Study examines antibullying policies and bullying in 25 states

JAMA : Journal of the American Medical Association

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-10/tjnj-sea100115.php

Public Release: 5-Oct-2015
Study examines antibullying policies and bullying in 25 states
The JAMA Network Journals

Students who lived in states with an antibullying law that includes at least one U.S. Department of Education-recommended legislative component had lower odds of reporting bullying and cyberbullying compared with students in states whose laws had no such provisions, according to an article published online by JAMA Pediatrics.

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Three individual components of antibullying legislation were consistently associated with decreased odds of being bullied and cyberbullied: statement of scope, description of prohibited behaviors, and requirements for districts to develop and implement local policies, the study reports.

The authors caution they can only infer about associations between antibullying policies and rates of being bullied because the data were cross-sectional and they cannot test causal associations.

"Bullying is a multifaceted phenomenon that requires a multipronged approach. Although antibullying policies by themselves cannot completely eradicate bullying, these data suggest that such policies represent an important part of a comprehensive strategy for preventing bullying among youth," the study concludes.