Powering up and spreading out: An integrated investigation of three social psychological factors involved in middle school bullying

同伴侵害（或欺凌）是美国学校的一个严重问题。20%至60%的学龄青年报告说，他们经历过欺凌，其中10%至15%可能是长期受害者。欺凌行为在中学时期达到顶峰，这一时期的年轻人特别关心自己的地位和合群。受害者往往自尊心较低，比未受害的同龄人更感到孤独、焦虑和抑郁。这些负面后果部分解释了为什么受害者也会在学业上挣扎。大多数学校干预措施针对学校的所有学生，并以减少欺凌是每个人的责任这一信念为指导。这些普遍干预措施往往忽视了最脆弱的青年，他们可能有被欺负的历史，并且已经经历了一种或多种痛苦的后果。本研究考察了归因过程、社会网络和群体规范对欺凌行为综合模型（“power Up”）的影响。归因过程通常会导致一种自责的模式（“为什么是我？”）这可能会产生长期的负面影响。本研究进一步检验了如何利用社会网络模式和群体规范来减少欺凌行为。本研究将促进我们对欺凌行为的社会心理过程的理解，并为中学群体动力学提供新的见解。本研究考察了归因过程、社会网络过程和群体规范对中学生欺凌行为的综合影响。这些社会影响过程被纳入“加油”方案，该方案重点关注中学时期的受害者。“增强力量”利用了三种社会影响机制来对抗同伴伤害：(1)“为什么力量”是一门12课的课程，旨在改变处于危险中的受害者的适应不良归因；(2)“朋友权力”运用实验技术在受害者与同级有影响力的同伴之间建立友谊；(3)同伴权力利用领导模式改变同伴对欺凌可接受性的规范。这个由多个部分组成的项目将在城市（加利福尼亚州）和农村（密苏里州）社区实施，这些社区的六年级学生在不同种族的学校就读。powerup将测试这些干预策略，并侧重于归因改变，在欺凌受害者和有影响力的同伴之间建立新的友谊，以及在整个同伴网络中传播反欺凌规范。本研究将促进对同伴影响过程和归因改变行为的力量的基本社会心理学知识。该项目还将为促进韧性和学业成就的个人、社会和环境因素提供新的见解。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Peer victimization (or bullying) is a serious problem in American schools. Anywhere from 20 to 60 percent of school-aged youth report that they have experienced bullying, of whom 10-15 percent may be chronic victims. Bullying appears to peak during the middle school years, a time when youth are particularly concerned about status and fitting in. Victims tend to have low self-esteem and feel more lonely, anxious, and depressed than their non-victimized peers. These negative consequences partly explain why victims can also struggle academically. Most school interventions target all students in the school and are guided by the belief that reducing bullying is everyone's responsibility. Those universal interventions often lose sight of the most vulnerable youth who may have a history of being bullied and are already experiencing one or more painful outcomes. This research tests the effects of attribution processes, social networks, and group norms in an integrated model ("Powering Up") of bullying. The attribution processes often lead to a pattern of self-blame ("why me?") that can have long-term negative effects. The research further tests how to utilize social network patterns and group norms to reduce bullying behaviors. This research will facilitate our understanding of the social psychological processes involved in bullying and provide novel insight into middle school group dynamics. This project examines the integrated effects of attributional processes, social network processes, and group norms on bullying during middle school. These social influence processes are integrated in "Powering Up", a program that focuses on victims during the middle school years. Powering Up utilizes three social influence mechanisms to combat peer victimization: (1) Why Power is a 12-lesson curriculum designed to alter the maladaptive attributions of at-risk victims; (2) Friend Power uses experimental techniques to build friendships between victims and influential peers in their grade; and (3) Peer Power utilizes leadership models to change peer norms about the acceptability of bullying. This multi-component program will be implemented in urban (California) and rural (Missouri) communities with 6th grade students in schools that vary in ethnic diversity. Powering Up will test these intervention strategies and focus on attributional change, building new friendships between bullying victims and influential peers, and spreading of anti-bullying norms throughout the peer networks. This research will advance basic social psychological knowledge on peer influence processes and the power of attributions to change behavior. The project will also provide new insights into individual, social, and contextual factors that promote resilience and academic achievement.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.