Increases in high school female bullying and relational aggression

Relational Bullying

Contextual Information

The study will take place at a public high school in Florida. The proposed site has a faculty of 184 teachers and six administrators. The faculty is highly qualified and over 90% of the faculty have attained a Master's Degree or higher. Students are from a variety of ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds.

Bullying in schools has become a significant concern of students, parents, teachers, and government officials and has been said to be responsible for a number of suicides and other tragedies involving high school students who were the victims of bullying (U.S. Department of Education, 1999). Bullying is defined as repeated verbal, physical, or psychological actions directed against a person(s) who cannot or will not defend themselves against them (U.S. Department of Education, 1999). Depending on the study anywhere from 10-20% of U.S. high school students claim that they have been bullied by their peers (Nansel et al., 2001; Wang, Iannotti, & Nansel, 2009).

Relational bullying. Relational bullying occurs when the bully victimizes a person by ostracizing them or damaging their peer relationships (Dukes, Stein, & Zane, 2010). This type of bullying is more prevalent among females than males; however, it occurs among both genders. In addition, peer relationships are extremely important in adolescence (Brown, 2004) and the damaging effects of relational bullying can be as severe as other types of bullying.

The consequences of bullying. Victims of bullying may develop psychiatric disorders, problems will self-esteem, and poor motivation to engage in academic endeavors resulting in decreased grades, rises in absenteeism, and poorer social development (Klomek et al., 2007). Approaches to decreasing bullying often involve increasing the social skills of the victims or having victims and bullies work together towards joint goals (Swearer, Espelage, Vaillancourt, & Hymel, 2010).

Marital arts training. There are many anecdotal stories expressing the opinion that martial arts training is an effective intervention for the victims of all types of bullying; however, the empirical research examining this relationship is lacking. Martial arts training has been linked with reduced violent behaviors in children and adolescents and greater self-esteem (e.g., Burt & butler, 2011). Martial arts training may be an effective intervention that can help victims of relational bullying overcome being the victims of others.

About the Researcher

The main researcher for this project currently serves as a high school educator in the metropolitan area in the southern part of the United States. The school district that the researcher is employed in serves a multiplicity of ethnic populations who come from all levels of socioeconomic statuses. The researcher also serves as an active participant on an anti-crime committee that is focused on reducing negative behaviors of youth and teenagers who attend both public and private schools. The researcher also serves as mentor for several community programs for troubled teenagers and as an advisor for a program that serves females between the ages of 10-18 years old. This program provides leadership training, tutoring, and life skill training to help to develop these individuals into productive active citizens.

Working with young female clients has exposed the researcher to the effects of relational bullying and the researcher has witnessed the pain and anguish that these victims are exposed to as a result of being bullied. The researcher has developed a keen interest in discovering ways to counteract the effects of bullying in high school students. The current research is an effort to determine if a specific intervention cannot only reduce victimization of relational bullying but also help the victims of relational bullying develop better self-esteem so that they are less likely to become victims of bullying in the future.

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this study is to determine if martial arts training can reduce the incidence of victimization by relational bullying and female high school students, increase the victim's self-esteem, and decrease depressive symptoms.

Definitions of Major Concepts

Martial arts training in this study will be defined as learning the Korean martial art to tae kwon do. Relational bullying will be determined by the self-report of the female participants in the study and will conform to Dukes et al. (2010) descriptions of the types of activities that qualify as relational bullying.

Chapter 2: Literature Review

Definition of Bullying

According to Smith and Brain (2000) there are two components of bullying: the repetition of harmful or potentially harmful actions and a power imbalance between the bully and victim. Bullying involves repeated verbal, physical, or psychological actions (physical attacks or intimidation) directed against a person who cannot or will not defend themselves against them. In most instances of bullying the victim is lesser in stature or strength than the bully or is outnumbered (U.S. Department of Education, 1999). Acts of bullying can include assaults, intimidation, tripping, demands for money, theft the possessions, property destruction, spreading rumors, name-calling, and other behaviors. In the United States several specific behaviors in school are also recognized as types of bullying and these include (U.S. Department of Education, 1999):

1. Sexual harassment which can include anything from unwanted sexual physical contact (sexual abuse), sexual propositioning, exhibitionism, and even voyeurism.

2. Ostracizing someone based on their sexual orientation.

3. Hazing.

Not every instance of physical aggression, teasing, fighting, and so forth fits the formal definition of bullying. For example, two individuals in school who either tease one another back and forth or even physically fight with one another but are proximately of the same physical or psychological strength would not constitute an instance of bullying according to the strict definition. Bullying occurs when the perpetrator (bully) is more powerful than the victim. This can be expressed in a number of ways including physical, psychological, or as stated above in number. This is a key aspect in the definition of what constitutes bullying and what constitutes "normal" instances of fighting and conflict among students. As mentioned above instances of bullying typically also involve repetitive acts.

Prevalence of Bullying

Studies in countries outside the United States that occurred in the 1980s and 1990s reported that between eight and 38% of students in schools are bullied with some regularity (e.g., Olweus, Limber, & Mahalic, 1999; Perry, Kusel, & Perry, 1988). In addition, the same studies reported that between five and nine percent of students may regularly bully other students. Students that are chronic victims, defined as being bullied once a week or more than once a week, were found to be between eight and twenty percent of the student population. Studies looking at the prevalence of bullying in U.S. schools were limited during this period; however, there was an increase in the studies in the U.S. In the late 1990s and beyond. For example, Nansel et al. (2001) found that over 10% of a represented a sample of over 15,000 students reported being the victims of bullying in school. Younger students and male students were more likely to be bullied than older students and female students. Wang et al. (2009) report data on a large sample of students (over 7000 student participants) to determine prevalence rates. Data from the study indicated that over 20% reported being bullied physically, over 53% reported being bullied verbally, over 51% reported being bullied socially, and over 13% of the sample reported being bullied electronically in the two months previous to the study. Again, males reported that they were more likely to be bullied than female students; however, male students were more likely to be bullied physically, whereas female students were more likely to be the victims of relational bullying. This last finding has been replicated elsewhere despite a mild decline in students reported being the victims of bullying (Shetgiri, Lin, & Flores, 2013).

Relational Bullying

Females are more likely to be the targets of relational bullying although both males and females can be victims of this type of bullying (Wang et al., 2009). Crick and Grotpeter (1995) defined relational bullying as a hidden type of aggression where the bully attacks the victim by means of a targeted manipulation with the intent of damaging of the victim's relationships with their peers. Relationships with peers are vitally important for children; however, peer relationships become even more important during adolescence because the young person begins to identify less with significant caregivers and more with individuals that share their physical, chronological, and social attributes (Brown, 2004). Peer relationships become increasingly important for the psychological development of adolescents and many models of development consider them especially important for healthy psychological development and adjustment (Brown, 2004). Because of the shared importance of peer relationships between adolescence types of bullying targeted at disrupting or damaging and adolescence relationship with their peers can be particularly painful and can incur longer-lasting psychological disruption for the victim (Klomek et al., 2007). Relational bullying can occur by means of several different methods (Dukes et al., 2010; Wang et al., 2009):

1. Excluding the victim from the peer group. In this form of bullying the bully(s) make sure that the victim is aware that they are not welcome to associate with a particular group of peers.

2. Stonewalling, or what many people, referred to as "silent treatment" occurs when the bully or group simply ignores the victim completely. This can be extremely distressing to adolescents. This often occurs with group exclusion.

3. A common form of relational bullying is the spreading of rumors and gossip about the victim. This is a direct attempt to ruin the victim's relationships and exclude them from contact with their peers and even with adults.

4. Taunting occurs when the bully insults or verbally abuses the victim directly. Taunting often continues even when the victim physically breaks down.

5. Conditional friendships occur when the bully places demands on the victim in order for the victim to be allowed in the group were with peers.

The effects of relational bullying are often more psychologically damaging than the effects of more physical forms of bullying. In addition, relational and physical bullying are often carried out simultaneously on the victim (Dukes et al., 2010). A victim of relational bullying and the associated difficulty in the victim's relationships with their peers have been demonstrated to be linked to various other problems such as depression, decreased academic performance, poor social skills, issues with self-esteem, and even somatic symptoms such as nausea, headaches, and bedwetting (Klomek et al., 2007; Macmillan & Hagan, 2004). Adolescent victims of bullying can respond in a variety of different ways and there is no solid method of prediction as to how someone will respond to relational bullying perhaps other than looking at past responses to bullying. It is known that female victims of relational bullying are more likely to experience suicidal ideations and are at a greater risk for suicide than male victims, although both genders are at risk for this behavior (Klomek et al., 2007).

Prevention Programs

Prevention programs targeted at the victims of bullying and relational bullying most often focused on one of three approaches (Swearer et al., 2010; Weissberg, Caplan, M., & Harwood, 1991):

1. Teaching social skills to the victims.

2. Having victims and bullies participate together and activities aimed at a supraordinate goal and under the supervision of teachers or even psychologists.

3. Cognitive behavioral training for the victims and their problems.

The results of these three interventions have been mixed. There are some protective factors for the victim of bullying. Wang et al. (2009) found that greater parental support was associated with less involvement across all forms and classifications of bullying and children with had more friends was associated with less victimization from bullying (but bullies were also likely to have more friends than victims).

Martial Arts Training and Bullying

A suggested intervention for the victims of bullying is martial arts training (e.g., Burrows, 2011). While there are quite a number of popular anecdotal tales about training in martial arts leading to a reduction in victimization by bullies, martial arts training has not been fully investigated empirically regarding its utility in decreasing victimization of bullying. There has been research that indicates that martial arts training is a positive intervention to decrease youth violence and therefore may reduce the aggressive actions of bullies (e.g., Burt & Butler, 2011).

There have also been a number of empirical studies that indicated that training in different types of martial arts does increase overall self-esteem, confidence, and self -discipline in children, adolescents, and adults (e.g., Columbus & Rice, 1998). This research along with the numerous anecdotal stories of the positive benefits of martial arts training and its ability to help victims of bullying indicates that research may discover a positive relationship between learning martial arts and a reduction in victimization to bullies.

Research Questions

This study will seek to answer three core questions:

1. Does martial arts training for female victims of relational bullying result in a decrease in bullying?

2. Does martial arts training for female victims of relational bullying result in increased self-esteem?

3. Does martial arts training for female victims of relational bullying result in decreases in their level of depression?

Chapter 3: Methodology

Problem Statement

Bullying is a serious concern for many high school students, parents, and teachers in U.S. schools. The results of being a victim of bullying can be quite serious and paralyzing. Relational bullying targets the victim's relationships with his/her peers by isolating the victim from their peer group. Interventions to reduce victimization from bullying often include social skills training and cognitive restructuring; however, martial arts training may also be useful in empowering victims of relational bullying. The current study attempts to determine if martial arts training can help female victims of relational bullying.

Participants

The participants for the current study will be 50 female high school students in grades 9-12 who have been victims of relational bullying. The study body of the high school from which the participants will be sampled has an ethnic mix of 84% European-American, nine percent African-American, three percent Asian-American and Hispanic-American, and less than one percent Indian-American or multi-racial Americans. It is therefore expected that the majority of the sample will be European-American.

Approximately 40% of the student enrollment in the high school participates in the free and reduced lunch program indicating that potentially a high proportion of students will be from lower socio-economic status parents.

Instruments

The current study will use three formal measures:

The Revised Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire (OBVQ; Olweus, 1996). The OBVQ consists of 40 questions for the measurement of bully/victim problems such as, exposure to various physical, verbal, relational, or sexual forms of bullying/harassment. Bulling questions are answered on a five point scale relating to the number of times the victim has been bullied in a specific manner over the previous two months. The scale also measures such things as where the bullying occurs and the extent to which teachers, peers, and parents are informed about and respond to the bullying. Psychometric studies of the OBVQ have indicated high internal consistency (.8 to .9) and excellent construct and criterion validity (Kyriakides, Kaloyirou & Lindsay, 2006; Cheng, Chen, Liu & Chen, 2011). The questions relating specifically to instances of relational bullying will be used in the analysis for the current study (q4, q5, q6, q8, q10, q11, and q12).

The Beck Depression Inventory -- II (BDI-II; Beck, Steer, & Brown, 1996). The BDI-II consists of 21 items read by the subject (or alternatively they can be read to the subject by the administrator). Each item is followed by four options (statements) that the respondent is required to endorse as they are related to their feelings over the prior two weeks including the day of the assessment. The items reflect different dimensions of depression ranging from sadness to loss of energy to loss of interest in activities such as sex. The BDI-II has excellent reliability and validity across all age groups (Segal, Coolidge, Cahill, & O'Riley, 2008). It can be used over multiple assessments and remains one of the most used measures of depression for both research and clinical uses. The overall score from the BDI-II will be used for this study.

The Rosenburg Self-Esteem Test (RSE; Rosenburg, 1965). The RSE one of the most utilized measures of global self-esteem. It is a brief 10-question measure. Each question has four possible Likert-scale responses. Psychiatric studies of the RSE have consistently demonstrated acceptable reliability and validity (Robins, Hendin, & Trzesniewski, 2001). The overall total score for the RSE will be used in this study.

In addition to the three formal psychiatric measures the current study will utilize tae kwon do instruction from a registered black belt level tae kwon do martial artist who has experience teaching adolescents martial arts.

Procedures

The design will be a quasi-experimental design. The participants will be recruited via a post on the school bulletin board. The post will ask for participation in the study on bullying in females. Since relational bullying is the primary form of bullying between females Dukes et al. (2010) it can be expected that the majority of female respondents will be victims of relational bullying. In addition, the researcher will personally recruit female victims of relational bullying based on the researcher's knowledge of female students who have been bullied or complained of being bullied. Participants will fill out information forms to get their basic demographic data. The OBVQ will be given to each participant as a pretest to determine their experience in being a victim of relational bullying and relatively free from other forms of bullying. Upon recruitment participants will also receive the BDI -- II and the RSE for pretest measures of their level of depression and self-esteem. A basic explanation of the study design and informed consent from the parents of all the participants will be obtained.

After taking the pretest participants will be randomly assigned to a control group (no martial arts classes) and a treatment group that will engage in free tae kwon do training from a local tae kwon do school. The tae kwon do training will be provided by a black belt level tae kwon do instructor who will also informed of the nature of the study. This will allow the training, discussion of philosophy, and level of exposure to be fairly prevalent among all of the participants in the treatment group. Participants in the treatment group will agree to attend tae kwon do classes at least three times a week for six months and their attendance will be monitored by the tae kwon do instructor.

The tae kwon do instruction is based on the concept that each martial arts student is different and each student has different needs. Different methods are used by tae kwon do instructors to teach students not only martial arts techniques but other abilities such as self-control, courtesy, goal setting, integrity, confidence, self-awareness, respect, and dedication.

Data Collection and Analysis. The OBVQ, BDI-II, and RSE will be re -- administered at two months, four months, and six months to both the treatment and control group. At the end of the six-month study period he control group will have the option to engage in six months of free tae kwon do classes if they so choose.