negative consequences
Example of Linking Bullying
Prevention with PBIS
School Rules
• Respect means…
– We will not bully others.
– We will try to help students who are bullied.
– We will include students who are easily left out.
– When we know somebody is being bullied, we
will tell an adult at school and an adult at home.
#7: Increase adult
supervision in “hot spots”
where bullying occurs
• Focus on “hot spots” for bulling that are
identified by students and through SWIS.
• All adults in a school community should be
vigilant to all forms of bullying.
#8: Intervene consistently and
appropriately in bullying
situations
• Are all adults prepared to intervene appropriately
on-the-spot, whenever they observe bullying?
• Do we have a plan for follow-up interventions with
children who bully, victims of bullying, parents?
• Correct the problem behaviors using a consistently
administered continuum of consequences.
#9: Focus some class time on
bullying prevention
• Set aside a small amount of time each week
(class meetings).
• Discuss bullying and peer relations.
• Use videos, story books, role-playing, artistic
expression.
• Integrate bullying prevention throughout the
curriculum.
• Include bullying prevention in PBIS lesson
plans and review of behavioral matrix.
#10: Sustain these efforts
over time
• Bullying prevention should have no “end date.”
• 3-5 years!!
Available at
WWW.PBIS.org
Stop Signals
Multi-tiered Bullying
Prevention
School-level








Form a Bullying Prevention Coordinating Committee
Distribute an anonymous student survey
Provide training for committee members and staff
Develop a coordinated system of supervision
Adopt school-wide rules against bullying
Develop appropriate consequences for students' behavior
Hold staff discussion groups related to the program
Involve parents
Olweus Bullying Prevention Program
http://www.clemson.edu/olweus
Multi-tiered Bullying
Prevention (cont.)
Classroom-level
 Reinforce school-wide rules against bullying
 Hold regular classroom meetings with students to
increase knowledge & empathy
 Informational meetings with parents
Individual-level
 Interventions with children who bully
 Interventions with children who are bullied
 Discussions with parents of involved students
http://www.clemson.edu/olweus
Suggested Readings
 Bullying at school: What we know and what we can do. Olweus,
D. (1993). NY: Blackwell.
 Olweus Bullying Prevention Program: School-wide Guide.
Olweus, Limber et al. (2007). Hazelden.
 Bullying prevention: Creating a positive school climate and
developing social competence. Orpinas, P. & Horne, A. (2005).
American Psychological Association.
 Bullying in American schools. Espelage, D. & Swearer, S. (2004).
Lawrence Erlbaum.
 Bullying in schools: How successful can interventions be? (2004).
Smith, P., Pepler, D., & Rigby, K. Cambridge.
On-Line Resources
 Blueprints for violence prevention
 http://www.colorado.edu/cspv/blueprints/index.html
 Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Admin.
(SAMHSA)
 http://nrepp.samhsa.gov/
 Stop Bullying Now!
 http://www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/index.asp
 National Association of School Psychologists (NASP)
 Success in school online resource kit
 http://www.naspcenter.org/resourcekit/index.html
 Collaborative for Academic, Social, & Emotional
Learning (CASEL)
 http://www.casel.org
 National Center on PBIS
 http://www.PBIS.org
Acknowledgements
 Dr. Rhonda Gill & Mrs. Lucia Martin, MD Bullying
Prevention Initiative
 Anne Sawyer, Lindsey O’Brennan, Tracy Waasdorp,
& Katrina Debnam at JHU
 Joann Morris, National Education Association
 Centers for Disease Control & Prevention
 Hamilton Fish Institute
 HRSA and the Stop Bullying Now! National
Campaign
Catherine Bradshaw
Email: cbradsha@jhsph.edu