According to new research, poor problem solving increases risk for bullies, victims, and those who have been bullies, and victims at some point. As reported by Medical News Today, July 10, 2010, "children and adults who lack social problem solving skills are most at risk of becoming bullies, victims or both than those who don’t have these difficulties.”
Conducted by the American Psychological Association, the research is unique in examining what predisposes children to become bullies. Rather than focusing on personality characteristics of bullies and anti-bullying rules, the research opens the door to a new approach to bullying: the possibility of interventions to prevent it from occurring in the first place.
The Bullying Study Findings
Although some of the indicators were the same for those involved in committing or tolerating bullying, there were differences that suggested different problem areas to be addressed:
- Bullies and victims have "poor social problem solving skills.”
- Bullies are more often boys, are especially likely to be associated with poor academic performance, and are more likely to com from family environments characterized by "conflict and poor parenting."
- Bully-victims have "negative attitudes" about themselves and others, suggesting a poor self image.
According to the lead author, Clayton R. Cook, PhD, of Louisiana State University, “these groups share certain characteristics, but they also have unique traits. We hope this knowledge will help us better understand the conditions under which bullying occurs and the consequences it may have for individuals and the other people in the same settings."
Intervention to Prevent Bullying
There are some children whose particular circumstances need serious help, in the form of medication, therapy, or alleviation of problems at home.
But for many, as recommended by Cook, intervention in the form of parent training at home, “building good peer relationship and problem-solving skills could be offered in the schools, along with academic help for those having trouble in this area” could go a long way towards nipping bullying in the bud.
Teach the Steps of Problem Solving
Whether the tendency is to be a bully, a victim, or both, the common denominator is lack of good problem solving skills. The first step, then, is to teach children the steps involved in good problem solving. Dr. Mac's Behavior Management Site lays out the steps using compelling and age appropriate language. A summary of the steps is as follows:
- Tell yourself to stop.
- Think, talk to yourself to calm down and sort out what is going on.
- Choose the one thing that works best, i.e., "has the most good reasons with the fewest chances of getting in trouble or making things worse."
- Think again after the choice is made. Is it working?
Knowing the steps is one thing, but applying them is another. That's where the real work begins.
Help Children Internalize the Steps of Problem Solving
Nothing helps children (and adults for that matter), to internalize new learning than experiencing them first-hand or see how they apply to real life situations. That may include such things as:
- Class activities in which children practice the steps of problem solving in activities designed for that purpose – through role play, in which students play different sides of a conflict. Or homework assignments in which students are asked to find examples of characters faced with conflict found in books or on TV and apply good problem solving techniques.
- Parent-child interactions in which parents help children stop and think when fighting with siblings, for example, or rebelling against teachers or the parent him or herself.
- Children's own diaries in which they could trace conflicts and problem solving techniques used in their own lives and what works best in resolving them.
The idea is to show children how they can empower themselves when in the midst of a conflict, and thereby help increase their power and self-esteem.
New research shows that poor problem solving ability is associated with becoming a bully victim or both. In a way, this is good news, because it suggests a way to intervene and perhaps prevent bullying behaviors from being learned and becoming ingrained. The next step is to build on engaging ways to teach coping skills mentioned in this article, to protect children from their own and others’ bullying.
See other related articles on bullying:
Bullying is Bad for the Bystander, Too
Looking Beyond the Bystander Effect
Elizabeth Harrington - Poet, Freelance Writer, Marketing Research Professional, Blogger (www.allaboutqualitative.com)
