Bullying Reduction Approach - Literature review Example

Running Head: Bullying Reduction Approach Student’s Name: Instructor’s Name: Course Code and Name: Institution: Date of Submission: Bullying reduction approach Bulling in our learning institutions is more rampant than it has been portrayed by many. Bullying is described as recurring negative events that are direct at a person by one or more people. It causes embarrassment, agony and discomfort to the bullied. Whether it is physical or psychological harassment, bullying hurts the bullied and is hence an unacceptable behavior (Miller & Kerr, 2002). Bullying can either be direct or indirect. Direct bullying include physical torture or verbal bullying while indirect bullying occur when children fail to accept another child in their group and hence the child feels rejected. According to Hoyt (2001), whether bullying is direct or indirect, it usually has negative effect on the victim. Bullying eventually increases student’s isolation since his peers fear losing their status for associating with him. Consequently the student does not perform well in school. They develop low self esteem and are constantly stressed and depressed. Furthermore some students may become suicidal and even run away from home. To some extent, the increased number of school drop outs can be attributed to bullying (Brewer, 2004). This being the case, bullying is unacceptable and should be fought with by all possible and legal means. There are many approaches that are used by various schools in their bid to stop or reduce bullying. However, the choice of an approach should be done with a lot of care as some approaches are known to have brought more suffering to the bullying victims (Jacobsen, 2001). This paper will analyze the support group approach as an approach that can be used by schools eager to reduce bulling. The support group approach to reduction of bullying In the past, teachers have tried using punishment and guidance and counseling as an approach to reducing bullying to no avail (Beaux & Dane, 2003). Once bullying does not stop, the sympathy shifts from the victim and he/ she now becomes the blamed. The victim is now seen as being disruptive while the parents are seen as being over protective. Consequently, the child is dismissed as an attention seeker. This implies that the above approaches are not effective in solving the problem of bullying. Furthermore, the approaches make no attempt to heal the relationship between the bully and the victim. This is why the problem has been both recurring and increasing. According Wrights man (2004), the aim of reducing bullying is not to blame the bully or establish enmity between the bully and the bullied. Therefore, the approach adopted should eventually ensure peaceful and harmonious co-existence. For this to happen, both the bully and the bullied must be involved in bullying reduction. The school system should also be involved in mediating between the two and also ensuring the success of the strategy. This is the idea behind the support group approach to reduction of bullying in schools. This is an approach that uses strategies at individual, group as well as system level. In the approach, both the bully and the bullied are involved in finding solution to the problems of the victim. This ensures that the conflicting parties eventually learn to live together in harmony. Therefore, this is an approach that would guarantee a reduction in the level of bullying. The support group approach is an approach that focuses on solutions for bullying complaints in learning institutions. Its simplicity enables it to be used in a variety of circumstances. The idea is to interview the victim in a bid to establish who the bullies are and their sympathizers. Both the bully and the bullied are involved in solving the conflict between them with the help of their friends (Baron, 2008). This forms what is known as the support group. The following strategies should be used in the support group approach. The victim should be interviewed either at school or at home depending on where he or she is. During the interview, attention should be paid on the events that have happened rather than paying attention on specific incidents. Dashier (2005) has argued that the child should be allowed to give information on anything he thinks necessary. This should be accepted as the truth without making any attempts to judge it or question its validity. The interview needs not to concentrate on the child’s feelings or the reasons the child thinks make him to be bullied. The child should be assured that his problems can be solved so that he remains cooperative. The purpose of the interview is to identify the bullies, the bystanders, and the victim’s friends as these are the people who form the support group. The child should be informed that the group will be involved in making him happier in school (Damson, 2008). As stated by Crano (2006), the support group consists of between 6 and 8 students who include the bully, bystanders and the victim’s friends. It is worth assuring the group that they are not in trouble so that they can be cooperative. The group needs to be truly mixed up so that no student feels labeled by virtue of being in the group. The group should be called in the absence of the victim and informed that the victim is not comfortable at school. The group should be informed of their ability to solve the victim’s problems and hence be requested to help. Durrant (2003) argues that it is important that the word bullying be avoided since it would suggest that a judgment has been made on the bullies. When the group fully understands the reason for its formation and no member feels threatened, they will be cooperative and open about what is happening. The group should be ked whether there is a time they have ever felt unhappy in school. Some of the members will always admit this and probably say more about it. This will help in heightening the victim’s empathy by making the members imagine how he or she must be feeling (George & Evenson, 2000). This will effectively raise the victim’s empathy without having to breach confidentiality. It is good to explain to the group that no one ought to feel unhappy at school. The group is then informed that since they know the victim better, they are in a better position than anyone else to understand why and when the victim has always felt unhappy. According to Molnar (2003) this will make the group members to volunteer any information they may be having. When volunteering information, it is important that the group members abstain from mentioning names as this is likely to create tension. All the information obtained from the group should be accepted as no punishment will be given owing to the discussion (Maines, & Robinson, 2001). According to Newton & Wilson (2006), after the group fully understands that it is better placed to solve the victim’s problems; members are invited to make suggestions on how to go about it. This can proof to be the hardest part of the approach. This is because some people may not cooperate while others may come up with very helpful ideas. Therefore, one should simply ignore resentment and praise any positive idea that is raised. Pickas (2009) argues that this will ensure that members come up with more ideas or offer support to the ideas already raised by their peers. All the suggestions should be taken to be helpful ideas. However, suggestions like beating up any one who bullies the victim should not be encouraged as this will only serve to complicate the conflict (William, 2010). This way, the group members are made to feel that they own the strategy. This ensures continued commitment until the desired results are achieved. It is very rare that the group will fail to cooperate (Munthe, & Roland, 2005). After the ideas are raised, members are thanked for their support and assured that their brilliant plan will work out for the victim. The responsibility and ownership of the plan is therefore given over to the group. The group is then asked to report back after a couple of days and give feedback on the progress they will have made in solving the victim’s problems. Shifting of responsibility is very crucial to the success of support group approach as this makes the members feel eager to deliver quality results. Members also feel more responsible. This way, they become more committed to solving the victim’s Problems (Rhodes, 2004). The evaluation strategy The role of the school and parents in this approach is that of monitoring the progress. This is done by observing whether the process is going on as expected (Smith & sharp, 2004). In evaluating the success of the support group approach, the victim is fist of all called and asked how things are going on after the intervention. In this case, the student will most likely report that things have improved and life has become comfortable (Wender, 2001). The victim will therefore be complimented on the reported improvements. It is worth noting that the fact that no trouble is reported does not imply that attention be withdrawn. Withdrawal of attention can mean things going back to normal or inadvertently encouraging a victim who may be provocative. The next step in evaluating the success of the approach involves the support group members. The members are called together and asked to report on the progress of their plan (Barton, 2004). In most cases, they will have noticed an improvement with the victim. Therefore, they are most likely to report that the victim is now happier than before. They may also report about an incidence of bullying that did not involve any member of the group. In this meeting, the members are encouraged to report on how their efforts have led to the improvement of the victim’s situation (Whitney & Smith, 2004). However, the efforts need not be marched with suggestions made in the first meeting unless the group members wish to do that. The members are then thanked for their effort to help the victim. They are also requested to continue for another couple of days. The whole process has the effect of ensuring that the bully no longer harasses the victim but in fact becomes a friend of the victim. More evaluation meetings can be arranged to review the progress. However, two meetings should be enough so as to avoid a false feeling of dependency (Johann, 2007). After the evaluation meetings, the group members are reinforced informally from that time. The school should arrange for a meeting for the whole group (support group and the victim). During the meeting, the group members, the victim and supports are rewarded in order to reinforce the new state of affairs (Joseph, 2008). This can also be in the form of a certificate or a letter to be taken home to parents. If it is in a primary school scenario, the pupils should have their photos taken so that the group can serve as a role model to others and therefore encourage positive behavior (Mackinnon, 2004). However, improved methods of reinforcement should be applied at secondary school level (Julian, 2010). The evaluation also involves the parents of the victim. They are requested to give their views on the state of affairs as far as their child is concerned. Parents will always be happy if they are informed after every evaluation since they will feel that the school is doing something about their child’s situation (Gibson, 2007). If they are kept informed, the parents will always be more than willing to participate in rebuilding their relationship with the school which in most cases will have been destroyed by the bullying acts. Conclusion The support group approach has been found to be very successful in overcoming the problem of bullying in schools. In a study carried out in 51 primary schools and four secondary schools, 80 percent of the cases in question were found to have achieved success. A further 14 percent had their success delayed while the rest achieved limited success (Faith, 2006).This implies that the approach is a valuable tool in overcoming the vice. Its success may be attributed to the fact that both the victim and the bully are involved in the problem solving. Secondly, the method has no intention to blame anyone and the hence nobody is punished (Simons, 2010). The process involves gradual but sure change in attitude of the bully. Furthermore, the victim feels accepted and a good relationship is established between the bully and the bullied. This approach is in no doubt an approach that can be used successfully by any school that is eager to stop bullying. References: Baron, R. (2008). An anti bullying pack for schools, England education journal, 2(12), 45-65. Barton, H. (2004). Brief therapies. New York: Behavior publications. Beaux, K. &Dane, F. (2003). Social psychology in the 90s. California: Brooks. Brewer, M. (2004). Social psychology. Minneapolis: Rudman’s press. Crano, W. (2006). Investigating the solutions in the support group approach. American journal of psychology, 5(12), 156-178. Damson, N. (2008). Group psychology. New York: Light House. Dashier, S. (2005). Keys to solution in brief therapy. New York: Norton. Durrant, M. (2003). Creative strategies for school problems. New York: Norton. Faith, H. (2006). Can this battle be won? London, Rutledge. George. & Evenson, C. (2000). Problem to solution. London: prentice house. Gibson, P. (2007). How to stop bullying at school. London: Equator publishers. Hoyt, T. (2001). The first session in brief therapy. New York: Guildford. Jacobsen, K. (2001). The support group approach explained. Dublin: Progressive press. Johann, P. (2007). How to involve the bully. American educational psychology journal, 12(3), 14-23. Joseph, N. (2008). Dealing with the problem of bullying at school. London: Rutledge. Julian, P. (2010). Children psychology. Chicago: Chicago university press. Mackinnon, P. (2004). The no blame approach. Sydney: Hinge learning. Maines, B. & Robinson, G. (2001). Don’t beat the bullies. Educational psychology in practice, 11(4), 41-48. Maines, B. & Robinson, G. (2002). The no blame approach. Bristol: Lucky Duck. Miller, N. & Kerr, N. (2002). Group process, Group decision, Group action. Buckingham: open University press. Molnar, A. (2003). Changing problem behavior in schools. California: Jossy Bass Inc. Munthe, E. & Roland, E. (2005). Bulling and international perspective. London: David Fulton press. Newton, C. & Wilson, G. (2006). Circles of friends. Educational psychology in practice, 7(3), 168-172. Pickas, A. (2009). The common concern method for the treatment of mobbing. London: David Fulton press. Rhodes, J. (2004). Solution focused thinking in schools. London: brief therapy press. Simons, N. (2010). Improving the learning environment for everyone. Educational psychology in practice, 23(16), 15-25. Smith, K. & sharp, S. (2004). School bullying insights and perspectives. London: Rutledge. Wender, H. (2001). Vicious and virtuous circles. New York: Behavior publications. Whitney, I. & Smith, P. (2004). The s Sheffield project: methodology and findings. London: Rutledge. William, C. (2010). School bullying. Retrieved 11 may 2010, from http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:Ka- KBtOBZnEJ:www.chatham.edu/pti/curriculum/units/2005/Williams.pdf+Outline +an+ap proach+you+would+recommend+for+a+school+eager+to+reduce+bullying.+Incl ude+str atgies+at+the+indiviual,+group+and+systems+level&hl=en&pid=bl&srcid=ADG EEShTl801UPnte5JKf4jKSVIO4uvTQHw5by_zgwXRHhiZmDr- mqewx5dMq8j8hSHhzduC8GyrV6pBkraCkrHEG1c9KS1fChFSe46df0re_uqndN 43DdD402x3pWd8pV0XcJe1Edr2&sig=AHIEtbSpQ1GCfK4yADLmQwk9THK kwrX8ug Wrights man, L. (2004). Bullying – don’t suffer in silence. London: HMSO. Read More