School professionals, particularly school counsellors and school psychologists, require detailed knowledge of many important factors that contribute to the personal, academic, and vocational development of the students in their charge (e.g., psychosocial development, curricula developments, local community developments and initiatives, national…

Studies have found that moral disengagement plays a significant role in the continuation of bullying situations (Bonanno, 2005); however, the moral stance of cyber-bystanders--those who witness online bullying--is not yet clear. While research into traditional face-to-face bullying reported that peers would probably or certainly intervene to…

The current study used developmental trajectories to examine the relationship between internalising and externalising behaviours and victimisation over the transition period from primary to secondary school. Data were collected using a self-completion questionnaire four times over 3 years from 3,459 students aged 11-14 years. Students were tracked…

In this article we report Maltese primary and secondary students' perspectives about their school experiences and their mental health. Questionnaires were completed by 281 students. Relationships emerged between students' reports about their involvement in bullying, mental health status, and a range of typical features of school…

During the transition from primary to secondary school, students typically experience a new social environment, moving from primary school with small intact classes throughout the day with one main teacher, to a larger secondary school with teachers, classrooms and often classmates changing throughout the day. During this time, students report a…

What strategies do students use to cope with bullying and how effective are they? Answers to such questions will not only help students understand how they can cope, but also inform school-wide policies and practices to reduce the incidence of bullying. To do this, schools need evidence on what strategies to focus on to most effectively target…

The challenge for high schools to adopt effective measures to reduce bullying has been underscored by international media coverage highlighting the consequences of school bullying. Despite whole-school anti-bullying programs being accepted as the best evidence-based approaches to intervention, research continues to yield ambiguous findings, and…

The transition period from primary to secondary school is a critical time in adolescent development. The high prevalence of adolescent mental health problems makes understanding the causal pathways between peer victimisation and internalising symptoms an important priority during this time. This article utilises data collected from self-completion…

Covert bullying behaviours are at least as distressing for young people as overt forms of bullying, but often remain unnoticed or unacknowledged by adults. This "invisibility" is increased in schools by inattention to covert bullying in policy and practice, and limited staff understanding and skill to address covert behaviours. These factors can…

A small-scale evaluation of a psycho-educational program on cyberbullying with a group of Year 6 girls was implemented over six sessions, and was subsequently evaluated. Its content included knowledge of cyberbullying and its effects, and management and safety strategies for the participants and their peers. Increases in the girls' detailed…

In 2004, a set of validated guidelines for school bullying prevention and management was released by the Child Health Promotion Research Centre in Australia to guide schools' action to prevent and manage bullying behaviours. At this time little was known about cyber and other forms of covert bullying behaviours. These guidelines were updated in…

Aim: This research sought to determine the significance of reputation in the lives of bullies particularly in relation to the social purposes it serves and the goals that are met through its enhancement. Method: One hundred and thirty-two (62 males and 70 females) Western Australian Grades 5, 6 and 7 primary school children completed the…

Bullying in schools continues to be a problem despite the best efforts of educators, researchers, and clinicians. Of most concern for the present study is that some children experience long-term victimisation by their peers. To improve our understanding in this area, the phenomenology of being bullied over the course of the school year was…

The goal of this study was to examine the mediator and moderator roles of loneliness in the relationship between peer victimisation and depressive symptoms. The participants of the study were 144 adolescents (66 girls, 78 boys) ranging in age from 11 to 15 years. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted to test the relations of…

This study investigated the relationship between bullying involvement (bully, victim, bully/victim, and not involved) and gender, academic achievement, self-efficacies (academic, social, and emotional self-efficacies). Data were collected by administering the Revised Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire (Olweus, 1996), the Self-Efficacy Questionnaire…