Best Practices in Bullying Prevention

In surveys of bullying, many students describe their concerns about the reactions of their peers and teachers to bullying: ‘‘A lot of the times, kids bully in small ways but after a year it all adds up and I think that no one really understands it. ’’ ‘‘It happens in the classroom. Sometimes, teachers don’t notice. Other times, they ignore it. ’’ ‘‘Teachers never know when gossip is going around, and when they do find out, they most often say things like ‘It will pass,’ or they say ‘Don’t worry, no one believes it anyway’ but people laugh at the person who the rumor is about, and no one even tries to help just the tiniest bit. ’’ How schools, and the individuals within them, choose to address bullying has a substantial impact on students’ feelings of safety and well-being. Approximately, 30–50% of U.S. students are involved as aggressors or as targets of bullying (Wang, Iannotti, & Nansel, 2009). The long-term effects of bullying on mental and physical health outcomes, for both bullies and victims, are well documented, and the potentially tragic consequences of bullying are frequently highlighted in the media. School psychologists are increasingly involved in bullying prevention and intervention efforts, both at the request of their schools or districts and as required by some state legislatures. In response to these needs, there has been a surge of bullying prevention programs developed by university researchers and by private companies. This chapter is designed to serve as a guide for school psychologists involved with bullying prevention and intervention activities. The National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) Model for Comprehensive and Integrated School Psychological Services (NASP, 2010) recognizes the importance of the domain of Preventive and Responsive Services in school psychologists’ roles and delineates the comprehensive training school psychologists receive as problem solvers in the school context, which makes them ideally suited to address bullying in schools. First, school psychologists have knowledge in data-based decision making and accountability, which is important for accurately assessing and identifying school-wide and individual-level needs related to bullying prevention, selecting evidence-based interventions, and monitoring intervention success over time. Second, school psychologists are able to use consultation and collaboration skills to implement antibullying services as part of a team. Third, school psychologists are trained to implement interventions and mental health services to develop the social and life skills that can help bullies learn positive peer interaction and help victims avoid future bullying. Fourth, school psychologists’ training in preventive and responsive services in multitiered prevention efforts is invaluable for planning to comprehensively address bullying, which cannot be successfully addressed at any one level exclusively. Fifth, school psychologists are trained in family–school collaboration so they can engage parents in the process. Given the comprehensive training school psychologists receive to address student academic, social, and mental health problems in school, and the prevalence and negative consequences of bullying in schools, it is