Elementary school students who participated in a three-month
anti-bullying program in Seattle schools showed a 72 percent
decrease in malicious gossip.
The study, led by the University of Washington, is the first to show the
widely-used Steps to Respect bullying prevention program can curb
children's gossip, an element of playground culture often seen as
harmless but capable of causing real harm.
Gossip impact
"Gossip is an element of bullying, and it can lead to physical
bullying," said Karin Frey, a UW research associate professor of
educational psychology. "Kids will tell you that gossip is just as
painful as physical bullying."
But teachers tend to not view gossip as a significant form of
bullying, Frey said.
The study showed having supportive friends along with opting against retaliation when victimized by malicious gossip helped participants in the program avoid further victimization.
Monitoring kids
Researchers used Palm Pilots to record second-by-second
observations of 610 students in grades 3-6 at six elementary
schools in the Seattle area.
Researchers electronically recorded each child's behavior on the
playground for five minutes once a week for 10 weeks in the fall
and 10 weeks in the spring.
"Gossip is surprisingly visible, because you have to have more than
one person, and it can last awhile," said Frey, who led development
of the Steps to Respect program in 2000. "Is the cootie girl in
your class?" and "Did you hear Dan cheated?" are two examples of
children's gossip Frey and her co-authors mention in their
paper.
Ganging up
Not all gossip is strictly behind the back, though. The
researchers also found sometimes gossips will huddle together and
clearly talk about a victim.
"Without speaking loudly enough that others will know what they are
saying, they'll point and look at the person they're gossiping
about," Frey said.
After observers heard gossip on the playground in the fall, the
anti-bullying program began in half of the 36 classrooms.
The program
During three months, teachers taught Steps to Respect lesson
plans that encouraged empathy, taught assertiveness and emphasized
that bullying is not a social norm.
In a questionnaire for students, the researchers measured two
factors that influence bullying: beliefs about fighting back
against bullies and having supportive friends.
When students' playground gossip was observed in the spring,
children in the Steps to Respect classrooms had 234 fewer instances
of gossip per class of 25, or a 72 percent decrease in gossip among
students who had gossiped before participating in the anti-bullying
program.
"Gossip is still there, but it's better," Frey said. "That's going
to make a difference in the life of a child."
Kids may mistakenly subscribe to the "don't get mad, get even,"
philosophy. But since victims who retaliate often end up bullied
even more, Steps to Respect teaches kids to not fight back.
Frey and her co-authors found that gossip victims in the fall who
went through Steps to Respect in the winter were less likely to
believe in retaliation as a response to bullying, and more likely
to avoid being a victim of gossip in the spring.
Having supportive friends also helped gossip victims. "Maybe
friends use their assertiveness skills and say, 'Come on, let's
go,'" Frey said.
Frey said bystanders are really important in decreasing gossip and
bullying, but many times children feel uncomfortable and don't know
what to do. Bystanders' silence can give a lot of power to bullies,
but if they speak up, the bullying stops.
"Stand up straight, look the bully in the eye, and say 'knock it
off,'" Frey said.
The study is published in the winter issue of School Psychology Review.
