Parent beliefs regarding defender behavior when children witness bullying situations

Approximately 30% of students between the ages of 12 and 18 report being bullied on school property (DeVoe & Murphy, 2011), and there is at least one witness present in 85% of bullying situations (Espelage, 2002; O'Connell, Pepler, & Craig, 1999). The witness may choose to act in several different capacities, among them a non-participatory bystander or an active defender of the victim. A study of students in grades 1 to 6 finds that, when children choose to act as defenders, their actions are successful in stopping the bullying action more than half the time, though the witnessing child chooses to defend the victim only 19% of the time (Hawkins, Pepler, & Craig, 2001). Given defenders' success in defusing bullying among their peers, there is great promise in using defenders at the forefront of bullying prevention programs. However, although the potential recognized in the utilization of defenders is hopeful, to employ defender-centric tactics without caveat could be a mistake. A closer and more intricate knowledge of defenders is needed in order to engage them effectively in bullying prevention.

Though perhaps unexpected at such early ages, early forms of bullying do exist in early childhood (roughly ages 3 to 6) (Alsaker, 1993; Monks, Smith, & Swettenham 2003; 2005) therefore it is a key time period for thwarting bullying behaviors before they solidify. Since parents are key influences on children's social development, parents should be included in bullying prevention programs that are specifically aimed at promoting the development of defender characteristics in early childhood. This qualitative study is an exploratory examination of parent beliefs concerning children who witness bullying and the expected course of action when bullying is observed. Findings overwhelmingly identify young children seeking intervention of a teacher to address the witnessed bullying situation, as opposed to being directly involved with the bully. Other findings include parents' navigating the complexities of a desire to help the victim while keeping their own child safe. The data gathered informs bullying prevention programs by uncovering a baseline of information to tailor interventions around parent beliefs that might increase parent participation in anti-bullying efforts at schools. The extant literature does not include research on parent beliefs about defenders, thus this study offers a foundational understanding of the topic.