Rethinking School-Based Bullying Prevention Through the Lens of Social and Emotional Learning: a Bioecological Perspective

Abstract

This article makes the case for shifting the national focus from bullying prevention to the systemic integration of evidence-based practices of social and emotional learning (SEL) into US school programs and policies. Several meta-analyses demonstrate that SEL is a promising approach for reducing a range of disruptive behaviors in schools. The data also show that SEL enhances school engagement and climate, interpersonal relationships, well-being, and academic achievement. We critically analyze existing approaches to bullying prevention in the USA and, from a bioecological perspective, describe their limitations, in addition to the importance of emotions in the organization of children's development. We discuss why schools should address the social and emotional development of children and adults in order to decrease harmful behaviors, form positive relationships, support psychological health, and offer more effective education. The bioecological perspective provides a framework for successfully integrating whole-school, evidence-based approaches to SEL, including statewide adoption of SEL standards and increased focus on school climate.

Understanding Classroom Bullying Climates: the Role of Student Body Composition, Relationships, and Teaching Quality

“…The findings of this paper also indicate that bullying might be effectively reduced with school intervention efforts that target student-student relationships directly, although additional research is needed to evaluate whether the link from student-student relationships to bullying is indeed causal. Divecha and Brackett (2019) argue that bullying prevention programs require a shift towards evidence-based practices of social-emotional learning (SEL) in order to become more effective, and refer to meta-analytic analyses to support their case (Durlak et al 2011). These suggest that socialemotional learning improves relationships and reduces bullying.…”

When and How Do Emotional Intelligence and Flourishing Protect against Suicide Risk in Adolescent Bullying Victims?

“…On the other hand, based on our study, EI has been a key variable-like antecedent, not only of flourishing but also of suicide risk among bullying victims. Thus, EI could be considered a relevant, positive-personal resource for coping with bullying victimization [77]. Additionally, since we found strong relationships between EI and flourishing, it would also be interesting to examine how other variables might contribute to achieving more well-being or even how other factors (i.e., gender) might explain differences in adjustment when bullying or other stressful life events occur.…”

“…Regarding practical implications, prevention and intervention programs should take into consideration not only anti-bullying policies and curriculum-based activities, but also training on EI to manage school-related stressors and the negative emotions associated with them. EI training can contribute to improve EI and conflict resolution skills together with impulse control and anger management [77]. Since EI is significantly related to prosocial goals and behaviors, this training could be beneficial not only in terms of the prevention of aggression and bullying problems among adolescents but also in terms of improving the quality of the relationships among peers.…”

How Teachers Deal with Cases of Bullying at School: What Victims Say

“…It does not examine the equally important proactive work that is done by schools in seeking to prevent bullying between students, for example, through education designed to develop positive social and emotional attitudes and skills of 11 in students. Such interventions may result in fewer cases taking place and improve the likelihood that case interventions may be successful [8,9]. However, schools still need to carry out reactive interventions when cases of bullying are reported to them.…”