Bullying is a common behavior on the playground or in the classroom. According to some estimates, between 10% and 30% of students bully by physically, emotionally, or verbally abusing their classmates and peers. How can parents help bullies better their behavior? Researchers from Austria and Germany investigated whether family-centered therapy could reduce bullying behaviors in school-age kids.
Forty-four 14- to 16-year-old boys who'd been bullying for at least 6 months and their families were divided into two groups. Half of the boys and their families met for weekly or biweekly sessions with therapists. During each session, the families learned strategies for improving communication and establishing family rules and behaviors. The remaining 22 boys talked about daily events and routines during similar sessions, but they didn't discuss ways to change behavior or communicate more effectively. Every 2 weeks throughout the 6-month study, all of the boys answered questions about whether they were using drugs, whether they smoked or drank alcohol, whether they watched a lot of television, and whether they had sex without a condom and other behaviors that could be risky to a person's health. They also completed surveys designed to assess their level of anger and aggression.
The results? The boys who went through the family therapy were significantly less likely to bully at the end of the 6-month study, compared to the boys who didn't receive the family therapy. Only six of the 22 boys in the family therapy group continued to bully after 6 months, whereas 20 out of the 22 boys in the non-therapy group continued to bully.
The positive effects of the family therapy seemed to persist, too, because a year after the study began, only 7 of the 22 boys in the group still bullied, but 21 out of the 22 boys in the non-therapy group still bullied.
What This Means to You: According to the results of this study, family therapy may reduce bullying behaviors in teen boys. It's not easy to hear that your child has been bullying, but it's important to address the problem to try to help your child change his or her bullying behavior. Your child's doctor can recommend a qualified mental health professional who can help you and your child address self-esteem issues, family problems, and the aggressive behavior itself.
Source: Marius K. Nickel, MD; Jakub Krawczyk, MD; Cerstin Nickel, MD; Petra Forthuber; Christian Kettler, MD; Peter Leiberich, MD; Moritz Muehlbacher, MD; Karin Tritt, PhD; Ferdinand O. Mitterlehner; Claas Lahmann, MD: Wolfhardt K. Rother, MD; Thomas H. Loew, MD; Pediatrics, August 2005
Reviewed by: Steven Dowshen, MD
Date reviewed: August 2005
