COURSE 2.7 - not clear whether repetition is a required component -> a single traumatic incident
can raise the expectations & fear of continued abuse
FROM INFANCY TO OLD AGE
- takes place among young children as well as adults in a variety of settings (research
#1 BULLYING focuses on children & youths in schools)
- 20-25% of youths are directly involved in bullying as perpetrators, victims, or both
Learning Goals: What is bullying? Why does it happen? How to prevent it? - 4-9% of youths frequently engage in bullying behaviours
Bullying & Suicide? - 9-25% of school-age children are bullied
#risk factors
Can bullying be stopped/prevented? Stability of Bullying & Victimization
#measures - less than 10% are likely to be chronic bullies throughout childhood – but other studies
#interventions suggest that many childhood bullies “age out” of their tendency to physically intimidate
Different social rules in bullying others by adolescence -> not known whether physical aggression is replaced by other
forms of bullying
- longitudinal research examining the stability of victims of bullying across childhood &
ARTICLE 1 adolescence doesn’t exist – one study showed that transitioning from early to middle
The Power of Bullies & the Plight of Victims adolescence was accompanied by a decline in experiences of victimization
by Juvonen & Graham => research on bullying perpetration & victimization indicates more instability than
stability
- studies to understand both the motives underlying bullying & its effects on victims rely - host of changing factors (school transitions etc) contribute to this
on two complementary research orientations: 1) American research tradition focusing - but doesn’t mean that bullying has no lasting effects (some of the symptoms &
on childhood aggression & the Scandinavian research tradition illuminating the effects increased sensitivity to maltreatment persist)
of aggressive behaviour on other children
- American studies provide insights into the social cognitions & relationships of bullies FORMS & FUNCTIONS OF BULLYING BEHAVIOURS
compared w/ their well-adjusted peers Direct & Indirect Forms of Bullying
- Scandinavian research highlights the plight of victims as well as the group dynamics - Indirect
that encourage & maintain bullying behaviours e.g.: spreading of rumours, backstabbing, & exclusion from the group
- current study tries to build a bridge between both traditions = involve relational manipulation
Definition & Prevalence of Bullying - designed to damage the targets’ social reputation or deflate their social
- involves targeted intimidation/humiliation status while concealing the identity of the perpetrator = bully is able to use the
= a physically stronger/socially prominent person (ab)uses her/his power to threaten, peer group as a vehicle for the attack
demean, or belittle another – to make the victim feel powerless, the bully can resort - Direct
multiple aggressive behaviours = involve intimidating, humiliating, or belittling someone in front of an
- but bullying entails more than aggression = dynamic interaction between the audience
perpetrator & the victim – power imbalance distinguishes bullying from conflict - physical aggression is associated w/ males; relational forms of aggression are
considered to be the domain of females
1
,- @ every age group & across races, social classes, cultures & national boundaries – -> can maintain their positive self-views by blaming & addressing
boys are more likely to engage in physical forms of bullying against others instead of accepting responsibility
- relational forms of inflicting harm on others were tactics more commonly employed - receive more positive social feedback from their peers
by girls – because girls were thought to value relationships more; behaviours that - bystanders also reinforce bullies
harmed those relationships are an especially effective form of aggression
PLIGHT OF VICTIMS
- recent studies suggest that there are no strong differences between the two genders
in the use of relational aggression - victims of bullying display numerous adjustment problems (depressed mood, anxiety,
- only reliable difference: physical aggression decreases w/ age psychosomatic problems, academic difficulties)
- robust gender differences are documented only for physical aggression - not clear whether bullying experiences causes these problems or whether signs of
maladjustment make victims easy targets
Bullying & Social Dominance
- why do youths resort to any form of aggression to bully their peers? Victim Subtypes
- indirect forms of aggression demand sophisticated social skills (can’t be due to a lack - Submissive Victims
of social skills) – they don’t lack social skills or the ability to regulate emotions - those who are anxious, insecure, & sensitive
- evidence suggesting that bullies are cold & calculating, often lacking empathy – -> internalizing problems & lack of confidence in social interactions increase
resorting to coercive strategies to dominate & control the behaviour of peers risk of being bullied
- strive to be dominant & also have a high social status - Bully-Victims/Aggressive Victims
-> aggression is a way to establish a dominant position within a group = proactive victims who resort to aggression, much like bullies
-> bullying perpetration can be considered a strategic behaviour that enables - aggression = ineffectual; their failed attempts to retaliate against more-
youths to gain & maintain a dominant position powerful bullies didn’t stop the bullying
- status enhancement is particularly important during early adolescence – bullying - make easy targets whose emotional response is rewarding for bullies
behaviours increases - have emotion regulation & attention problems akin to ADD/ADHD
- dominance hierarchy allows youths to navigate the social scene more safely as they
learn how to align themselves & establish their position in hierarchy Individual & Social Risk Factors
=> bullying behaviours aren’t only proactive or instrumental forms of aggression, but - several non-behavioural characteristics increase the risk of being bullied
also appear to be guided by social dominance motives that peak @ times of social - obesity
reorganization associated w/ transitions - off-time pubertal maturation
- disabilities
Inflated Self-Views & Social-Cognitive Biases of Bullies - LBGT
- many aggressive youths have high & even inflated perceptions of themselves => any condition/characteristic that makes youths stand out from their peers
- not only in terms of their peer status but also in terms of academic & athletic domains - social misfit (= term to describe individuals whose social behaviour deviates from
- rate themselves lower on depression, social anxiety, & loneliness group norms)
- explanations for their positive self-views - marginal social status increases the risk of prolonged/more severe peer victimization
- information-processing boas (are unlikely to be supported or defended by any group members)
- attributional bias - interpersonal risk factors
2
, - emotional/behavioural problems may elicit bullying especially when targets explained partly by differences in reactivity to stress
are lower in status -> increased activity in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex
- lack of friends
BULLYING IN CONTEXT: CYBERSPACE & SCHOOLS
- emotional support play a critical role in how victims are affected by being bullied
Cyberbullying
= electronically mediated bullying involves texting via cell phone, emailing, or instant
messaging, or posting messages on social networks & chat rooms
- can be either direct or indirect
- unique factors of cyberbullying
Cyclical Processes & Consequences of Peer Victimization - speed & spread -> degrading messages can quickly reach not only the target
- factors that place youths @ risk of victimization can also be considered consequences but also a vast number of other individuals
of peer victimization - anonym – identity of perpetrator can be easily concealed
-> relationship between peer victimization & internalizing problems are reciprocal – - cyberspace may provide particular fertile grounds for bullying
reflecting cyclical processes over time School Context
- victims of bullying are likely to manifest psychosocial difficulties later in life (e.g.: - bullying is largely studied as school-based phenomenon
elevated rates of psychiatric disorders) - most consistent school context correlate = school climate (= the degree that students
- victims of bullying are emotionally distressed both concurrently & over time don’t feel accepted, supported, respected, & treated fairly in their schools)
- even single incidents of bullying are related to increases in daily levels of anxiety - Racial/Ethnic Diversity
Mediating Mechanisms Underlying Psychosocial Problems - study documented that greater ethnic diversity at both the classroom and
- useful to consider the targets’ causal perceptions (attributions) of why they’re school levels was related to a lower sense of vulnerability among Latino and
mistreated African American students, including less self-reported victimization. The
- more likely to endorse attributions for bullying that were internal & uncontrollable by authors argued that power relations may be more balanced in ethnically
them diverse schools with multiple ethnic groups and that shared power, in turn,
- characterological self-blame- partly accounted for the concurrent associations reduces incidents of bullying.
between the victim’s reputation & level of emotional distress - Organization of Instruction
- use of academic tracking has been associated w/ more disruptive behaviour
Mechanisms Underlying School Difficulties & Health Problems on part of the students who are grouped for instruction in low-ability tracks
- victims of bullying are likely to be absent from school & to receive low grades - students who are exposed to a less demanding curriculum & to more deviant
-> can be partly accounted for by emotional stress & somatic complaints peers are @ greater risk of antisocial behaviour
- physiological pathway - socially vulnerable adolescents who reside within small collectives may have
-> hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis few opportunities to redefine their social identities & instead become
-> victims had altered cortisol levels increasingly stigmatized
-> association between peer victimization & poor physical health can be - Deviation from Classroom Norms
- the extent to which victims deviate from the norms of their classroom
3
, - victims might especially feel bad when they differ from most other students victims
- a positive classroom norm (prosocial conduct, high social order) resulted in - designed to address the dysfunctional thoughts & behaviours of the children who
worse outcomes for victims who deviated from those norms aggress against others
- victims who are members of the majority ethnic group are more likely to - Five-Step Social-Cognitive Model
endorse self-blaming attributions & self-blame which predicts adjustment - information processing difficulties of bullies begin when they inaccurately
probs interpret social cues associated with ambiguous peer provocation & continue
as they formulate goal, access from memory a repertoire of possible
INTERVENTIONS TO PREVENT & REDUCE BULLYING IN SCHOOL
behavioural responses & finally choose a response
Schoolwide Interventions - Fast Track
- targets all students, their parents, & adults within the school - one of the most extensive aggression interventions that includes info-
- operates under the assumption that bullying is a systemic social problem & that processing skills
finding a solution is the collective responsibility of everyone in the school - weekly meetings that included staining in social info processing, social
- requires changing the culture of the whole school rather than (or in addition to) problem solving, emotional understanding communication, & self-control
focusing on the behaviour of individuals/groups directly involved in bullying incidents - accompanied by academic tutoring & parent-training
- have their roots in the approach Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP) - others: Brainpower, Coping Power Program
- requires increased awareness of the nature of the problem - no comparable interventions exist to alter the maladaptive social cognitions of victims
- heightened monitoring - one intervention strategy might be to alter the victims’ maladaptive thoughts about
- systematic & consistent responses to incidents of bullying the causes of their plight
- common across all programs: knowledge of the school’s rules about bullying - idea of altering dysfunctional causal thoughts about oneself to produce
(what behaviours constitute bullying & consequences they have to face) changes in affect & behaviour -> rich empirical literature
- only modest effects
- KiVa “against bullying”
- focus on bystanders/witnesses to bullying
= aims to develop among bystanders more empathy for victims & strategies to
help victims when they’re being harassed
- WITS (Walk Away, Ignore, Talk It Out, & Seek Help)
= raises awareness of the problem of school bullying & then teaches first-to
third-grade students a set of social skills to help them resolve interpersonal
conflicts
- Steps to Respect
- unique in terms of its attention to relational aggression & the use of
playground observation methods to assess changes in bullying behaviour
Targeted Interventions
= focuses on the 10-15% of youths who are involved in bullying incidents as bullies or
4
can raise the expectations & fear of continued abuse
FROM INFANCY TO OLD AGE
- takes place among young children as well as adults in a variety of settings (research
#1 BULLYING focuses on children & youths in schools)
- 20-25% of youths are directly involved in bullying as perpetrators, victims, or both
Learning Goals: What is bullying? Why does it happen? How to prevent it? - 4-9% of youths frequently engage in bullying behaviours
Bullying & Suicide? - 9-25% of school-age children are bullied
#risk factors
Can bullying be stopped/prevented? Stability of Bullying & Victimization
#measures - less than 10% are likely to be chronic bullies throughout childhood – but other studies
#interventions suggest that many childhood bullies “age out” of their tendency to physically intimidate
Different social rules in bullying others by adolescence -> not known whether physical aggression is replaced by other
forms of bullying
- longitudinal research examining the stability of victims of bullying across childhood &
ARTICLE 1 adolescence doesn’t exist – one study showed that transitioning from early to middle
The Power of Bullies & the Plight of Victims adolescence was accompanied by a decline in experiences of victimization
by Juvonen & Graham => research on bullying perpetration & victimization indicates more instability than
stability
- studies to understand both the motives underlying bullying & its effects on victims rely - host of changing factors (school transitions etc) contribute to this
on two complementary research orientations: 1) American research tradition focusing - but doesn’t mean that bullying has no lasting effects (some of the symptoms &
on childhood aggression & the Scandinavian research tradition illuminating the effects increased sensitivity to maltreatment persist)
of aggressive behaviour on other children
- American studies provide insights into the social cognitions & relationships of bullies FORMS & FUNCTIONS OF BULLYING BEHAVIOURS
compared w/ their well-adjusted peers Direct & Indirect Forms of Bullying
- Scandinavian research highlights the plight of victims as well as the group dynamics - Indirect
that encourage & maintain bullying behaviours e.g.: spreading of rumours, backstabbing, & exclusion from the group
- current study tries to build a bridge between both traditions = involve relational manipulation
Definition & Prevalence of Bullying - designed to damage the targets’ social reputation or deflate their social
- involves targeted intimidation/humiliation status while concealing the identity of the perpetrator = bully is able to use the
= a physically stronger/socially prominent person (ab)uses her/his power to threaten, peer group as a vehicle for the attack
demean, or belittle another – to make the victim feel powerless, the bully can resort - Direct
multiple aggressive behaviours = involve intimidating, humiliating, or belittling someone in front of an
- but bullying entails more than aggression = dynamic interaction between the audience
perpetrator & the victim – power imbalance distinguishes bullying from conflict - physical aggression is associated w/ males; relational forms of aggression are
considered to be the domain of females
1
,- @ every age group & across races, social classes, cultures & national boundaries – -> can maintain their positive self-views by blaming & addressing
boys are more likely to engage in physical forms of bullying against others instead of accepting responsibility
- relational forms of inflicting harm on others were tactics more commonly employed - receive more positive social feedback from their peers
by girls – because girls were thought to value relationships more; behaviours that - bystanders also reinforce bullies
harmed those relationships are an especially effective form of aggression
PLIGHT OF VICTIMS
- recent studies suggest that there are no strong differences between the two genders
in the use of relational aggression - victims of bullying display numerous adjustment problems (depressed mood, anxiety,
- only reliable difference: physical aggression decreases w/ age psychosomatic problems, academic difficulties)
- robust gender differences are documented only for physical aggression - not clear whether bullying experiences causes these problems or whether signs of
maladjustment make victims easy targets
Bullying & Social Dominance
- why do youths resort to any form of aggression to bully their peers? Victim Subtypes
- indirect forms of aggression demand sophisticated social skills (can’t be due to a lack - Submissive Victims
of social skills) – they don’t lack social skills or the ability to regulate emotions - those who are anxious, insecure, & sensitive
- evidence suggesting that bullies are cold & calculating, often lacking empathy – -> internalizing problems & lack of confidence in social interactions increase
resorting to coercive strategies to dominate & control the behaviour of peers risk of being bullied
- strive to be dominant & also have a high social status - Bully-Victims/Aggressive Victims
-> aggression is a way to establish a dominant position within a group = proactive victims who resort to aggression, much like bullies
-> bullying perpetration can be considered a strategic behaviour that enables - aggression = ineffectual; their failed attempts to retaliate against more-
youths to gain & maintain a dominant position powerful bullies didn’t stop the bullying
- status enhancement is particularly important during early adolescence – bullying - make easy targets whose emotional response is rewarding for bullies
behaviours increases - have emotion regulation & attention problems akin to ADD/ADHD
- dominance hierarchy allows youths to navigate the social scene more safely as they
learn how to align themselves & establish their position in hierarchy Individual & Social Risk Factors
=> bullying behaviours aren’t only proactive or instrumental forms of aggression, but - several non-behavioural characteristics increase the risk of being bullied
also appear to be guided by social dominance motives that peak @ times of social - obesity
reorganization associated w/ transitions - off-time pubertal maturation
- disabilities
Inflated Self-Views & Social-Cognitive Biases of Bullies - LBGT
- many aggressive youths have high & even inflated perceptions of themselves => any condition/characteristic that makes youths stand out from their peers
- not only in terms of their peer status but also in terms of academic & athletic domains - social misfit (= term to describe individuals whose social behaviour deviates from
- rate themselves lower on depression, social anxiety, & loneliness group norms)
- explanations for their positive self-views - marginal social status increases the risk of prolonged/more severe peer victimization
- information-processing boas (are unlikely to be supported or defended by any group members)
- attributional bias - interpersonal risk factors
2
, - emotional/behavioural problems may elicit bullying especially when targets explained partly by differences in reactivity to stress
are lower in status -> increased activity in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex
- lack of friends
BULLYING IN CONTEXT: CYBERSPACE & SCHOOLS
- emotional support play a critical role in how victims are affected by being bullied
Cyberbullying
= electronically mediated bullying involves texting via cell phone, emailing, or instant
messaging, or posting messages on social networks & chat rooms
- can be either direct or indirect
- unique factors of cyberbullying
Cyclical Processes & Consequences of Peer Victimization - speed & spread -> degrading messages can quickly reach not only the target
- factors that place youths @ risk of victimization can also be considered consequences but also a vast number of other individuals
of peer victimization - anonym – identity of perpetrator can be easily concealed
-> relationship between peer victimization & internalizing problems are reciprocal – - cyberspace may provide particular fertile grounds for bullying
reflecting cyclical processes over time School Context
- victims of bullying are likely to manifest psychosocial difficulties later in life (e.g.: - bullying is largely studied as school-based phenomenon
elevated rates of psychiatric disorders) - most consistent school context correlate = school climate (= the degree that students
- victims of bullying are emotionally distressed both concurrently & over time don’t feel accepted, supported, respected, & treated fairly in their schools)
- even single incidents of bullying are related to increases in daily levels of anxiety - Racial/Ethnic Diversity
Mediating Mechanisms Underlying Psychosocial Problems - study documented that greater ethnic diversity at both the classroom and
- useful to consider the targets’ causal perceptions (attributions) of why they’re school levels was related to a lower sense of vulnerability among Latino and
mistreated African American students, including less self-reported victimization. The
- more likely to endorse attributions for bullying that were internal & uncontrollable by authors argued that power relations may be more balanced in ethnically
them diverse schools with multiple ethnic groups and that shared power, in turn,
- characterological self-blame- partly accounted for the concurrent associations reduces incidents of bullying.
between the victim’s reputation & level of emotional distress - Organization of Instruction
- use of academic tracking has been associated w/ more disruptive behaviour
Mechanisms Underlying School Difficulties & Health Problems on part of the students who are grouped for instruction in low-ability tracks
- victims of bullying are likely to be absent from school & to receive low grades - students who are exposed to a less demanding curriculum & to more deviant
-> can be partly accounted for by emotional stress & somatic complaints peers are @ greater risk of antisocial behaviour
- physiological pathway - socially vulnerable adolescents who reside within small collectives may have
-> hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis few opportunities to redefine their social identities & instead become
-> victims had altered cortisol levels increasingly stigmatized
-> association between peer victimization & poor physical health can be - Deviation from Classroom Norms
- the extent to which victims deviate from the norms of their classroom
3
, - victims might especially feel bad when they differ from most other students victims
- a positive classroom norm (prosocial conduct, high social order) resulted in - designed to address the dysfunctional thoughts & behaviours of the children who
worse outcomes for victims who deviated from those norms aggress against others
- victims who are members of the majority ethnic group are more likely to - Five-Step Social-Cognitive Model
endorse self-blaming attributions & self-blame which predicts adjustment - information processing difficulties of bullies begin when they inaccurately
probs interpret social cues associated with ambiguous peer provocation & continue
as they formulate goal, access from memory a repertoire of possible
INTERVENTIONS TO PREVENT & REDUCE BULLYING IN SCHOOL
behavioural responses & finally choose a response
Schoolwide Interventions - Fast Track
- targets all students, their parents, & adults within the school - one of the most extensive aggression interventions that includes info-
- operates under the assumption that bullying is a systemic social problem & that processing skills
finding a solution is the collective responsibility of everyone in the school - weekly meetings that included staining in social info processing, social
- requires changing the culture of the whole school rather than (or in addition to) problem solving, emotional understanding communication, & self-control
focusing on the behaviour of individuals/groups directly involved in bullying incidents - accompanied by academic tutoring & parent-training
- have their roots in the approach Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP) - others: Brainpower, Coping Power Program
- requires increased awareness of the nature of the problem - no comparable interventions exist to alter the maladaptive social cognitions of victims
- heightened monitoring - one intervention strategy might be to alter the victims’ maladaptive thoughts about
- systematic & consistent responses to incidents of bullying the causes of their plight
- common across all programs: knowledge of the school’s rules about bullying - idea of altering dysfunctional causal thoughts about oneself to produce
(what behaviours constitute bullying & consequences they have to face) changes in affect & behaviour -> rich empirical literature
- only modest effects
- KiVa “against bullying”
- focus on bystanders/witnesses to bullying
= aims to develop among bystanders more empathy for victims & strategies to
help victims when they’re being harassed
- WITS (Walk Away, Ignore, Talk It Out, & Seek Help)
= raises awareness of the problem of school bullying & then teaches first-to
third-grade students a set of social skills to help them resolve interpersonal
conflicts
- Steps to Respect
- unique in terms of its attention to relational aggression & the use of
playground observation methods to assess changes in bullying behaviour
Targeted Interventions
= focuses on the 10-15% of youths who are involved in bullying incidents as bullies or
4
