A research report submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education (Educational Psychology), 2017 / The growing epidemic of bullying is one that warrants urgent deference. When considering the repercussions of this issue in the South African context specifically, it is essential that a high level of criticality is taken into account. This is mainly due to South Africa’s rich historical background and the country’s urgency to protect and respect the basic human rights of all individuals in the country (Centre for Justice and Crime Prevention; and the Department of Basic Education, 2012). According to our Bill of Rights, “everyone has the right to be free from all forms of violence, on the part of either the government or other sources; not to be tortured in any way; and not to be treated or punished in a cruel, inhuman or degrading way” (CJCP & DBE, 2012). Any act or behaviour which goes against these essential human rights thus results in grave ramifications such as the infringement of human rights. The purpose of this study was thus to investigate the prevalence, nature, and intervention surrounding the issue of bullying in South African high schools. More specifically, this study aimed to explore the possible differences between the prevalence, nature, and intervention in government/public and private high schools. In addition, the possible differences between gender and the issue of bullying were further investigated. The study employed the Revised Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire in order to find possible associations between the two independent variables (type of school and gender); and the issue of bullying. The total sample comprised of 358 grade eight to eleven learners from one private school and one government school in Johannesburg. The statistical analyses were done by means of frequencies and cross-tabulations using the chi-square statistical test with school type and gender as independent variables. The overall results on the prevalence of bullying indicate that 27.7% of high school learners have experienced bullying in school. Neither the type of school nor the gender of the learner was found to have a significant impact on the prevalence of bullying. In addition, the current study found that verbal bullying is most commonly experienced by the learners, followed by social bullying. Common areas for bullying behaviour are the playground and the classroom (with and without the teacher present). Boys have been found to partake, as well, as experience bullying more than girls. Teacher and learner intervention are commonly reported, whereas adult intervention is not seen as a means of support for learners. / XL2018

Aim: This study investigated the nature and extent of the relationship between bullying and trauma among male adolescent learners. Trauma was operationalised through the constructs of posttraumatic stress, anxiety, depression, dissociation and anger. In addition the study aimed to determine the prevalence and forms of bullying with reference to the different bullying roles (the bully, the victim, the bully-victim and the bystander). Method: In this quantitative study, two objective measures were administered (viz., the Olweus Bullying/Victimisation Scale and the Trauma Symptom Checklist for children) to a saturation sample of male adolescent learners between the ages of 12 and 17, from a purposively selected South African male-only high school (N=509). Findings and Conclusions: Statistical analysis (correlational analyis, MANOVA, and Binary-Logistic Regression analysis) produced evidence to suggest that there is a statistically significant relationship between bullying and trauma, and this was strongest for the victim role. The relationship between bullying and trauma was dependent on the frequency of bullying; as the frequency of being bullied increased so too did the mean scores of all the five trauma subscales. Depression demonstrated the highest correlation with the victim role, followed by Posttraumatic stress. In addition, 22.4% of learners could be clinically and subclinically diagnosed with posttraumatic stress and 21.0% with dissociation. The study suggests that each learner has a subjective experience of bullying, and accordingly displays different symptom profiles. Overall, the findings corroborate the argument that repetitive stressful events (such as bullying) are predictive of symptom-clusters of ongoing trauma. The subjective experience of bullying was also evident in the prevalence rates of bullying; as these were evidently dependent on how it was defined and understood by learners. While only 32.1% of learners admitted to being bullied; 60.2% of this same sample admitted experiencing at least one form of bullying listed in the questionnaire; and similarly, while only 29.8% of learners admitted to bullying other learners; 49.0% admitted participating in at least one form of bullying listed in the questionnaire. Chronic bullying demonstrated greater levels of trauma for all 5 subscales; 19.7% of learners had experienced weekly (or chronic) bullying and 12.3% had participated in chronic bullying. A range of policy, school-specific and research recommendations are offered based on the findings of the study. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

Bullying behaviour is fast becoming a common feature in schools around the world. It is a practice that provokes concern, as it infringes upon the child’s right to human dignity, privacy, freedom and security. The physical, emotional and educational consequences of bullying behaviour can never be underestimated (Oyaziwo, 2008). Limited research has been conducted in South Africa regarding the prevalence and possible long-term effects of chronic bullying at school. This study intended to explore and describe the prevalence of bullying behaviour among a sample of grade 8 learners and the prevalence of previous chronic bullying at school among a sample of young adults in the Nelson Mandela Metropole. In addition, the study aimed to explore and describe the relationship between chronic bullying at school and self-esteem and attachment styles. Finally, the contextual factors which may influence the outcomes of chronic bullying for victims were explored and described. The study was exploratory descriptive in nature and employed a mixed method research design. Participants were selected by means of non-probability sampling. The sample consisted of 225 grade 8 learners at a secondary school in the Nelson Mandela Metropole and 101 young adult participants who had completed their school education in the Nelson Mandela Metropole within the past sixteen years. Data on the demographics of the sample was gathered through the administration of a biographical questionnaire. Furthermore, the Olweus (1996) Bully/Victim Questionnaire was utilized in order to obtain information about the prevalence of bullying behaviours among the participants. James Battle’s (1981) Culture-Free Self-Esteem Inventories were used to measure the construct of self-esteem, and Bartholomew and Horowitz’ (1991) Relationship Questionnaire was employed in order to identify the participants’ current attachment styles. Individual semi-structured interviews were later conducted among a sub-set of young adult participants, who had experienced chronic bullying at school, in order to identify the contextual factors which may have influenced the xiii outcomes of their experiences of victimization. Descriptive and inferential statistics, including correlations and multivariate analysis of variance (ANOVA), were utilized in order to analyze the quantitative data. Key findings revealed that eighty-five percent of the grade 8 participants had been involved in bullying behaviours at school this year and ninety-one percent of the young adult participants had been involved in bullying behaviours during some stage of their school careers. No significant relationship was found to exist between bullying and self-esteem in the grade 8 sample. Self-esteem scores did however vary significantly among the victims, bully-victims and bystanders in the young adult sample. Correlational coefficients confirmed that there was a significant relationship between previous chronic bullying at school and the total self-esteem scores of participants in the young adult sample. Findings also showed that there was no significant relationship between bullying and attachment in either of the samples in this study. Finally, qualitative results revealed that a number of contextual factors influenced the outcomes of chronic bullying at school for the sub-set of young adult victims. These factors included: The nature, frequency and duration of the bullying behaviour, the victims’ social support at the time as well as the victims’ personal characteristics.

A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Psychology, Johannesburg 2017 / Cyberbullying is a new form of bullying that has emerged as a by-product of interactive communication technologies, of which adolescents are the most prolific users. A meaningful number of adolescents are involved in cyberbullying and the impact can have a significant effect on the wellbeing of adolescents. The prevalence and the level of severity of this phenomenon is a matter of concern for society in general. Technology is pervasive and has become an integral part of the lives of adolescents; it can also leave individuals more vulnerable to harassment and violent behaviour penetration/victimisations. This study used Q methodology as an alternative approach to explore how South African adolescents’ perceived the nature of cyberbullying and its severity by providing insights into their subjective understanding of the phenomenon. A sample of 46 adolescents (aged 14 to 17 years of age) ranked two sets of statements (Q sort 1 and Q sort 2) that described cyberbullying behaviours and hypothetical cyberbullying events respectively. Participants sorted the statements according to personal significance within a fixed matrix. Their responses were analysed using the freeware statistical program PQ Method (Schmolck, 2014). A five-factor solution was identified and described for Q sort 1. The diversity of views emerging has implications for cyberbullying research, policy, and intervention and suggests different approaches for addressing this issue. Three distinct accounts of the severity of cyberbullying events emerged from the Q sort 2 analysis. These perspectives are discussed in relation to existing literature and the potential role of adults is considered. Participants also completed an open-ended questionnaire to inform their reactions to cyberbullying events by probing coping mechanisms. The distinct representations add to the understanding of this complex phenomenon. / XL2018

The main aim of this study was to investigate and explore how the emotional, verbal and or physical abuse of teachers by learners could impact on the general well-being of high school teachers in the Port Elizabeth region.This study asked how does the emotional, verbal and or physical abuse of teachers by learners impact on the general well-being of teachers? It also set out to find out what types of abuse teachers experience the most, how frequently teachers are exposed to abuse by learners and if there are any solutions to teacher abuse that can be offered. A teacher should be seen as someone who imparts knowledge, a person that creates an atmosphere for learning, a facilitator. Teachers are there to teach, although this is sadly not the case in schools anymore. Teachers are being abused by their learners in the classrooms and very few incidents are ever reported as teachers fear the repercussions of perhaps being told that because a class is misbehaving that they lack the necessary skills to be proficient teachers. There is limited literature available on the topic especially with regards to teacher abuse by learners in South Africa as the main focus used to be how teachers could be abusive to the learners and not the learners being abusive towards their teachers. This situation as is in South Africa at the moment can be seen as a silent epidemic. This study made use of a pragmatic paradigm that included both quantitative and qualitative research and data collection methods and an explanatory design was used to display the findings.

A Master’s Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, School of Human and Community Development, Discipline of Psychology, for the Degree of Master of Education (Educational Psychology), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, July 2017. / Bullying is a problematic phenomenon in South African schools, affecting victims and bullies in various ways. These can have far reaching consequences that can last for years. This research sought to investigate bullying in rural schools. It sought to investigate the existence of bullying in rural schools and to explore the nature of bullying in rural schools, with regards to gender. Using a cross-sectional survey research design, 200 learners from high schools in the Eastern Cape completed the Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire. Data obtained from the participants was analysed using Chi-Square Test of Independence for each question in the questionnaire. The results confirmed the existence of bullying in rural schools. All three forms of bullying (physical, verbal, psychological bullying) and cyberbullying were present in the schools. Both boys and girls are experiencing bullying. The implications of this study include feelings of a lack of safety in the school environment, which will invariably affect learners’ academic and social progress. As such, more interventions should be designed to combat adverse effects of bullying. / XL2018

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Social Work in the field of Occupational Social Work, September 2017 / School violence over the years has been on an increase. It has been particularly known and researched that learners have been affected by such a persistent phenomenon (Burton & Leoschut, 2013). Notably, teachers themselves are increasingly becoming victims of school violence. It has been said that much of the school violence stems from the violent nature of society; violence in society being complex in nature (Mncube & Harber, 2012). Limited research has been directed towards exploring victimisation of teachers by their learners, hence the interest in the topic. In order for one to gain knowledge and insight in this topic, the qualitative approach and a case study design was used. The unit of analysis consisted of 5 high school teachers within the Johannesburg South Region. Snowballing, which is a type of non – probability sampling was used to identify participants. A semi – structured interview scheduled was used as a data gathering tool, during the face – to face interviews. The thematic content analysis was used to analyse the data collected, so as to find common themes and topics relevant to the study. As predicted, the study helped in gaining insights in understanding the consequences of school violence and bullying on teachers. It helped in understanding teachers’ experiences of school violence and the consequences it has in the workplace. Additionally, it assisted in gaining insight on what may contribute towards the creation of a healthier work environment. / XL2018

M. Tech. Education / This ethnographic study investigated the nature of bullying in selected primary schools in the Pretoria inner city as experienced by learners, parents, teachers and principals. A review of the existing literature formed the basis for the offered description of the phenomenon. The work examined concise definitions of bullying, including the existence of bullying, the effects of bullying, the perceptions of learners who are bullied, the frequency of bullying, the School Management Team's reaction to incidents of bullying, the school policy on bullying, teachers' experience of bullying of learners, the parents' experiences of bullying of their children and how other countries handle bullying. The research describes various forms of bullying, reasons for bullying, the effects of bullying and measures against bullying.

Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Education in the Faculty of Education at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology 2013 / The purpose of this study was to explore teachers‟ perspectives on school bullying with insights from two primary schools in Cape Town. The topic of „bullying‟ is not a new one in research; however this study investigated the factors affecting teachers‟ perspectives on school bullying and how these perspectives affect the way teachers responded to incidents of bullying. The concepts of habitus, capital and field were used to provide a theoretical lens through which to examine the topic. The study was based on a small sample of 31 teachers drawn from two primary schools. The study employed a mixed-method approach in which quantitative and qualitative principles were applied. The study consisted of two phases in which data collection took place. The first was a questionnaire, while the second involved interviews. The application of two data- collecting instruments helped to ensure triangulation, thereby enhancing the credibility of the process. Findings indicated that teachers have various conceptions of bullying; this is partly determined by their gender, but also by the way in which they grew up and experienced bullying themselves as children.

M. Ed. (Educational Psychology) / The study explored the challenges experienced by Life Orientation teachers with regard to the reality of dealing with school bullying. The participants in this study were Life Orientation teachers from public schools in Gauteng West District. The aim was to explore challenges experienced by Grade Nine Life Orientation teachers with regard to learner-on-learner bullying in Gauteng West District. Using Bronfenbrenner’s (2008) bio-ecological systems theory I sought to understand the complexity of the influences, interactions and interrelationships between individual learners and multiple other systems connected to them. Due to the nature of the research topic a qualitative design was chosen, taking a phenomenological approach because of its relevance to everyday life (Timm & Elkell-Bloklan 2011). The participants targeted for the study were six Life Orientation teachers from three high schools and the themes that emerged were types of bullying they observed; the contribution of the school environment to the vulnerability of learners; lack of adherence to school policies; and inadequate teacher training on bullying. Findings also reflect how Life Orientation teachers face problems regarding bullying but they show resilience and how important it is for them ( Life Orientation ) teachers to be vigorously trained in counselling victims and perpetrators in order to contain the situation. Findings and recommendations shall be shared with the Gauteng Department of Education.