Notesale: Turn your study into money

Document Preview

Extracts from the notes are below, to see the PDF you'll receive please use the links above

---

Comparing Anti-Bullying Interventions

RUNNING HEAD:

COMPARING ANTI-BULLYING INTERVENTIONS

An Example of a Research Proposal: Comparing Anti-Bullying Interventions
for Grade 6 Students in South London
Char Paul, 2006

1

Comparing Anti-Bullying Interventions

2

There has been much public concern lately regarding bullying within schools, the safety of
students and their learning development (Rigby, 2003)
...
Practical implications for this vein of research
include, the psychological welfare of the students, teachers and parents, as well as the wider
community
...

Power relationships are characteristic of human interactions, although they do not have to, and
usually do not, include an abuse of that power
...
A review of the last two decades of research into bullying in schools
accounted for data across 16 European countries, as well as Australia, New Zealand, Japan, the USA
and Canada
...
The consensus being that bullying is not solely a bully-victim
relationship
...
The collective nature of bullying means that social relationships within the group
greatly influence the bullying process
...

Undesirable consequences of bullying include the victim’s fear of reporting being bullied, and
the increased risk of depression and low self-esteem, that negatively impact on a student’s ability to
learn and problem-solve (Salmon, James & Smith, 1997; Smith & Sharpe 1994)
...
Whereas female students tend to use indirect bullying
styles, that are more difficult to pin down, or affect with intervention
...


Comparing Anti-Bullying Interventions

3

Roberts (2005) contends that current availability of research makes it difficult for policy
makers to determine the best choices of intervention
...
Programs such as Quality Circles, the No Blame approach, Pikas,
befriending and peer support, or peer mentoring and mediation, adult counseling and or mediation,
playground changes as such as more sport and games, and gardens, or trained monitors (Smith &
Brain, 2000; Roberts, 2005)
...

Roberts suggests systematic reviews of anti-bullying interventions to filter information, and to provide
consensus on where research stands to date
...
However, Salmon et al
...
The two English schools compared found only 4
...
Victims tended to be the younger high school students
...
Through the evaluation of school-based anti-bullying
interventions more of the nature and effects of bullying can be understood
...
An
“information pack” was then developed and distributed nationally
...
Anti-bullying videos were produced, and
an Anti-Bully Center built in 1993 in Wales
...
In 2000, the Department for Education also in
the UK, distributed the Don’t Suffer in Silence Pack throughout English and Welsh schools
...
However, few evaluations exist, and so the effects of their
policies on the well-being and education of the student remain unknown
...
O’Morre (2000)
reviewed the whole school policy that uses an ecological paradigm, and found it to be quite successful
...
It was concluded that analyses of
students, teachers, parents and the wider community, as well as incorporating curriculum change,
manifests in a successful anti-bullying intervention
...

This present research study will compare levels of bullying behaviour and awareness of anti-bullying
interventions, of two London schools
...
Students, teachers and parents will be surveyed, and selected in-depth
interviews will take place
...


Comparing Anti-Bullying Interventions

5

Method
Participants
All co-ed primary schools across the 33 regions of Greater London are eligible to take part in
this study (http://www
...
com/)
...

Parent-and-community committees, as well as school principles, will receive a letter explaining the
aim of the study and asking permission to evaluate their anti-bullying programs
...

A parental consent form will be issued to all students, and those who return their forms will be
able to take part
...
Also, the
form will outline participant rights, such as voluntary participation, withdrawal without penalty, and
anonymity through the use of participant numbers
...
These ethical precautions
are necessary because some student demographics need to be collected as control variables, including,
socio-economic status, ethnicity, gender and age
...
All results will be shared with the
students, their parents and the schools, to contribute to their policy reviews
...
The 40 item multiple choice survey consists of bully/victim questions about experiences of
direct and indirect bullying, where incidents of bullying have taken place, bullying attitudes of the
respondents, and perceptions of the extent to which others such as peers, parents and teachers are
aware of bullying, and their levels of intervention
...

Olweus’ questionnaire has been adapted for this study to include four questions that
specifically measure awareness of current anti-bullying programs and perceptions of the programs

Comparing Anti-Bullying Interventions

6

effectiveness within each school
...
The questionnaire yields
three sub-scores: a bully/victim score, an awareness score, and an involvement score
...

For the individual interviews 5 students, 5 teachers, and 5 parents (couples are considered as
“one”), will be randomly selected from a pool of volunteers
...
The structured interview for students shall inquire into perceptions of
bullying behavior towards/perpetrated by themselves, as well as perceptions of bullying activity within
their school
...
The interview for parents and
teachers shall ask about perceptions of bullying, awareness of anti-bullying programs, and attitudes
towards bullying, and the involvement of students in decision-making processes for programs
...
Frequencies, Percentages and CrossTabulations shall be provided, using Chi Square test for significance
...
All tests will be run on SPSS v
...


Procedure
An announcement will be made to grade 6 classes of each school asking them to take part in a
study about their school
...
This is so they do not try to guess the hypothesis, and also to protect participants
from bullying for taking part
...


Comparing Anti-Bullying Interventions

7

The following week, the primary researcher shall go to each school on a separate day to
distribute and collect the questionnaires
...
While students and teachers can be met during lunch hours or after school,
meetings with most parents will be in the evenings after work
...

On completion of the study students, teachers and parents will be thanked, and will be briefly
informed of the study’s hypothesis, and of their part in the research
...


In summary, it is expected that the degree of involvement of grade 6 English students in the
development of anti-bullying programs will influence bullying activity within their schools
...
An ecological
paradigm is much more globally relevant in regards to evaluation of anti-bullying programs, because it
considers both pedagogy and interpersonal relationships of students, their parents, teachers and the
surrounding community
...


Comparing Anti-Bullying Interventions
References
Greater London: Search by Region
...
Available from: http://www
...
com/
[November 19th, 2005]
...
(1990) Bullying in Scottish Secondary School: Spotlight 23
...

Olweus, D
...
http://www
...
edu/cspv/blueprints/model/BPP_OrderForm
...
(1990) Bullying in Schools (Council of Europe)
...

Rigby, K
...
Canadian Journal of Psychiatry,
48(9), p
...

Roberts, H
...
Available from:
http://www
...
govt
...
pdf
[November 19th, 2005]
...
, James, A
...
(1998) Bullying in Schools: Self Reported Anxiety,
Depression and Self Esteem in Secondary School Children
...
924-925
...
K
...
(2000) Bullying in Schools: Two Decades of Research
...
1-9
...
K
...
(eds
...

London: Routledge
...
The purpose of this study is to investigate school policy and its impact on student learning
for grade 6 students
...

The investigator does not perceive any risks to the student from involvement in this study
...


This study consists of a survey for the student, and a possible interview (if selected for an
interview) to be conducted at the school
...
The interviews will not be video or audio-recorded
...

Responses will be coded with participant numbers so that respondent’s identity will remain
anonymous and confidential
...
Student participation is entirely voluntary
...

Should your child choose to participate, they can withdraw at any time without penalty of any kind
...
If you have any questions about the study, please contact (Your name, and
Supervisor’s name, and contact details)
...
I freely consent for my child to participate

---