To tell or not to tell about bullying-New insights from the study on the perceptions of criminal sanctioning, anticipation of school punishment, agency, and trust toward school staff

The primary aim of this study was to determine whether perceptions of criminal sanctioning and school punishment predict students' willingness to report different types of bullying (material, physical, sexual, verbal, relational, and cyberbullying). An online survey was conducted with secondary school students (n = 1092) as participants. Traditionally included predictors (trust toward school staff, cost of reporting bullying, gender, and school agency) were also incorporated into a multiple linear regression analysis. The perception of criminal sanctioning for a particular type of bullying was a significant predictor of the willingness to report a given type of bullying, whereas anticipation of school punishment was relevant only in the case of cyberbullying. Trust toward school staff and gender were also significant predictors of willingness to report any type of bullying. School agency helped predict the willingness to report any kind of bullying except cyberbullying. Surprisingly, the costs of reporting bullying were relevant only in the case of material bullying. These results have important implications for stakeholders and school administration in identifying unreported bullying, developing and implementing anti-bullying policies, and introducing programs aimed at improving students' legal awareness.

Teachers' Willingness to Seek Help for Violence Against Them: The Moderating Effect of Teachers' Seniority

Students' violence against teachers is a significant problem in many schools worldwide. Yet very little is known about the teachers who suffer from violence and the way they contend with it. The current study focused on teachers' willingness to seek help for violence. More specifically it focused on the effect of teachers' seniority-by means of time (years of teaching) and proficiency general pedagogical knowledge (GPK)-on their willingness to seek help from other teacher-colleagues or members of school management. The sample consisted of 233 Israeli teachers (199 women) from elementary (35%), middle (34.2%), and high school (45%). Teachers' ages were 21 to 68 (mean = 41.77; SD = 10.96), and years of teaching ranged from less than 1 year up to 40 years in the school system (mean = 12.13; SD = 10.67). The findings revealed a negative correlation between victimization and willingness to seek help: namely, the higher the level of violence teachers suffered, the less willing they were to seek help from either colleagues or school management. Also, senior teachers were less likely to seek help from colleagues than were novice teachers, and the negative association between victimization and willingness to seek help was stronger among teachers who had a higher GPK. Moreover, years of teaching served as a risk factor for help-seeking from colleagues, and GPK served as a risk factor for help-seeking from both colleagues and management, but only amidst high levels of violence. Findings revealed the difficulties teachers have when facing violence as well as the role played by their professional status when considering seeking help at school.

Professional and informal help-seeking among low-income adolescents exposed to violence in the community and at school

BACKGROUND

Adolescents may seek help for many reasons beyond health needs, such as personal stress due to violence exposure.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate factors associated with receiving professional assistance and informal help due to violence exposure in the community and at school.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

This study was conducted in Itaboraí, a low-income medium-size city in the State of Rio de Janeiro, Southeast Brazil, characterized by poverty, inequality and violence. It analyses data reported by 669 in-school adolescents (11-15-years, 51.7% girls).

METHODS

This is a cross-sectional study nested in a longitudinal study (Itaboraí Youth Study). The Itaboraí Youth Study involved a probabilistic community-based sample of 1409 6-to-15-year-olds based on a 3-stage probabilistic sampling plan that included a random selection of census units, eligible households and the target child.

RESULTS

Professional assistance was mainly received from psychologists (the Brazilian population has free access to health services). Family members were the main source of informal help. Correlates of professional assistance were having clinical emotional problems and not counting on an adult (if needing help) for community violence victims, and absent father for community and school violence victims. Correlates of informal help were female sex, maternal anxiety/depression and absent father for community violence victims, and younger age and higher maternal education for school violence victims.

CONCLUSIONS

The mental health needs of violence victims, and maternal difficulties to deal with the adolescent distress resulting from violence exposure (maternal increased burden due to father absence and/or having anxiety/depression) are important influences on the help-seeking process.