The Effectiveness of Bullying Prevention Programs: An Updated Systematic Review

• In Event: Posters I

Abstract

A previous Campbell Collaboration meta-analytic review found that school-based anti-bullying programs are effective in reducing prevalence rates of bullying perpetration and victimization. The 2009 meta-analysis of 44 relevant evaluations showed that, overall, school-based anti-bullying programs are effective: on average, bullying decreased by 20–23% and victimization decreased by 17–20%. This project presents results from an updated systematic review and meta-analysis on the effectiveness of school-based antibullying programs. Systematic searches of the literature were conducted from 2009 until end of December 2015 within the same 35 journals and the same 18 electronic databases for reasons of consistency. Papers from the updated searches were included in the meta-analysis if they evaluated the effects of an anti-bullying program by comparing an intervention group who received the program with a control group who did not. Four types of research design were included: a) randomized experiments, b) intervention-control comparisons with before-and-after measures of bullying, c) other intervention-control comparisons, and d) age-cohort designs. Both published and unpublished reports were included. Results are presented and implications for policy and practice arising from the project are indicated.

Authors

• Hannah Gaffney, Cambridge Institute of Criminology

• Maria M. Ttofi, Cambridge University

• David P. Farrington, Cambridge University