Bullying: Understanding Attitudes toward Bullying and Perceptions of School Social Climate (continued)

For Individuals:

• Take all reports of bullying seriously and intervene quickly.
• Model pro-social (e.g., cooperation, perspective-taking, and empathy) behaviors for bullies and bully-victims.
• Considering that bullying can lead to social, emotional, and psychological problems (9), individualized counseling services for students involved in bullying can be beneficial. Specifically, students can be provided with assertiveness training, social-skills interventions, or referrals for community counseling services to address more significant concerns such as internalizing problems such as depression and anxiety (10).

For Classrooms:

• Educate students about bullying and the effects of bullying and discuss ways that students can appropriately handle bullying situations whether they are the victim or a bystander (i.e., they witness a bullying incident) to demonstrate a climate that does not tolerate bullying (10, 11).
• Create a warm and inclusive classroom climate that demonstrates a commitment to anti-bullying policies. This has been shown to reduce pro-bullying attitudes among peers (10). Research has also demonstrated that positive interactions between students and teachers have been found to decrease involvement in bullying; whereas negative interactions have been shown to actually increase the likelihood for involvement in bullying behaviors (12).
• Create an open-door policy for all students and clearly identify adults to whom bullying incidents should be reported and follow-up with students after a bullying incident has been reported so that students know that action has been taken.
• Develop a student code of conduct (or rules against bullying) and clearly discuss this with students at the classroom and school levels (11). Use incentives such as classroom competitions to encourage adherence to the code of conduct (e.g., teachers and staff can nominate students who demonstrate behavior in accordance with the code of conduct).

For Schools:

• Conduct a school-wide assessment to gather information from students about their perception of school social climate (e.g., is bullying tolerated, are teachers and staff supportive of students) as well as their knowledge of the bullying policy. Make a commitment to conduct these assessments annually, preferably in the early spring after peer groups have solidified.
• Promote facts, not myths, about bullying by providing information to students and staff about bullying and the effects of bullying.
• Involve parents and guardians in the intervention process to help create a common attitude amongst all adults in the students’ lives (10, 11). For example, hold an informational PTA meeting, invite them to participate in school (or classroom) presentations about bullying, or invite them to act as hall monitors.

References

1. Orpinas, P., & Horne, A. M. (2006). Bullying prevention: Creating a positive school climate and developing social competence. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
2. National Center for Education Statistics, & Bureau of Justice Statistics. (2005). Indicators of school crime and safety: 2005 (NCES 2006-001, NCJ 210697). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of Justice.
3. Doll, B., Song, S. Y., & Siemers, E. (2004). Classroom ecologies that support or discourage bullying. In D. L. Espelage & S. M. Swearer (Eds.), Bullying in American schools: A social-ecological perspective on prevention and intervention (pp. 161-184). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
4. McConville, D. W., & Cornell, D. G. (2003). Aggressive attitudes predict aggressive behavior in middle school students. Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders, 11(3), 179-187.
5. Rigby, K. (2005). Why do some children bully at school? The contributions of negative attitudes towards victims and the perceived expectations of friends, parents, and teachers. School Psychology International, 26(2), 147-161.
6. Miller, C. K. (2006). Student and teacher perceptions of school social climate and attitudes toward bullying: Implications for intervention. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Nebraska, Lincoln.
7. Swearer, S. M., Peugh, J., Espelage, D. L., Siebecker, A. B., Kingsbury, W. L., & Bevins, K. S. (2006). A social-ecological model for bullying prevention and intervention in early adolescence: An exploratory examination. In S. R. Jimerson & M. J. Furlong (Eds.), The handbook of school violence and school safety: From research to practice. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
8. Unnever, J. D., & Cornell, D. G. (2003). The culture of bullying in middle school. Journal of School Violence, 2(2), 5-27.
9. Nansel, T. R., Overpeck, M., Pilla, R. S., Ruan, W. J., Simons-Morton, B., & Scheidt, P. (2001). Bullying behaviors among US youth: Prevalence and association with psychological adjustment. Journal of the American Medical Association, 285(16), 2094-2132.
10. Pepler, D., Smith, P. K., & Rigby, K. (2004). Looking back and looking forward: Implications for making interventions work effectively. In P. K. Smith  D. Pepler, & K. Rigby (Eds.), Bullying in schools: How successful can interventions be? (pp. 307-324). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.
11. Olweus, D. (1993). Bullying at school: What we know and what we can do. Cambridge, MA: Blackwell Publishers.
12. Hanish, L. D., Kochenderfer-Ladd, B., Fabes, R. A., Martin, C. L., & Denning, D. (2004). Bullying among young children: The influence of peers and teachers. In D. L. Espelage & S. M. Swearer (Eds.), Bullying in American schools: A social-ecological perspective on prevention and intervention (pp. 141-159). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

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