Abstract
In order to reduce aggressive responses to bullying, schools nationwide have begun to implement bullying prevention programs that advise students to tell an adult, walk away, or ask the bully to stop. While previous work has demonstrated that individual differences (e.g., gender) influence the likelihood of students choosing assertive responses in lieu of aggressive responses, there has been less research on understanding how aspects of the school climate affect students’ responses to bullying. This study explores how perceptions of teacher and student intervention as well as perceptions of school safety and connectedness influence students’ likelihood of responding aggressively (i.e., retaliating) or seeking support from an adult. These data come from an online school climate survey administered to 25,308 students in 58 high schools. Three-level hierarchical linear modeling was conducted on a subset of 6,493 students who reported being bullied in the past year. Results suggest that bystander perceptions and school climate play a role in influencing students’ responses to bullying, both by decreasing the likelihood of victims using an aggressive response and increasing their likelihood of seeking support from school staff. Interventions that focus more holistically on changing school climate may better interrupt the cycle of violence.
Highlights
Bullying is a significant concern in US high schools, with 20% of youth reporting being bullied in the past year [1]
Data come from 58 Maryland high schools in 12 counties that were participating in a state-wide project focused on measuring and improving school climate, called the Maryland Safe and Supportive Schools Initiative (MDS3), which began in 2011
The current study explored the association between school climate and different types of responses to bullying
Summary
Bullying is a significant concern in US high schools, with 20% of youth reporting being bullied in the past year [1]. A burgeoning body of evidence suggests serious adverse effects of bullying on the social-emotional wellbeing, academic achievement, and health of the victim [3, 4]. Because of these negative consequences as well as the disruption to the learning environment caused by bullying, schools nationwide have begun to implement bullying prevention programs. Most bullying prevention programs aim to change school norms around bullying, such as addressing the behaviors of teachers, bystanders, and victims. Several programs encourage schools to adopt norms in which students and staff are more vigilant to bullying and are willing to assist victimized students. While there is evidence that schoolbased antibullying programming can improve school climate [5, 6], less is known about how school climate influences victims’ experiences of bullying, their response to victimization
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