Watch out! The silent devil in the classroom! The Coping Strategies for Relational Bullying –A Retrospective Study

• Main Authors: Yi-Hsuan Chen, 陳怡萱
• Other Authors: Su-Fen Tu
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2018
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/cvxk4x

碩士 === 中原大學 === 教育研究所 === 106 === Abstract The purposes of this study is to explore the coping strategies for relational bullying. The first purpose was to understand the perceptions and the coping strategies of the individuals who encountered relational bullying in their school years; the second purpose was to explore the impact of relational bullying experience on the daily interpersonal interaction of the individual; the third purpose attempted to analyze the relationships between coping strategies and interpersonal influences of relational bullying. The study implemented in two phases. In the first phase, the researcher collected relational bullying incidents and coping strategies through internet. Forty-three participants (10 males and 33 females) who experienced relational bullying voluntarily participated in this research. Research participants were 30 years old in average and had the experience of being edged out by peers during their years in schools. The collected data analyzed through content analysis. The second phase of the current study attempted to understand in depth of the bullying experience. Seventeen participants (4 males and 13 females) from the first phase signed up for the in-depth interview. The interviews were conducted trhough skype and each lasted for about 60-90 minutes. The interview mainly followed a semi-structured interview quesitons, but the participant’s narratives were valued during the interviewing process. The interview were audio recorded with the permission from the participants.. The data analysis followed grounded theory approach; meanwhile, the trustworthiness of this reseachadopted a triangulation method. The results of included： A. The most common causes of relational bullying were the conflicts and issues related to interpersonal interaction. B. The most common coping strategy was seeking social assistance. C. Most people adopted tolerance and conflict avoidance strategies to protect themselves from being excluded. D. Self-protection and self-healing were the most common long-term coping strategies. E. Different coping strategies affected the participants’ different interpersonal interactions afterwards. (A) Those who have been bullied several times were prone to hold negative images on themselves, especially those who adopted self-related strategies. (B) Those who experienced bullying events frequently exhibited traumatic stress responses at the same time; these phenomena were frequently seen in women. Also, most of them inclined to use self-protection and self-healing strategies. (C) No matter what kind of coping strategies were used, there were negative effects of relationships. (D) When the subjects adopted strategies that related to themselves, the long term influences inclined to be on themselves;on the contrary, the subjects who adopted coping strategies that related to using others as resolving resources, then the long term impacts they reported would be on the interpersonal relationships with others. (E) The selection of copying strategy was a dynamic process. The participant tended to shift their strategies based on the effects of previous strategies. (F)Though relational bullying was a negative life experience, it won’t be necessarily bringing negative effects or outcomes. They may also have positive benefits. Based on the research findings and discussions, the researcher proposed suggestions regard to school system, personal life, family system, and future research. Key words: relational bullying, coping strategies, content analysis