Classroom‐ and School‐Level Contributions to Bullying and Victimization: A Review

Abstract

School bullying is increasingly viewed by researchers as a group phenomenon that extends beyond the perpetrator-victim dyad and is embedded in the wider social context. This paper reviews the literature on classroom and school factors contributing to bullying and victimization among children and adolescents. Considerable variability in the prevalence of these problems exists between classrooms and schools, which are highly relevant contexts for students' social development. Along with individual characteristics, both classroom-and school-related factors explain the bullying dynamic. The contexts may also exacerbate, or buffer against, the effects of individual-level risk for bullying involvement and the consequences of victimization. We discuss findings on the contributions of demographic and structural characteristics (e.g. grade level, classroom and school size), peer contextual factors (e.g. status hierarchy, group norms and bystander behaviours) and the role of teachers. Finally, implications for research and school-based antibullying programs are considered.

School climate and exposure to bullying: a multilevel study

“…A more robust finding was that bullying was less common in classrooms where a greater proportion of students claimed that adults intervene against bullying. This is in line with earlier research demonstrating that teachers' attitudes toward bullying, as well as their commitment to combatting it and actual behavior to that end, are related to the occurrence of bullying (Espelage et al, 2014;Espelage & Swearer, 2003;Saarento et al, 2015).…”

“…However, peer contextual factors such as status hierarchies and group norms, and teacher-student relationships as well as teachers' disapproving attitudes toward bullying were related to bullying frequency (Saarento et al, 2015). These findings support the notion that school climate is important.…”

“…It is possible that our school climate measures captured aspects that permeate the entire school, thus affecting all classes in a similar manner. Other class-level factors than those investigated here, most notably peer processes including status hierarchies and group norms, are also likely to affect the occurrence of bullying (Saarento et al, 2015). Such factors should be explored in future research.…”

“…A recent review of class and school contextual factors and bullying (Saarento et al, 2015) showed that demographic and structural characteristics, such as the socioeconomic or the ethnic composition of students, were not consistently related to bullying. However, peer contextual factors such as status hierarchies and group norms, and teacher-student relationships as well as teachers' disapproving attitudes toward bullying were related to bullying frequency (Saarento et al, 2015).…”

“…Although a number of studies of school climate and its associations with bullying have been conducted, research on bullying has largely focused on risk factors and consequences at the individual level (Saarento, Garandeau, & Salmivalli, 2015;Saarento, Kärnä, Hodges, & Salvivalli, 2013). But because bullying occurs in a context, often the school, it is important to find classand school-level factors that are associated with student bullying behavior and victimization.…”