Thesis M.A. (Criminology) --Univesity of Limpopo, 2011 / The study on bullying is very important to the effective prevention oflater crime in adulthood. Bullying is one of the anti-social behaviour that may lead to criminal behaviour in adulthood. If bullies are allowed to carry on with this destructive behaviour, when they become adults, they may be involved in criminal behaviour such as partner abuse, road rage, child abuse, theft, etc. When a study is conducted to determine the extent and nature of bullying, the practices of bullying can be prevented on the primary level than waiting for it to continue and try toprevent it in the tertiary level. To prevent this crime at the tertiary level will result in financial losses to the state that will then have to sentence and keep perpetrators in correctional facilities. This study focuses on the nature and the extent to which bullying affect learners at secondary schools in Mankweng. No criminological study has ever been done on this phenomenon in Mankweng, Limpopo Province. A study that was conducted by Sathekge in 2004 focused on the psychological factors that contribute to aggressive behaviour among secondary school students. Sathekge (2004:63-66) found that, 68.9% of learners reported that they were bullied, taunted or teased in their schools. The aim of the study was to determine the nature of bullying among learners at a secondary school level, and the extent to whichit affects learners, specifically focusing on two schools Hwiti and Mountainview Secondary Schools that are located in Mankweng area, Limpopo Province. A quantitative approach was used in this study. Two hundred learners from two schools were selected to form part of the study using a snow ball sampling as a way of collecting the data.

MEd / Department of Curriculum Studies and Educational Management / The study aims to investigate the impact of intervention strategies in addressing bullying among secondary school students. A literature study was conducted, in order to understand the views of different authors and other researchers on effective intervention strategies. An empirical study utilising the quantitative research approach was used. A questionnaire was employed to gather data. It was distributed among all secondary schools in Motupa circuit. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 17.0 was used to analyse data from the questionnaire using the maxim for statistical significance. Findings from the empirical study were discussed. The implication is that intervention and preventive strategies need to be based on personal and contextual factors, in order to effect change.

MGS / Institute for Gender and Youth Studies / Most people view bullying as a childhood challenge which children outgrow with age. However, bullies grow up and even go to universities where they continue with their bullying tactics; harassing their fellow students. The development of technology has allowed bullying to be taken to adulthood through cyber-bullying. Technology has become a big part of young people’s lives and it plays an increasingly important role in their day-to-day activities. However, it has also become a platform for young people to intimidate and harass each other. Cyber-bullying has become a huge problem for university students, which can cause long term effects to victims. It involves sending hurtful, threatening or embarrassing messages to one another. Cyber-bullying causes problems such as depression, anxiety, suicide, poor school attendance and performance for the victims of such an act. Both males and females take part in cyber-bullying. Avenues for cyber-bullying by students include emails, blogs, text messages, and social network sites such as Facebook, My Space, Whatsapp, Instagram and twitter among others. The main aim of this study was to probe cyber-bullying experiences of both male and female first year students at the University of Venda. Qualitative research approach was used. Snowball sampling, a subtype of non-probability sampling was used to select the respondents for the study. Semi-structured interviews were used as the data collecting tool. The data was analysed using thematic analysis. Confidentiality, anonymity, voluntary participation and informed consent were among the ethical considerations that were followed. The study found that cyber-bullying is prevalent at the University of Venda and it socially, academically, psychologically and physically affects students. More female students were found to be victims of cyber-bullying when compared to male students. In view of the magnitude of cyber-bullying among university students; there is a need for urgent action by the University of Venda management to come up with / NRF