KENNETH RIGBY
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We live in alarming times. More precisely, we live in times in which we continually seek to outdo each other with tales of impending doom, whether from terrorist attack, global warming, an imminent tsunami, sexual molestation of children, swine flu and predators on the internet. And of course the rising epidemic of school bullying.
Ironically, we tell each other that our judgements must draw upon ‘evidence-based research.’ Reflecting what we commonly read in the media, earlier this year the Federal Education Minister, Julia Gillard, said: “All of the research has found that the prevalence of bullying in our schools is on the rise.â€
Unfortunately the research evidence is rarely examined. When you actually look at it, the bulk of the evidence does not support the view that bullying is on the rise. A good deal of it suggests that it is decreasing.
In Australia, there is no evidence of an increase in school bullying over the past decade or so. In national surveys of the schoolchildren in the same age range conducted by Rigby (1998) and Cross et al (2009) a higher percentage of respondents reported being bullied ‘weekly’ in the 1990s than were bullied ‘every several weeks’ some ten years later.
Such a reduction in school bullying is consistent with what has been revealed in numerous studies conducted in many other countries. Compelling evidence of changes in the prevalence of bullying over time is now available from numerous empirical studies. The most comprehensive is a study of changes between 1993 and 2007 in 27 countries in Europe and North America. The majority of the countries in which data was gathered from schoolchildren showed a significant decrease in the prevalence of bullying.
A range of other studies between 1990 and 2007 in England, Spain, the United States, Finland and Lithuania, drawing upon responses to questionnaires completed by students and, in some cases, by parents and teachers, have provided further evidence of significant reductions in the prevalence of both being victimised and bullying others at schools.
In cyber bullying too there is now evidence from England - based on repeated surveys with students between 2002 and 2006 - that after a steep increase in the availability of cyber technology there was no further increase in ‘nasty and threatening’ text or email messages being received by students in 2006.
These findings, suggesting that bullying is decreasing, are consistent with what has been repeatedly reported about the effectiveness of anti-bullying programs and initiatives. Summarising results from a large number of published studies, it appears that, on average, programs reduce bullying by about 20 per cent. Increasingly, anti-bullying programs are being implemented in schools. It would indeed be surprising if the great amount of attention that has been focussed on this problem had had no beneficent effect.
Schools are adopting new and effective ways of dealing with actual cases of bullying. These go beyond the traditional disciplinary approach and include strengthening the target through assertiveness training, peer mediation, restorative practices, the support group method and the method of shared concern. Each one of these can be employed successfully to resolve cases of bullying.
Why then are many people unconvinced that things are improving? The first reason is that, despite some progress in reducing bullying in some schools, the situation is still a serious one. According to one recent survey conducted in Australia approximately one child in four is bullied at school over a period of several weeks. The harm experienced by vulnerable students has been repeatedly documented. It is well known that being bullied can be seriously harmful to the short term and long-term health of children.
A further reason is that from time to time very serious cases of bullying in schools come to light and are widely discussed in the media. Children are sometimes seriously assaulted and/or subjected to constant ridicule and social exclusion, with appalling consequences for their mental health. Schools sometimes fail to take effective action and are forced to compensate the victims. Bullying becomes, understandably, a highly emotional issue – and affects the judgements of many commentators.
Although an exaggeration of the prevalence of bullying might motivate some schools and parents to take action, the effect of misrepresenting the evidence can also have negative effects. It can result in people concluding that nothing can be done to stop ‘the rising tide’ of bullying or that desperate and violent remedies are now needed. On balance, I think it is best to know and tell the truth.
Ken Rigby is an Adjunct Research Professor and educational consultant based at the University of South Australia. He is a member of the National Centre Against Bullying.
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However, my reading indicates that there is more bullying in the staffroom than the classroom, this is bad role model. Besides, parents aren't always treated so well and vice versa- another poor role model.
Finally, as bullying is worse at work, we need to give students life survival skills to deal with difficult and nasty people anywhere.
This is still not happening in our schools. Everyone wants the school to do it. That's not fair.
Parents have to do more to make their kids bully -proof!
Evelyn Field ( author Bully Blocking and Bully blocking at Work)