Teachers’ perceptions of school bullying prevention programs

Abstract

Bullying prevention is a significant aspect of the educational work in schools. In order to reduce the prevalence of bullying in schools, it is necessary to simultaneously implement various measures and activities within the school context. Teachers play a crucial role in this regard, as the effectiveness of bullying prevention largely depends on their attitudes and behaviors. The aim of this study was to determine the beliefs of teachers regarding school bullying prevention programs. It was hypothesized that teachers consider prevention and intervention equally important in reducing the incidence of bullying among students; that they believe current school prevention programs do not yield positive results and require more frequent revision, and that there are no statistically significant differences in the responses of participants based on school type and length of teaching experience. Our research findings support the first hypothesis, while the second and third hypotheses are only partially confirmed. The results of this study are significant for considering possibilities to enhance the school?s work in bullying prevention through the development of teacher competencies as key actors.