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Running head: EMPATHY BASED ANTI-BULLY PROGRAM 1

Empathy Based Anti-Bully Program

A Summary Paper

Presented to

The Faculty of the Adler Graduate School

________________________

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for

The Degree of Master of Arts in

Adlerian Counseling and Psychotherapy

_________________________

By:

Stacy Gustafson

October 2012

EMPATHY BASED ANTI-BULLY PROGRAM 2

Abstract

Bullying is a growing and persistent problem in schools throughout the world. Many children

must live with being bullied on a daily basis. The topic of bullying can no longer be ignored.

The rate of bully related suicides has been on a steady increase throughout the past few years.

Schools must take a firm and active stance against any types of bully behavior. This paper

explores all aspects of bullying and steps that can be taken to minimize or eradicate bullying in

all public schools. The main points in this paper explore the anti-bully program to be discussed

in greater detail during the presentation. The program includes a firm anti-bully policy;

contracts; empathy and anti-bully curriculum; individual and group therapy with bullying,

empathy and parenting topics. This bully prevention program has many Adlerian Psychology

parallels while encouraging growth through social interest.


Acknowledgement

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the incredible teachers at the Adler

Graduate School. The education I received will be a valuable asset to my future profession. I

feel so fortunate to have learned the many Adlerian concepts that will only help future clients.

To Gladys Folkers, my chair person for this project, thank you for all of your help and

suggestions. You helped me keep focus on the goal of finishing this daunting project.

I am so grateful for the support and encouragement from my family. I am especially

grateful for my wonderful husband. I admire you in so many ways for allowing me the time to

fulfill my dream. You have been very compassionate and supportive through this educational

process. You were able to over-look the piles of books and papers throughout the house and

took on my role as the “domestic goddess/god”. I am so grateful for everything you have done

for our family in the past 5 years. My family has been my cheerleader through this. I love you

all so very much! I also need to thank my car for never failing me on the long three hour

commutes to school. And finally, I want to thank God for giving me the strength to keep going

to the very end.


Table of Contents

Abstract Page 2

Acknowledgements Page 3

Introduction Page 5

The Bullying Problem Page 6

The Effects of Video and Media Page 7

Lack of Empathy Page 9

Bully Home Environment Page 10

Ending the Cycle of Violence Page 13

Empathy Building Anti-bully Program for Schools Page 14

Individual and Group Therapy Page 17

School Faculty Page 18

Student Involvement Page 19

Adlerian Techniques Page 22

Conclusion Page 23

References Page 24


Empathy Based Anti-Bully Program

Bullying is a common occurrence of violence among children. It is experienced in

schools, neighborhoods and homes throughout the world. This type of violence often occurs out

of the presence of adults or in the presence of adults who do not intercede. School bullying has

come into the spot light because of the school shootings and the growing rate of bullying related

suicides. Bullying affects the social environment of schools in which it creates a climate of fear

among the students, affecting the student’s ability to learn and causing other antisocial behavior.

Schools, students, parents and communities should take an active approach to send the message

that bullying behavior will not be tolerated. Anti-bully school programs have been fairly

successful to recognize, prevent, and intervene in bullying behavior. This paper will explore

different aspects of bullying behavior and methods to eradicate bullying from schools.

By incorporating empathy based learning and therapy for the bully and his/her parents,

this anti-bully program will address all of the major components of bullying and how it can be

confronted and stopped. According to research results, children who participate in empathy-

based learning demonstrate an increase in social/emotional understanding, display pro-social

behavior, and display a decrease in aggression. These children become more caring, helpful,

kind and feel more accepted by their peers (Santos, Whalen, Chateau, & Boyd, 2011).

Therapy for the bully and his/her parents is an important factor for eliminating bullying.

The therapy sessions involve empathy building themes and learning new parenting techniques.

Bullies sometimes grow up in families that have high levels of conflict and low levels of parental

monitoring (Cook, William, Guerra, Kim, & Sadek, 2010). The parents are often overbearing

and controlling and may become involved in physical, mental, or even cyber bullying. Bullying,

which is often learned at home, must be addressed in order for the anti-bullying program to


succeed. If bullying in the home is not addressed, the cycle of bullied children growing up and

bullying their own children will continue. With the involvement of empathy-based curriculum in

school, a firm anti-bully policy, anti-bully contracts and therapeutic interventions schools will be

successful in reducing or eliminating bullying in the school.

The Bullying Problem

The problem of bullying needs a solution in order to reduce the aggression in youth and

the negative effects on the cognitive and moral development, academic adjustment, resiliency,

and adaptive behavior for adolescents who bully others (Hun-Soo & Hyun-Sil, 2007). Many

types of bullying include aggression in the form of physical, verbal, cyber and psychological

behavior that is repeated over time and can create a negative impact on the victim of the bully.

According to bullyingstatistics.org.(2012), acts of bullying can cause the victim to suffer from

depression (possible suicide), drug use and delayed social development. Many of these problems

can extend into adulthood. Bullying is part of a social phenomenon that involves an imbalance

of power in a relationship that is either real or perceived. The relationship between the bully and

his or her target often relates to group behavior and hierarchies (Nansel, Overpeck, Pilla, Ruan,

Simons-Morton, & Scheidt, 2001; Pearce, 1998).

Bullying is characterized as unwanted, aggressive behavior that occurs among children in

school involving a real or perceived imbalance of power (Olweus, 1991). This behavior is

possibly repeated over time. The actions involved with bullying include threats, spreading

rumors, physically or verbally attacking someone, cyber bullying and purposely excluding

another from a group. Children who bully lack empathy for others. The ability to empathize

with others is related to the ability to create pro-social behaviors and block aggressive behaviors

(Espelage, Mebane, & Adams, 2004).


Empathy building programs have had statistically positive effects on reducing bullying

and developing awareness of the effects of bullying on others (Stanbury, Bruce, Jain, & Stellem,

2009). A study about empathy-building programs reported that the experimental group engaged

less in bullying behavior towards others. By building confidence and empathy with students,

combined with counselor and teacher assistance, schools can decrease bullying behavior

regarding both the target of bullying as well as the perpetrator (Stanbury et al., 2009). Empathy

taught in the classroom, when applied, can be effective in reducing levels of aggression among

the students while producing social/emotional competence and an increase in empathy

(Schonert-Reichl, Smith, Zaidman-Zait, & Hertzman, 2011). Throughout the years the level of

empathy has greatly decreased (Borba, 2010). Empathy education is needed due to this decrease

in student empathy.

The Effects of Video and Media

With the increase of video and media involvement, children are exposed to a virtual

world that does not involve empathy. A child who is exposed to high levels of media violence

will be more likely to become desensitized to real-life violence. The child will not have any

feelings of sympathy or empathy to others who are in pain. Children learn aggressive behavior

from the media. In a study conducted in 2008, it was found that teens in the United States were

more aggressive if they chronically played violent video games than if they didn’t.

(http://www.teenviolencestatistics.com/content/media-and-teen-violence.html, 2009). Children

who see violence frequently on television can become less sensitive to the pain and suffering of

others. They come to view aggression as an acceptable way of solving problems; they are more

prone to criminal behavior and they get their way, settle disputes, and acquire things by using

force without suffering any consequences. According to Ken Shore (2011), children are exposed


to an astounding amount of violence on television. By the age of 14, a child will have seen as

many as 11,000 murders on television. The average cartoon depicts 26 violent incidents.

Children see television characters get their way, settle disputes, and acquire things by using force

without suffering any consequences. Children learn that aggression pays off. Research indicates

that children who see violence frequently on television can become less sensitive to the pain and

suffering of others and come to view aggression as an acceptable way of solving problems

(Shore, 2011).

A study conducted at the Indiana University School of Medicine examined brain scans

of adolescents playing video games. The adolescents who played violent video games showed

an increase of activity in the parts of the brain that control inhibition, attention and self-control

(Smith, Lachlan, & Tamborini, 2003). Children may become less sensitive to the pain and

suffering of others, more fearful of the world around them, and more likely to behave in

aggressive or hurtful ways toward others when they watch violence in the form of video games

and television (Tompkins, 2003). Jean Decety (2008), from the University of Chicago has

conducted research on aggressive youth and brain waves concerning empathy. According to

Decety, aggressive adolescents show a specific and very strong activation of the amygdala and

ventral striatum (an area that responds to feeling rewarded) when watching pain inflicted on

others. The results of this study indicate that the test subjects enjoy watching pain inflicted on

others and enjoy watching someone experiencing pain. Decety, an expert who studies empathy

and social neuroscience, reports some aggressive youth (bullies) may have disrupted empathetic

impulses that may lead to increased aggression and lack of empathy (Decety, Michalska, &

Akitsuki, 2008).


Lack of Empathy

Empathy can be taught, but requires experiential learning, and takes practice. According

to Carl Rogers (1959), empathy is defined as:

To perceive the internal frame of reference of another with accuracy and with the

emotional components and meanings which pertain thereto as if one were the person, but

without ever losing the "as if" condition. Thus, it means to sense the hurt or the pleasure

of another as he senses it and to perceive the causes thereof as he perceives them, but

without ever losing the recognition that it is as if I were hurt or pleased and so forth. (p.

210).

Neuroscientists, psychologists and educators believe bullying and other forms of violence can be

reduced by encouraging empathy at an early age. Research indicates empathy is an important

factor to all human social interaction and morality. According to research evidence, human

empathy can be learned. Learning empathy involves many different types of skills and social

beliefs (Perry & Szalavitz, 2010). Research suggests moral behavior in children is not acquired

automatically; rather, it is initially and mainly influenced by others' instruction, supervision,

correction, modeling and an establishment of rewards and punishments (Berkowitz & Grych,

1998; Woolfolk, 2001).

The role of a parent has influence on the development of empathy. Many studies have

reported a connection between parenting practices and empathy in children. Studies tracking

children from an early age have reported that children with secure attachment relationships show

greater empathy, stronger emotional coping skills and more developed moral sensibilities

(Elicker, Englund, & Sroufe, 1992; Easterbrooks, Biesecker, & Lyons, 2000; Kerns, Abraham,

Schlegelmilch, & Morgan, 2007). Research results have demonstrated adults and children are


capable of learning to be more sensitive and responsive. Human empathy requires sharing the

feelings of another, a sense of self-awareness and the ability to distinguish personal feelings from

the feelings of others (Decety & Jackson, 2004). Research has found positive parenting

practices are associated with higher levels of child pro-social behavior (Farrant, Devine,

Mayberry, & Fletcher, 2012).

Bully Home Environment

Bullies often come from homes with little parental supervision and higher levels of

conflict (Cook, William, Guerra, Kim, & Sadek, 2010). The parents might model aggressive

behavior as a way of solving their problems. They may discipline through a combination of

corporal punishment and angry outbursts. Even when parents are aware their children are

bullies, they dismiss the acts of bullying as a rite of passage or part of the ‘normal’

developmental process (McNamara & McNamara, 1997). The parents could possibly support

their child’s bullying behavior by their failure to disapprove of it, or their outright endorsement

of it (Coloroso, 2008). The parents of the bully often fail to model non-violent ways of dealing

with social problems, so their children will not learn the social skills they need to resolve

conflicts through cooperation (Patterson, 1982). The major challenge is to try to stop or disrupt

the cycle of violence (Coloroso, 2008).

Bullies are often victims of the systems around them. The family system is one of the

main factors that help create bullying behavior. Bullying can be better understood by examining

the family environment. Bullying is associated with families in which members do not have

respect for each other or families in which children are not taught to respect the rights of others

(Sanders & Phye, 2004). Understanding bullying behavior allows the family to expand the


punitive responses to bullying to include healing and rehabilitation. For this to occur, the parents

of the bullies should be included in the healing and rehabilitation process.

Research suggests children who bully others often originate from dysfunctional homes

with hostile parents who reject and are indifferent to their children (Olweus, 1994). Discipline in

these homes is usually inconsistent and punitive (Carney & Merrell, 2001). Punishment is often

in physical form or angry, emotional outbursts followed by a period of ignoring the child

(Barton, 2003). Children who grow up with physical punishment tend to feel disempowered and

helpless and get their revenge on others who are weaker. Physical punishment is used to stop the

misbehavior immediately. The parents who use physical punishment justify this as being a

natural part of parenting because they were exposed to it as children. And the cycle of physical

punishment continues when the children from these families grow up to use physical punishment

as a form of discipline on their own children. When a parent hits a child, it sends the message

that it is acceptable to hit people-especially for bigger people to hit smaller people or that

stronger people can hit weaker people. The child learns this is an appropriate method to use at

school on smaller and weaker children. As a result, children learn from home that hostile acts

can be used as a means to an end to obtain what they want (Roberts, 2000). Bullies are taught to

get what they want through the use of force. They respond to challenges with confrontation

(Perry, Viglione, & Braff, 1992). When these children are challenged with confrontation they

will respond with their fists rather than with words. Children who grow up in a home with harsh

discipline do not always understand the reasons behind the strictness; they feel threatened and

perceive the way they are treated as abusive and bullying. They feel powerless and try to gain

power away from home.


The bullies have a need for power and dominance. They like to be in control and have

the need to subdue others. Students who engage in bullying behavior appear to obtain

satisfaction from causing injury and suffering on others, have little or no empathy for their

targets, and will often defend their actions by claiming they were innocent (McMullen, 2005).

When children grow up in families where there is a certain degree of hostility, they may derive

satisfaction from inflicting injury and suffering on another child. The child takes his/her

aggression to school and manipulates and controls the behavior of his/her target and the

bystanders in order to derive some level of comfort (McMullen, 2005). Often, the parents have

grown up with harsh discipline and are not aware they are bullying their children and abusing

their parental authority. They are raising their children in an environment of constant fear,

threats and feelings of powerlessness. When parents require absolute obedience and rule their

homes with fear, the child is taught to not express their true feelings (Coloroso, 2008).

When children are not able to express their feelings, they become angry, fearful, sad, and

hurt. They have no outlet for these feelings which will eventually erupt. When a child does get

to this point, one of three things can occur. First, children can go through passive destruction

acts against their self (this signals poor self-esteem and possible self-hatred) by avoiding their

feelings. Second, they may also use aggressive acts against others in the form of verbal,

physical, or relational bullying (Barton, 2003). This only creates new problems. The third

occurrence is a combination of the other two passive-aggression acts. The children feel they are

neither responsible to themselves or to others. They use devious ways to hurt people by making

sarcastic remarks or put-downs. They harbor anger and use negative energy to target others

(Coloroso, 2008).


These children also learn that “love” is highly conditional. In order to receive affection

and approval, they must do as they are told and must never be disobedient. The child is taught

what to think, not how to think. A child, who is taught “what” to think, is much easier to

manipulate. This will cause the child to do something to please someone else instead of doing

something that may be good for them or for someone in need. When children are not allowed to

think or make choices for themselves, they will not be able to properly reason and will seek other

alternatives (bullying) to get what they need. Studies have found that higher rates of aggression

in the family result in children with higher aggression rates (Horne & Sayger, 1990). Without

intervention at this point, the parents will continue this cycle of bullying to their children.

When these children get older, they will be at risk for further acts of violence, including

frequent fighting and carrying weapons (Shore, 2011). Bullying was a factor in 2/3 of the 37

school shootings reviewed by the US Secret Service. There is a strong relationship between

bullying students and involvement with legal and criminal problems as an adult. Olweus (1993)

also found that 60% of those characterized as bullies in grades 6-9 had at least one criminal

conviction by age 24. Recurrent bullying behaviors that extend into adulthood negatively

influence the ability to develop and maintain positive relationships (Oliver, Hoover & Hazler,

1994).

Ending the Cycle of Violence

According to Kenneth Shore (2011), children are not born bullies. Bullies are made,

which means they can be unmade. Parents of bullies need to be involved in the process of

learning empathy skills. Improving parenting skills involves developing mutual respect among

family members in a democratic functioning family (Popkin, 2002). Children should be raised

with encouragement in order to build the child’s self-esteem. The relationship between the


parents and the child should be based upon active listening, honest communication, and problem

solving. Natural and logical consequences should be used to reduce irresponsible and

unacceptable behaviors (Cline & Fay, 1992). With these consequences, the parents/caregivers

will be actively involved in the empathy building process. It is the parent’s responsibility to

attend to the examples they are setting for their children when it comes to power and how they

interact with their children (Popkin, 2002). Parents should model appropriate behavior in order

to teach their children the tools for appropriate interactions with others.

Empathy Building Anti-bully Program for Schools

Schools struggle with the problem of bullying and work towards violence prevention

during the school year. Violence prevention should be the main objective when examining anti-

bully programs to implement as part of a comprehensive school safety plan (Kaufman, Chen,

Choy, Chandler, Chapman, Rand & Ringel, 1998). This anti-bully program involves an

empathy-based curriculum for the students and therapeutic interventions to teach empathy and

parenting skills to the parents of offending bullies.

This proactive approach to bullying will develop a level of empathy for others that will

restrict the bully’s willingness to hurt others for personal gain. Researchers have shown that

school-based bullying prevention efforts can positively enhance school performance and

achievement (Fonagy, 2005). Another benefit for implementing anti-bullying programs is the

change that occurs with children on how they respond to children that bully (Aboud & Miller,

2007; Frey, Hirschstein, Edstrom, & Snell, 2009; Orpinas & Horne, 2006; Salmivalli, Karna, &

Poskiparta, 2010; Stevens, Van Oost, & De Bourdeaudhuij, 2000).

The bully problem should be addressed in a very direct and firm way. Schools should

implement anti-bully prevention programs in order to reduce or eliminate direct and indirect


bullying. When this occurs, it will create a healthier learning environment for the students in and

out of the school setting. This anti-bully school program involves teaching empathy skills to all

of the students. These empathy skills will be taught in a classroom setting, along with group

settings throughout the school year. When a student’s bully other students, they will be required

to attend group therapy in order to learn empathy skills. These students will be required to

complete two sessions, twice a week, of group therapy for this target group of bullies.

During the five week group therapy time, these students must be isolated from the other

students in a therapeutic in-school suspension type of setting. This allows these students to

maintain their school work while creating a therapeutic environment. The parents would also

become involved because they will be responsible for attending individual/group therapy

sessions, paying for the therapy sessions, and getting their student to school. These students

would not be allowed to use the school transportation until they have completed the ten session

group therapy. The parents would be required to go through ten sessions in a five week period of

individual and group re-parenting program that is heavily loaded with empathy building

parenting techniques.

The program will provide clear behavioral expectations that are free from loopholes or

ambiguity. There will be a thorough anti-bully policy in place that emphasizes a ZERO

tolerance for any type of bullying. In addition to the policy, all students in the school, their

parents/caregivers and the entire school faculty will sign a contract. It is suggested that the

school have an open house before classes resume in the fall in order to fully explain the anti-

bully school program that will be implemented. The faculty would emphasize that the nature of

the anti-bully program will stop all bullying in the school and that bullying will not be tolerated.


The parents/caregivers will be required to attend so they fully understand the consequences for

students who bully others and who support any bullying behavior. The schools must have a

structured system of behavioral expectations that clearly defines responsible student behavior

and specifies consequences for malicious acts against others (Cole, Cornell, & Sheras, 2006).

The first step in the empathy-based program is promoting it to all of the schools in

various school districts. The program includes educating all of the school personnel on how the

program works and the various class-room materials that will help teach empathy to all of the

students. Not only will this program teach empathy to the students but it will increase the

awareness of bullying in the school. This awareness will bring the students together to support

all anti-bullying efforts made in order for the school to become a safe learning environment for

all of the students. With this awareness, it will utilize the student’s need to belong. This can be

accomplished through organized group discussions and activities that enhance and develop group

cohesion and empathy for members of the classroom. The students can be encouraged to

increase and improve their interactions with others, so they can experience a positive self-worth

and be able to share their abilities with others. This will cause a shift from self to others.

When students are caught bullying another student or supporting any type of bullying

behavior, they will receive a warning and the school faculty will schedule a meeting to

thoroughly discuss the anti-bully policy. The school faculty should clearly explain to the parents

and the student that this will be the last warning, and the next offense will lead to in-school

suspension and therapy for both the student and parents. The faculty member will explain to the

parents the responsibility they will have to transport their child to school and therapy, plus pay

for all of the costs for therapy. This is done in order for the parents and student to realize that the


school is taking an active approach to the program and will not tolerate any bullying behavior in

the future.

When a student is caught bullying a second time, the faculty will set up another meeting

with that student and his/her parents/caregivers to explain the next phase of the program. The

student will be required to attend ten sessions of group therapy. The schools in various regions

would team up together for these closed group sessions. The schools would refer their students

(grades 5-8) to attend sessions of group therapy to teach empathy skills. By learning empathy,

these students would be able to empathize with students who are bullied in school. The parents

and students will be motivated by working through the ten therapy sessions in order to return to

school with the other students. The parents are expected to be supportive so they can work with

their child to develop the needed empathetic feelings towards other people. The inconvenience

of having to transport their child will be another motivating factor for them to encourage and

learn with their child.

Individual and Group Therapy

The purpose of the group therapy program is designed to improve the social relationships,

behavior, and emotional functioning of teens while teaching empathy skills. The goals are to

learn and practice key social skills necessary for positive interactions with others, enhance self-

esteem and develop positive character traits. In the group setting, the teens will practice coping

strategies for dealing with social conflict, improve social problem-solving skills and learn

empathy for others.

The parents/caregivers will be required to attend a five week (10 sessions) individual and

group therapy sessions that will focus on parenting skills and encouraging the new empathy

skills the student bullies will be learning in the five week group therapy sessions. “Breaking the


cycle of violence that this antisocial activity creates involves recasting the roles of each of the

characters, rewriting their scripts, and changing the theme of their play” (Coloroso, 2008, p. 75).

The parents will be required to attend the first, fifth and tenth group session with their

child in group therapy. The other seven sessions will be in an individual therapy session setting.

During these sessions, the therapist will be focusing on parenting skills that promote empathy

skills. The main objective of these individual therapy sessions for the parents is to re-write the

dysfunctional parenting skills that have been used and replace them with more functional

parenting skills that incorporate empathy and natural and logical consequences involved with

“Active Parenting” and “Parenting Teens with Love and Logic” (Popkin, 2003; Cline & Faye,

1992).

Not only can parenting styles pose as risk factors for bully/victim relationships, the

family characteristics can also be problems. The manner in which parents manage their own

conflicts and conflicts with their children are an important variable in understanding the reasons

for bullying (Popkin, 2002). Some topics to be considered for the parents in individual therapy

would include: parenting strategies, authoritative parenting, authoritarian parenting, permissive

parenting, family conflicts, children’s personality traits and socio-cognitive skills (Popkin, 2002;

Cline & Fay, 1992).

When the parents/caregivers have completed the ten therapy sessions, they will have the

knowledge and skills needed to encourage their child to use more interpersonal skills and

empathetic methods for using the skills, and being positive role models to express themselves

constructively in interpersonal relationships.


School Faculty

In many cases, the faculty may be unaware of what bullying behaviors look like or may

not know how to manage the behaviors or prevent the behaviors from occurring. Researchers

have identified that teachers are not aware of bullying and only intervene in bullying episodes

occasionally. (Craig, Henderson, & Murphy, 2000). The faculty of the school will be highly

prepared to support the anti-bully program. They will be trained in the programs initiatives and

implement the curriculum components of the program. The faculty will be educated during staff

orientation and professional staff development. The faculty for the school should be provided

with extensive information concerning the anti-bully initiatives, how the faculty will be involved,

what policies and procedures will occur and when and how they may volunteer assistance with

the program. The faculty will be trained to recognize a bully-victim relationship, understand the

possible causes and correlates of bullying and victimization behaviors, assess bully-victim

relationships, analyzing effects of bullying behavior (short and long-term) and understanding

school and state policies regarding bullying behaviors (Barton, 2003). The staff will also be

trained to provide intervention strategies for bullying behaviors in the classroom, prevention and

anti-bullying programs for the classroom, and integration of conflict resolution strategies into the

curriculum for anti-bully effects (Barton, 2003). The faculty will be involved with monitoring

the cafeteria, hallways, bathrooms, and other areas where most bullying behaviors occur

(Olweus, 1993).

Student Involvement

The next component to this anti-bully program is to educate all students in the school to

identify bully behavior and to create strategies and techniques to use in response to bully

behavior. Finally, the program will provide students with the skills to create their own personal


action plan for dealing with bullies. Additional school initiatives involve the students

experiencing mediation, bully courts, peer counseling, bully boxes, school safety hotlines, and

safe rooms (Beane, 1999). The classroom material will also include information on the passive

participants in bullying. The passive participants are also called “bystanders”. These bystander

students will seldom take any initiative to bully others, but will easily go along with the bullying

when someone else is leading the bullying act (Coloroso, 2008). Over time, the student

observers of bullying (bystanders) have a decreased sense of empathy for other students.

Bystanders may feel unsafe and have difficulty learning (Olweus, 2004). These students should

understand they are as responsible for acts of bullying as the bully is.

There will be opportunities for students to tell faculty members if they know a student is

being bullied. This is an act of compassion for the victim of bullying. The students will be

encouraged to participate in all areas of the anti-bully program in order for the school to become

a safe and productive environment for learning and social interaction. The students will

participate in class meetings, cooperative learning, common positive activities and class PTA

meetings (Bonds & Stoker, 2000).

Getting the school faculty, parents, students and community involved with this anti-bully

program is very important. A well designed survey can be very helpful in allowing everyone

involved with the school to have an opportunity to provide feedback about bullying in the school.

The survey should be very clear about how the parent’s opinions, concerns, and expectations will

be addressed. The information from the surveys is used to gather important information about

the current prevalence of bullying and to send the message that the school is addressing the

problem of bullying in the school (Barton, 2003). There will also be outlines available for

parents and students on the purpose of the anti-bully program in the school. When there is a


clear framework, it will make it easier for parents and students to understand the program’s

purpose and parameters. It will be clear that the anti-bully policies will be respectful and fair to

everyone involved.

A school-wide plan will be put in place for how the school will respond to any acts of

bullying (Barton, 2003). The first part of the plan will focus on how to address a student who is

bullying other students. The second part will address the needs of the students that are being

bullied. The plan will include an important record keeping tool and an incident report. A key

component for the success of this anti-bully program is for the principal and school faculty to be

involved with intervening with any acts of bullying. When a bully realizes that they are being

closely monitored by the principal and the entire school faculty, the bullying behaviors tend to

decrease significantly (McMullen, 2005). The bullies in the school will realize the school is

taking a united front against any acts of bullying and will apply consequences that are clear,

consistent and unavoidable with any act of bullying.

Students will also be involved with developing school rules and expectations. When

students are asked to help create appropriate rules for the school, they are more likely to take

ownership of them and to follow the rules they help to create. The rules that students create will

be displayed throughout the school and in every classroom. When these rules are properly

displayed throughout the school, it sends out the very powerful message that bullying will not be

tolerated by anyone. It also ensures that everyone in the school will know the rules related to

bullying and any acts of bullying will not be ignored (Beane, 1999).

When the school has made a united and firm stance against bullying, it will provide a safe

and exciting environment for the students to have a positive experience in school. “The best way

to help bullies and bullied children feel that they are a valuable part of the school community is


to create opportunities for them, and all children, to participate in events that are enjoyable for

everyone” (McMullen, 2005, pp. 108). The most important part of this anti-bully program is to

create an environment where the bullies realize that they will be held accountable for their

behavior and will face therapeutic consequences each time they bully another student. This

program will apply many Adlerian therapeutic techniques throughout the classroom, group and

individual therapy components.

Adlerian Techniques

Adlerian techniques are great tools to use when addressing adolescents' feelings of

inferiority, superiority and belonging (Thompson, Rudolph, & Henderson, 2004). Many of the

techniques that can be used with bullies are natural and logical consequences. The more parents

and school faculty step back and allow children to take responsibility and experience success and

failure, the more children learn (Cline & Fay. 1992). Adler would consider the bully to be

discouraged and would view the world as not getting what he/she “deserves” from others

(Dreikurs & Soltz, 1990). A bully would be considered a “discouraged child” because the child

is struggling with inadequate feelings of acceptance, significance and respect. Adlerian

techniques would help clients get a clear insight into their behaviors according to the

circumstances that occur in their life. The clients will explore their life through birth order,

external dynamics, parental influences and the social circles with which they are involved.

Exploring these influences clarifies how the clients have been impacted and how their self-worth,

acceptance and expectations have been affected. This insight will allow the clients to view their

previous beliefs in order to move towards positive changes. The discouraged client is

encouraged to have the power to choose and act in a different way. The clients are also

encouraged to explore their feelings of social “connectedness.” Adler believed that each person


strives to belong and feel significant (Dreikurs & Soltz, 1990). This anti-bully program will

teach children the appropriate behaviors needed to feel significant and belonging to their social

group.

Conclusion

Researchers are still exploring the origins of bullying and victim behaviors. Some of the

theories focus on genetic input, environmental influences and the effects of nature vs. nurture.

Other factors being studied include: family characteristics, individual characteristics, and

various aspects of the school environment. These are being studied in order to understand what

creates a bully and the victims. There should be further research to pinpoint the exact sources of

bullying. With implementing anti-bully programs, parents, students and the school faculty can

work together to meet the student’s needs so that all students can have a secure attachment that

will create a peaceful learning environment in order to develop empathy for others and

discourage any acts of bullying. This anti-bully program should be a permanent component of

the school environment in order for the school to maintain an on-going awareness of the problem

of bullying in the school. If everyone involved with the school follows and implements this

program, the bully issues in the school will be greatly diminished which will allow for a healthy

learning environment for everyone within the school.


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