Anti-bullying training for teachers: A randomized-controlled comparative study on the differential effectiveness and the mechanisms of change of a teacher-centred cooperative intervention approach

• Applicants: Professor Dr. Marc Allroggen; Professor Dr. Ludwig Bilz; Dr. Saskia Fischer; Professor Dr. Herbert Scheithauer
• Subject Area: Educational Research on Socialization, Welfare and Professionalism
• Term: since 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 529552971

Bullying at school is a phenomenon of violence that has been the focus of research for years. However, it remains an everyday experience for many schoolchildren. The negative consequences for learners are severe and long-lasting, affecting not only mental health (e.g. depression, anxiety disorders, psychosomatic complaints) but also learning at school. Teachers' responses to bullying incidents can have a significant impact on the incidence of bullying among students in schools. However, many teachers do not feel adequately prepared to intervene consistently. In fact, there are many prevention programmes for bullying, but they are primarily student-centred. Teachers are usually not taught the skills to intervene and check the success of the intervention, to recognise the negative consequences of bullying for the mental health of those affected, and how to deal with it. If teachers are specifically addressed in anti-bullying programmes, evidence of effectiveness is lacking. In addition to imparting knowledge, training measures for teachers should also address concrete strategies for intervening in bullying and relevant competencies. This requires activating methods and experience-based exercises, a linking of preventive and interventive strategies as well as a sufficient training duration. This is not usually done in current anti-bullying measures. This research project aims to investigate the effectiveness of a teacher training that is based on empirical findings. Therefore, a cooperative, teacher-centred intervention approach to bullying had been developed. The effectiveness of this approach will be investigated in a randomized, comparative control group design. The additional benefits of combining an established student-oriented program with the new teacher training (intervention group) will be analysed by comparing it with the stand-alone student-oriented program (control group) in a sample of 2.280 students and 120 class teachers in 24 schools. Because of the well-known severe negative consequences of bullying on school children's mental health, decreasing mental health impairments is another aim of the teacher training, next to reducing bullying. Also, the mechanisms underlying the cooperative, teacher-centred anti-bullying approach are investigated. To answer these research questions, data from both teachers and school children will be combined. The findings of this research project will close gaps in school-related research on violence and violence prevention. They can be used for enhancements of school-based anti-bullying approaches and for pre-service and in-service training on intervening in bullying.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Co-Investigator: Professorin Dr. Felicitas Thiel