Why is it important to address bullying in schools?

1. Bullying Prevention & Intervention: What we Know and What we Can DoMarlene Snyder, PhD Director of Development - OBPP Clemson Universitynobully@clemson.edu864-710-4562Whitefish, MT 406-862-8971 Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

2. Why is it important to address bullying in schools? For students & their futures For a healthy school climate For the larger community For purposes of risk management for schools It’s a wise investment Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

3. What Is Your School Doing To Address Bullying Behaviors? • Awareness-raising efforts • Developing policy, reporting, tracking • Zero tolerance (student exclusion) • Social skills training for victims of bullying • Individual & group treatment for children who bully/children who are bullied • Mediation, conflict resolution programs • Curricular approaches to bullying prevention • Comprehensive approaches Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010 3

4. Olweus Definition of Bullying: “Bullying is when someone repeatedly and on purpose says or does mean or hurtful things to another person who has a hard time defending himself or herself.” Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

5. Three Key Components of Bullying Behavior Involves an aggressive behavior Typically involves a pattern of behavior repeated over time Imbalance of power or strength Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

6. BULLYING = PEER ABUSE Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

7. Children’s Fears About Bullying • 2003 Harris poll of 2,279 girls ages 8-17 years • The biggest fear cited was being teased or made fun of (41% of tweens) • 2x as often as natural disasters, terrorist attacks, war • 15x as often as dying/death of loved one • 30x as often as school grades Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010 7

8. The Bullying Circle G Starts the bullying ;takes active part A Student who Bullies Defender Bullied Student Dislikes the bullying, helps or tries to help the victim Take active part, but do not start the bullying B H Followers The one exposed to bullying Supporter Passive “Bullies” Support the bullying, but do not take an active part C Possible Defender F Passive Supporter Dislikes the bullying and think they ought to help, but don’t do it D Likes the bullying, but do not display open support Disengaged Onlooker E Teacher’s Handbook, Ch.3: Pg. 21 Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010 Watches what happens * Is none of my business * Doesn’t take a stand

9. Group Mechanisms in Bullying • Social contagion • Weakening inhibitions against aggression • Decreased sense of individual responsibility • Gradual changes in the view of bullied student(s) Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

10. Effects of Being Bullied Lower self-esteem Depression & anxiety Absenteeism & lowered school achievement Thoughts of suicide Illness Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

11. Buhs et al. (2006) Study of Peer Exclusion & Victimization and Academic Achievement Peer Exclusion Peer Abuse Classroom Participation School Avoidance Achievement Decrease Peer Rejection • Kindergarten 5th Grade • Peer rejection in K associated w/ • peer exclusion & peer abuse, grades K-5. • Peer exclusion leads to decrease in classroom • participation, which leads to decrease in • achievement • Peer abuse leads to increase in school avoidance • (but not directly to decreases in achievement) Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

12. Conclusions from Buhs et al. (2006) “Peers’ sustained acts of exclusion, although perhaps not as visibly harmful as verbal or physical forms of abuse, may be particularly detrimental to children’s participation, foster disengagement from learning activities, and thus, have a greater impact than peer abuse (name calling & physical abuse) on their progress in the academic domain” (p. 11).

13. Fekkes, Pijpers, & Verloove-Vanhorick (2003). Bullying behavior and associations with psychosomatic complaints and depression in victims. Journal of Pediatrics, 144, 17-22.

14. Methodology • 2,766 elementary school children (9-12 years) in the Netherlands • Completed survey of health symptoms and of bullying experiences • Frequent bullying = a few times a month or more (6%) • Frequent victimization = a few times a month of more (16%)

15. Health Consequences of Bullying(Fekkes et al., 2004) BulliedNot bullied Headache 16% 6% Sleep problems 42% 23% Abdominal pain 17% 9% Feeling tense 20% 9% Anxiety 28% 10% Feeling unhappy 23% 5% Depression scale moderate indication 49% 16% strong indication 16% 2% Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

16. Children at Higher Risk of Being Bullied: • Children with disabilities, special needs, & health problems • Children who are obese • Children who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or who are questioning their identities (GLBTQ) Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

17. Concerns About Children Who Bully More likely to: Get into frequent fights Be injured in a fight Steal, vandalize property Drink alcohol, smoke Be truant, drop out of school Report poorer academic achievement Perceive a negative climate at school Carry a weapon Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

18. Children Who Bully Bullying may be part of a conduct-disordered behavior pattern Pattern may continue into young adulthood Olweus: Students who bully were 4 x as likely to have 3 or more convictions by age 24 Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

19. Common Triggers for Bringing Weapons to School • Fights • Bullying • Public displays of disrespect, especially toward rival gang members • Extortion of lunch money • Threats to commit acts of violence • Altercations over drug sales Michael Dorn (2007)

20. Common Myth About Children who Bully • “Children who bully are loners.” • “Children who bully have low self-esteem.”

21. Effects of Bullying on Bystanders Bystanders may feel: Afraid Powerless to change the situation Guilty for not acting Diminished empathy for victims over time Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

22. The Bullying Circle G Starts the bullying ;takes active part A Student who Bullies Defender Bullied Student Dislikes the bullying, helps or tries to help the victim Take active part, but do not start the bullying B H Followers The one exposed to bullying Supporter Passive “Bullies” Support the bullying, but do not take an active part C Possible Defender F Passive Supporter Dislikes the bullying and think they ought to help, but don’t do it D Likes the bullying, but do not display open support Disengaged Onlooker E Teacher’s Handbook, Ch.3: Pg. 21 Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010 Watches what happens * Is none of my business * Doesn’t take a stand

23. ~Bystanders~ “The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of those that do evil, but because of those who watch and let it happen.” Albert Einstein Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010 23

24. Effects of Bullying on School Climate Creates a climate of fear & disrespect Interferes with learning Students may feel insecure & not like school as well Students may perceive lack of control/caring Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

25. It’s a question of rights. Ultimately... Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

26. Facts About BULLYING Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

27. About the OBQ Database • Anonymous student data from surveys of students (since April, 07) • As of August 1, 2010 contained 1,075,258 completed student surveys. • Contains 524,054 data points for baseline assessments. Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

28. Demographic Information • Grades 3-12 • 1593 schools (94% Public schools in 45 States, plus DC & US Virgin Islands) Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

29. Interest in theUnited States • Heightened attention to youth violence and school violence • Recognition of the importance of early intervention • Development of a research base on bullying Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

30. The Olweus Bullying Prevention Program • First systematic research on bullying conducted in early 1970s. • OBPP part of Norway’s national campaign against bullying in early 1980s. Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

31. OBPP Program Components Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

32. OBPP Principles imply… • Adults are responsible • Clear & consistent message • Short & long-term focus • Follow model with fidelity • OBPP should become part of everyday life at school Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

33. OBPP Principles imply: 6. Student involvement in changing climate 7. Student learning about bullying 8. OBPP is NOT peer mediation or conflict resolution 9. OBPP is not a classroom management technique Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

34. Now used K-12 www.olweus.org Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

35. Olweus Trainers in the US Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010

36. Olweus Trainers in the US • Over 1,000 trainers in 45 states • Trainers represent 35 trainer certification cohorts: Pennsylvania Tennessee Washington, DC Missouri Arizona California Indiana Louisiana Iowa Massachusetts Virginia Texas New York Florida Washington State Montana Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, 2010