Cyberbullying: Challenges and opportunities for a research program—A response to Olweus (2012)

Olweus raises some important issues, but I argue that he underestimates the impact of cyberbullying on a research programme that he has done so much to promote. Cyberbullying has a number of distinctive features that differentiate it from traditional bullying. Cyberbullying provides a new challenge to the hard core (definitional criteria separating bullying from aggression). It also provides opportunities, in terms of a broader disciplinary base, greater permeability of age and context barriers, and new theoretical possibilities.     

An analysis of the Revised Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire using the Rasch measurement model

Background. Bullying is a problem in schools in many countries. There would be a benefit in the availability of a psychometrically sound instrument for its measurement, for use by teachers and researchers. The Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire has been used in a number of studies but comprehensive evidence on its validity is not available. Aims. To examine the conceptual design, construct validity and reliability of the Revised Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire (OBVQ) and to provide further evidence on the prevalence of different forms of bullying behaviour. Sample. All 335 pupils (160 [47.8%] girls; 175 [52.2%]) boys, mean age 11.9 years [range 11.2–12.8 years]), in 21 classes of a stratified sample of 7 Greek Cypriot primary schools. Method. The OBVQ was administered to the sample. Separate scales were created comprising (a) the items of the questionnaire concerning the extent to which pupils are being victimized; and (b) those concerning the extent to which pupils express bullying behaviour. Using the Rasch model, both scales were analysed for reliability, fit to the model, meaning, and validity. Both scales were also analysed separately for each of two sample groups (i.e. boys and girls) to test their invariance. Results. Analysis of the data revealed that the instrument has satisfactory psychometric properties; namely, construct validity and reliability. The conceptual design of the instrument was also confirmed. The analysis leads also to suggestions for improving the targeting of items against student measures. Support was also provided for the relative prevalence of verbal, indirect and physical bullying. As in other countries, Cypriot boys used and experienced more bullying than girls, and boys used more physical and less indirect forms of bullying than girls. Conclusions. The OBVQ is a psychometrically sound instrument that measures two separate aspects of bullying, and whose use is supported for international studies of bullying in different countries. However, improvements to the questionnaire were also identified to provide increased usefulness to teachers tackling this significant problem facing schools in many countries.     

Daniel M. Wegner: Award for Distinguished Scientific Contributions

Presents Daniel M. Wegner, the 2011 winner of the American Psychological Association Award for Distinguished Scientific Contributions. "For seminal contributions that span psychology's breadth--from cognitive to social to personality to clinical--and that reach beyond its borders to philosophy and neuroscience. Daniel M. Wegner's studies on transactive memory, action identification, ironic processes, and apparent mental causation all bear his characteristic mark: a beautiful idea brought to life by an elegant experiment. He has spent his scientific career identifying new and important problems and then offering solutions that sparkle with originality and insight. He has seen doors where others saw walls, opened them to reveal new rooms, and illuminated their dark corners." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved).     

Cyberbullying: The right value of the phenomenon. Comments on the paper “Cyberbullying: An overrated phenomenon?”

This comment will try to discuss the point raised by Olweus: is cyberbullying just one type of bullying or a distinct phenomenon and how much does it need a specific approach to be investigated? Specifically I will try to support my perspective taking into consideration five areas of investigation: definition, measurement, association between traditional bullying and cyberbullying, possible consequences and interventions.     

Long-term school-level effects of the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP)

In agreement with two predictions, this somewhat unusual study documented that 70 elementary schools (A-schools) with continued and repeated use of the Olweus Bullying Questionnaire (OBQ) in a four-year follow-up period of 2007–2010, two to eight years after original implementation of the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP), had a clearly more favorable long-term development in terms of being-bullied problems, as measured with a completely independent data source, the National Pupil Survey than 102 comparable schools (B-schools) that had not conducted any OBQ-surveys in the same period. The odds of being bullied for students in a Norwegian average elementary school were also almost 40% higher than for students who attended a school with continued use of the OBQ, and very likely, other components of the program. Several alternative explanations of the findings were explored and found wanting. Results suggested that A-schools with continued use had changed their “school culture” for the better with regard to awareness, preparedness and competence in handling and preventing bullying. This form of ‘organizational learning’ has major consequences in that new groups of students will benefit from such a school environment. It was generally concluded – in spite of a highly stable average of the level of bullying problems in Norway – that it is fully possible to substantially reduce such problems not only in one-year evaluations, as has been amply documented before, but also in the long term, up to eight years after original implementation, with a program such as the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program.     

Evaluation of the effectiveness of an anti‐bullying programme in primary schools

A nationwide programme to prevent and manage bullying in Irish schools, based on that implemented in Norway in 1996, is currently being developed, and pilot work with a sample of primary schools within a single county of Ireland has been conducted and evaluated (the staff and pupils of 42 primary schools having been involved). A network of professionals (11 teachers) were trained to co‐ordinate the anti‐bullying programme in the schools, subsequent activities involving their training teachers (a total of 197) and parents in three to five schools each. In evaluation, pupils from 22 of the schools completed modified versions of the Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire [Olweus, 1989; Whitney and Smith, 1993]. Teachers completed a questionnaire (concerning their knowledge and feelings about bullying [Rigby, 1997]) both before and after the implementation of the anti‐bullying training programme. Significant reductions were found in pupils' reports of having been victimised after the implementation of the programme. Overall, 19.6 per cent fewer children were victimised. There was a reduction of 50.0 per cent amongst those frequently victimised within the last school term, and of 43.0 per cent in reports of having been bullied within the last five school days. A reduction of 17.3 per cent in pupils' reports of having taken part in bullying others was also observed after the implementation of the programme. There were, in particular, significant reductions (69.2 per cent) in reports of frequently bullying others within the last school term, and of 51.8 per cent in reports of having taken part in bullying others within the last five school days. Whilst the programme was shown to reduce the incidence of pupils' involvement in bullying behaviour, the perennial challenge of attempting to increase the levels of pupils' reporting of bullying to teachers and parents remains a challenge for the authors to attend to in the further development of the nationwide anti‐bullying programme. Aggr. Behav. 00:1–14, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Jordan M. Braciszewski: APA/APAGS Award for Distinguished Graduate Student in Professional Psychology

Presents Jordan M. Braciszewski as the 2011 winner of the American psychological Association APA/APAGS Award for Distinguished Graduate Student in Professional Psychology. "For his concerted efforts to identify the needs of homeless and other at-risk populations and to design and provide necessary services for them. Jordan M. Braciszewski is committed to using applied psychological science and evidence-based intervention methods to assist the most disadvantaged in our society. He has already provided additions to the relevant research literature and has volunteered countless hours of his time to implement community-based interventions and provide direct services himself. He has sought out the training experiences necessary to assist him in doing an even better job in the future in these public service activities." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved).     

中国与英国儿童对待欺负问题态度的比较研究

采用修订的Olweus欺负问卷,对中国和英国近万名(中国8937名,英国1035名)中小学儿童对待欺负的态度进行调查。结果发现:(1)中国儿童对待欺负的态度比英国儿童积极。(2)儿童对待欺负问题的态度存在性别和年龄差异。女孩比男孩对待欺负的态度较积极;小学儿童对待欺负的态度比初中儿童积极。(3)儿童在欺负/受欺负关系中的角色与其对待欺负问题的态度有联系。未参与者对欺负的态度最积极,其次是受欺负者、欺负/受欺负者,而欺负者对待欺负的态度最消极;(4)儿童对受欺负者的同情多,而去帮助受欺负者的行为倾向少。     

A cross-national perspective on school bullying in Northern Ireland: a supplement to Smith, et al. (1999)

There is great value in exploring the prevalence of school bullying from a cross-national perspective. Smith, Morita, Junger-Tas, Olweus, Catalano, and Slee in 1999 presented a cross-national perspective on the nature, prevalence, and correlates of school bullying that encompassed a wide range of countries. However, Northern Ireland was not included, despite potentially being an important country to include, given its volatile social, ethnic, and religious history--leading to the concern that the population has become somewhat habituated to low level aggression. Thus, the present paper provides a review of the current literature on school bullying in the Northern Ireland school system. Evidence presented suggests that the incidence of school bullying in Northern Ireland may be higher than that in the rest of Ireland and the United Kingdom.     

中小学生欺负/受欺负的普遍性与基本特点

利用修订的Olweus欺负问卷对 92 0 5名城乡儿童进行了测查 ,考察初中和小学阶段儿童欺负 /受欺负问题的普遍性及基本特点。结果发现 :中小学生中存在着较严重的欺负问题 ,近 1/ 5被调查的儿童卷入欺负 /受欺负问题 ;总体上小学和初中阶段学生欺负 /受欺负问题的发生率随年级的升高而下降 ,但欺负他人在初中阶段具有稳定性 ;直接言语欺负是最为普遍的欺负方式 ;在欺负 /受欺负的比率、对待欺负态度和欺负类型上均存在性别差异。     

中小学生欺负问题中的性别差异的研究

本研究运用修订的Olweus欺负/受欺负问卷对我国城乡4726名中小学生进行调查,考察了欺负与受欺负的性别差异问题,结果表明1.小学生和初中生受欺负的发生率不存在显著的性别差异,而男孩中欺负他人的比率却极显著地高于女孩;2.中小学生对欺负问题的态度存在显著的性别差异,初中生对欺负的态度受性别和年级的交互作用的影响;3.中小学生不同欺负方式的发生率存在显著的性别差异,男生直接的身体欺负和间接欺负显著地高于女生,而言语欺负的性别差异并不显著.     

What is bullying? A theoretical redefinition

Bullying is a complex and heterogeneous phenomenon that directly affects hundreds of millions of people each year. The importance of bullying has led to research in the last two decades that has produced hundreds, if not thousands, of papers on the topic. In large part this research was stimulated by a definition provided by Olweus in 1993. That definition has proven to be tremendously useful as a starting point for research, but it was created in the absence of recent empirical and theoretical evidence. We propose an updated definition that is explicitly grounded in a unifying theory that encompasses ecological and evolutionary contexts: “bullying is aggressive goal-directed behavior that harms another individual within the context of a power imbalance”. We follow this definition with an examination of the theoretical and empirical support for each of its three elements (goal-directedness, power imbalance, and harm). We suggest that bullying measures should be based on assessments of these three elements of bullying. Our redefinition also emphasizes the importance of considering and altering the cost–benefit analysis of bullying as a cornerstone for successful interventions. Finally we address several specific potential challenges to the definition.     

家庭功能与初中生欺负行为:有调节的中介作用

为了探讨家庭功能、父母教养方式与初中生欺负行为之间的关系及其作用机制,研究采用家庭功能量表、父母教养方式量表和欺负量表对429名初中生进行施测。结果显示：（1）家庭功能与父母教养方式中的父母拒绝均能显著预测欺负行为;（2）父母拒绝在家庭功能与欺负行为之间起中介作用;（3）“家庭功能→父母拒绝→欺负行为”这一中介效应的后半路径受到性别的调节,即该中介效应仅在男生群体中显著。     

儿童欺负行为的类型及其相关因素

本研究采用Olweus欺负问卷中文修订版对我国6471名中小学生进行调查,探讨了中小学生欺负行为的类型特点及其相关因素,结果发现:(1)在小学和初中阶段,直接言语欺负的发生率最高,其次是直接身体欺负,间接欺负的发生率最低。(2)小学和初中男生受直接身体欺负的比例显著高于女生,直接言语欺负没有显著的性别差异。(3)小学阶段三类欺负行为的发生率存在显著的年级差异,三年级儿童受直接身体欺负的比例极显著地高于四、五年级,受直接言语欺负的比例总体上随儿童年级升高而上升,受间接欺负的比例在2-4年级之间相对稳定,5年级出现极显著的下降;在初中阶段三类欺负行为的发生率相对稳定。(4)欺负者大多与受欺负者同龄或年长于受欺负者,初中学生的欺负呈现出明显的“团体化”特点。     

Comments on cyberbullying article: A rejoinder

In this article, I discuss many of the points raised in the thoughtful comments by Hinduja and Patchin (2012, this issue), Menesini (2012, this issue), and Smith (2012, this issue) on my original article “Cyberbullying: An overrated phenomenon” (Olweus, 2012, this issue). After having seriously considered the arguments of my commentators, I still think there is strong empirical evidence for my original position—supported by one or more but not all of my commentators—that cyberbullying is a basically low-frequent phenomenon and that there has not occurred a marked increase in the prevalence rates of cyberbullying over the past five or six years. With regard to the possible negative effects of cyberbullying, over and above the effects of traditional bullying, I note with appreciation that this issue has received some attention in the recent research literature but I also make a call for more systematic consideration of potential confounders in such studies. A good deal of the discussion in the comments and the current article concerned the issue of whether cyberbullying should be regarded as a form of bullying on a par with traditional forms of bullying or if it is distinct enough to be considered a partly separate phenomenon or dimension. I conclude by arguing that in order for research on cyberbullying to proceed in a systematic and fruitful way, it is necessary to place it in proper context (along with traditional bullying) and to communicate a somewhat more realistic picture of its prevalence and nature.     

Perceptions and correlates of peer‐victimization and bullying

Background. The experiences of peer‐victimization and bullying are often treated empirically as though they are conceptually indistinct. Both involve repeated aggression, but definitions of bullying additionally emphasize the importance of aggressor intent and imbalance of power between the aggressor and the victim ( Olweus, 1978 ; Whitney & Smith, 1993 ). Aims. The present study aimed to examine the extent to which peer‐victimization and bullying are empirically similar. Sample. The sample comprised 1,429 pupils (50.2% male) aged between 8 and 13 years attending mainstream Scottish schools. Method. Self‐report questionnaire assessing peer‐victimization and bullying, coping strategy use (WCCL: Hunter, 2000 ), situational appraisal and depressive symptomatology ( Birleson, 1981 ). Results. Almost one‐third (30.7%) of pupils reported experiencing peer‐victimization, and of these 38.1% (11.7% of whole sample) were categorized as victims of bullying. Victims of bullying perceived higher levels of threat and lower levels of perceived control. They also reported using more Wishful Thinking and Social Support coping strategies, but did not differ on Problem Focused coping. Bullied pupils also reported higher levels of depressive symptomatology. Conclusions. Peer‐victimization and bullying appear to be qualitatively different experiences for children and adolescents, with bullying being the more serious phenomenon.     

Antonio E. Puente: Award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Independent Practice

Presents Antonio E. Puente as the 2011 winner of the American Psychological Association Award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Independent Practice. "For his decades of efforts to enhance the recognition of psychologists in providing health care services, through his work with the Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) Panel to develop and maintain appropriate CPT codes for the breadth of professional practice; for his willingness to participate in litigation establishing the expertise of neuropsychologists to testify in court about their findings; for his tireless work in cross-cultural assessment relative to criminal trials; for his leadership of professional societies in clinical neuropsychology; for his promotion of legislation and policy at all levels of government; and for his countless other contributions to the enhancement of independent practice in psychology. Antonio Puente is a far-thinking visionary who freely shares his knowledge to improve the quality of psychological practice and the reimbursement system that attests to the worth of the profession. He is the very embodiment of the psychologist for whom this award is intended." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved).     

The use of coping strategies by Danish children classed as bullies, victims, bully/victims, and not involved, in response to different (hypothetical) types of bullying

The coping strategies employed in response to different types of bullying, by 305 Danish children (142 boys, 163 girls) in school years four to nine (aged 10-15 years), were investigated. Children were classed into four bully-victim status types. A revised version of the Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire was used for the classification of children, and a Self-Report Coping Measure for the investigation of coping strategies. The coping strategy of Externalizing was used significantly more by children classed as bully/victims compared with victims and not involved children: Seeking Social Support and Internalizing were preferred significantly more by girls, whereas Externalizing was preferred significantly more by boys; Distancing, Seeking Social Support, and Internalizing were favored significantly more by children in years four to six compared with children in years seven to nine. Looking at coping strategies in response to different types of bullying, Seeking Social Support was used significantly more in response to attack on property relative to verbal bullying, social exclusion, and indirect bullying, and Distancing was used significantly less in response to attack on property compared with any of the other types of bullying. The results are discussed in relation to implications for educational practice.     

Ontology Downgraded All The Way

Willard Quine has recently defended his brand of scientific realism and naturalism (1992). He has expanded his defense (1993, 1996), utilizing observation sentences in their holophrastic guise. He also argues that the latter bear "... significantly on the epistemology of ontology" and provide for the commensurability of theories. I argue that they fail in all these tasks. Further, Quine's long-standing commitment to a kind of scientific realism, on the one hand, and his frequent employment of proxy functions and the rejection of transcendental metaphysics, on the other, constitute an untenable position. A consistent Quinean must abandon scientific realism and ontology.     

Journal of South African Trip: January 14-March 1, 1986

This article is Carl's personal account, dictated en route, of his experiences during his trip to South Africa. He documents his extensive commitment to people and to a process leading to peace. He ends his journal with the conviction that violence can be avoided and that no group really wants violence.