Empowering Proactive Aggressors: Strategies for Change

1. How to Help a Bully: Strategies for Counseling the Proactive Aggressor

2. Bullying The actual or attempted infliction of injury or discomfort by one student on another student that is intentional, abusive, and based on an imbalance of power between bully & Victim (Cleary & Sullivan, 2004).

3. Current Scope -- Occurs daily in 1/3 of U.S. public schools (Hall, 2006) -- Over half of today’s students will be bullied during their education (Sanders, 2004) -- One in five students grades 6-10 admit bullying their classmates (Cole, Cornell, & Sheras, 2006) -- School climates have been dramatically altered by the actions of bullies (Hall, 2006)

4. Impact Victims – restricted learning, physical injury, increased absenteeism, lowered self- esteem, etc. (Limber, 2006) Bystanders – fear of victimization, guilt for not helping victims, peer ridicule for “snitching” (Clark, 2002) Bullies – risk of escalation, further emotional injury, punishment

5. Prognosis for Bullies --Middle school students who bully are up to four times more likely to be involved in later criminal activity than those who do not (Cole et al., 2006) --Left unchecked, bullying attitudes and behaviors become: 1. more serious 2. more difficult to prevent 3. more likely to be carried into adulthood (McAdams & Lambie, 2003)

6. Current Responses --Serious incidents = national emphasis on “bullying prevention” (Pichler, Urban & Bockewitz, 2006) --Have resulted in: 1. more accurate identification 2. more frequent reporting 3. more severe punishment (Davis, 2006) --Have not resulted in standards of “best practice” for addressing the bully’s aggression (McAdams & Schmidt, In Press)

7. Reactive v. Proactive Aggression

8. Their Antecedents Reactive – generalized anger and insecurity from perceived past rejections have rendered them vulnerable to excessive and forceful responses to minor stressors (Vitaro, Brendgen, & Tremblay, 2002) Proactive – perceived absence of sufficient affirmation from caregivers has resulted in an internalized need for affirmation that is derived from their ability to succeed without and often at the expense of others (Arsenio & Lemerise, 2004)

9. A Behavioral Profile --Rational excusesfor why their aggression was justified --Verbal proficiency in defending their self-supporting logic --Emotional control including “pressing sensitive buttons” and displaying false emotions --Patronization to win favor of those who enhance or stand in the way of personal gain --Calculation of times when aggression is least likely to be recognized and deterred

10. Goals of Intervention --Optimal: Empathy development – for the proactive aggressor to develop a level of empathy that restricts his or her willingness to hurt others for personal gain --Immediate: Cessation of aggression • for the “cost” aggression to be greater than its “rewards” • for the aggressor to discover and adopt less costly, pro-social, means of affirmation

11. To Address Immediate Goals • Ensure clear behavioral expectations that are free from loopholes or ambiguity • Bullying behavior must be explicitly defined • There must be no loopholes by which the bully can avoid responsibility for violations • The consequences for violations must consistently outweigh the rewards

12. Avoid debates an arguments • Violations should be determined on the basis of direct observation or reasonable suspicion • Once violation is determined, hold firm to consequences, as any compromise may be seen by the aggressor as an endorsement of his or her control • Processing for new understanding should occur only after the aggressor has complied with behavioral directives

13. Avoid repetitious or standardized responses • Assess each aggressor’s view of behavioral cost and reward • Determine consequences for aggressive behavior to ensure adequate “disciplinary currency” (James, 1995) --

14. Reinforce positive achievements…but cautiously • All students must have opportunities for success and self-esteem building • However, proactive aggressors may have achieved success at other’ expense • Eliminate all doubt of coercion before reinforcing the proactive aggressor’s achievement in the presence of other students who may have been victimized

15. Don’t let your guard down • The proactive aggressor’s behavior is internalized--it should be anticipated • Even the most comprehensive behavioral standards will be compromised if not carefully monitored • Maintining an “air of suspicion” with known of suspected bullies may be unpleasant, but it is necessary

16. Focus on feelings rather than facts • Feelings are an area where proactive aggressors may be less experienced, less in control, and more vulnerable to suggestion • There is no rational standard for arguing the rightness or wrongness of feelings • There may be consequences when others feel victimized regardless of whether bullying can be proven beyond dispute

17. To Address Optimal Goal “There must be coordinated and collaborative efforts involving schools, families, and communities to promote developmental change in children who lack concern for others (i.e., a conscience) in their actions.” (McAdams & Schmidt, in press)

18. Final Thoughts --There are no “pure” reactive or proactive aggressors --Failure to address the unique motivations of proactive aggressors can limit intervention effectiveness and even empower them --Working with proactive aggressors requires an understanding of the relationship between firmness and caring.

19. References McAdams, C. R. & Schmidt, Christopher D. (In Press). “How to help a bully: Strategies for counseling the proactive aggressor. Professional School Counseling, Spring, 2008 Slides from this presentation can be obtained by contacting me at: crmcad@wm.edu