Cyberbullying Prevention: Which Design Features Foster the Effectiveness of School-Based Programs? : A Meta-Analytic Approach

Cyberbullying is a global phenomenon that affects 10-40 percent of youth (Hinduja and Patchin, 2014) and has severe consequences such as depression, anxiety or suicidal thoughts. There is a large and growing body of literature discussing and assessing programs aimed at preventing cyberbullying, to which the present article aims to contribute. My purpose was to examine whether prevention programs applying certain features – in particular, social-emotional learning, whole-school approach, mentoring and education on online safety and cyberbullying – are more effective than others. This ambition is novel in the cyberbullying literature. The analysis is based on the results of 23 impact evaluation articles that examined 15 school-based cyberbullying prevention programs or program variants. It was found that programs including social-emotional learning and mentoring are more effective in reducing perpetration, whereas those including education on e-safety and cyberbullying are more effective in reducing victimization. Policy implications and the limitations of the study are also discussed.

The research found that programs including social-emotional learning and mentoring are more effective in reducing perpetration, whereas those including education on e-safety and cyberbullying are more effective in reducing victimization. The effect size of programs involving parents and/or teachers, on the other hand, was not found to be significantly higher with regard to either perpetration or victimization. The study also concludes that social-emotional learning is a key design elements in successful programs so as mentoring, and education about e-safety and awareness raising about cyberbullying may effectively help victims. My results confirm some of the suggestions presented in the cyberbullying literature. "First, programs with a strong social-emotional learning emphasis and those involving peer-mentors are more likely to be effective at reducing perpetration. Second, programs in which education about online safety and cyberbullying are emphasized are more likely to be effective at reducing victimization. The effect size of programs involving parents and/or teachers, on the other hand, was not found to be significantly higher with regard to either perpetration or victimization." (Áron Hajnal: Cyberbullying Prevention: Which Design Features Foster the Effectiveness of School-Based Programs? A Meta-Analytic Approach, Intersections. EEJSP7(1): 40–58, p: 52)