Kris Varjas

General Education Teachers’ Perceptions of Behavior Management and Intervention Strategies

In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with kindergarten and first-grade general education teachers to determine their perceptions of student behavior. This study describes the teachers’ perspectives of and approaches to behavior management and intervention strategies (e.g., use of praise, rewards, implementation of classroom management, and knowledge about PBIS and RTI). A unique contribution of this study is the in-depth data that provide specific descriptions of the teachers’ perceptions. Findings indicated that the teachers in this study tended to concentrate more on individual student behavior when describing behavior management strategies than on group or schoolwide behavior. In addition, the teachers were unfamiliar with RTI and PBIS despite training occurring in the system on these initiatives during the study. Lastly, the teachers perceived themselves as strong influences on student behavior development and described the use of positive strategies. Meeting teachers’ training needs for implementation of schoolwide PBIS and topics for future research are discussed.

Coping strategies and perceived effectiveness in fourth through eighth grade victims of bullying

Victimization resulting from bullying affects millions of school children worldwide each year (e.g. Nansel et al., 2001; Sapouna, 2008; Smokowski & Kopasz, 2005). These children face the fear and humiliation of verbal, physical, and relational aggression and as a result, often suffer psychological ill effects (e.g. Kochenderfer-Ladd, & Skinner, 2002). This study examined the coping strategies of victims of bullying using qualitative research methodology. One-hundred-and-two fourth through eighth grade students participated in group interviews discussing the topics of bullying and coping with victimization. A coping model emerged from this study that included the primary categories of problem-focused coping and emotion-focused coping, and eight subcategories, self-defense, stand up to the bully, seeking social support, distancing, internalizing, tension-reduction/externalizing, focus on the positive, and self-blame. Results revealed that problem-focused coping was the type of coping most often used by victims of bullying. Externalizing and seeking social support were the most commonly reported problem-focused coping strategies used by victims. Boys discussed using externalizing strategies with greater frequency than girls, whereas girls reported seeking social support more often than boys. Results also indicated that children generally found their implemented strategies to be ineffective in resolving their problem. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.

High School Students’ Perceptions of Coping With Cyberbullying:

Cyberbullying can have a variety of negative effects on student mental health (Internet Safety Technical Task Force, 2008). An understanding of students’ coping with cyberbullying could help researchers and professionals to determine ways to alleviate and/or prevent the negative effects of cyberbullying. Qualitative methods were used to provide an in-depth examination of coping with cyberbullying. The results revealed three primary coping themes as follows: reactive coping, preventive coping, and no way to prevent cyberbullying. Reactive coping included avoiding the cyberbully situation by deleting or ignoring messages. Preventive coping strategies included talk in person and increased security and awareness. Some students reported that there was no way to reduce cyberbullying. These strategies were interpreted in terms of current theories of coping and findings suggested a need for a new comprehensive model of coping with cyberbullying. In addition, implications for future research and practice were discussed.

Bullying in Schools Towards Sexual Minority Youth

ABSTRACT Gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, questioning and inter-sex (GLBTQI) youth, and those perceived to be GLBTQI, face extensive verbal and physical bullying in schools. Although increasing attention has been made at examining the safety concerns of sexual minority (GLBTQI) youth, there remain important gaps in the literature as well as significant sampling limitations. This article seeks to identify and respond to research gaps by: (a) reviewing existing literature about the causes and risk factors associated with homophobic bullying; (b) reviewing existing literature about the consequences associated with the victims of sexual minority bullying; (c) identifying the limitations to research procedures and methodologies that have been used to investigate this topic; and (d) proposing a research agenda for future investigations of homophobic bullying in schools.

Gay-Straight Alliance Advisors: Negotiating Multiple Ecological Systems when Advocating for LGBTQ Youth.

This qualitative study investigated the barriers and facilitators that advisors of gay–straight alliances encounter when advocating for LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer) youth within schools. Twenty-two advisors were interviewed, and data revealed that multiple ecological systems (e.g., sociocultural, school, and individual factors) interacted to create barriers and facilitators to advocacy for LGBTQ youth. Results suggested an ecological systems perspective to advocacy in which advisors exist in multiple ecological systems simultaneously. An understanding of how these systems interact to create barriers and facilitators to advocacy may assist advisors in effectively working within these systems in order to create significant, lasting change in schools.

Technology Hurts? Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Youth Perspectives of Technology and Cyberbullying

The present qualitative study explored the perceptions of this group of adolescents regarding what technology they use, what they view as constructive uses of technology, and their perceptions of cyberbullying and cybervictimization. A total of 18 lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) adolescents participated in semistructured interviews. Many of the participants indicated that they use texting and social networking forms of technology, while few reported engaging with gaming technology. Results indicated technology provided support for this sample of LGB youth who might otherwise feel more isolated and/or depressed in relation to their heterosexually identified peers. In addition, this sample reported sexual orientation and revenge as reasons why students were targets of cyberbullying. These findings were consistent with prior research with non-LGB samples. Grounded in moral disengagement theory, the findings and implications of this study were interpreted within the context of prior research on technology use as well as the literature on bullying and cyberbullying.

Peer Victimization and School Safety: The Role of Coping Effectiveness

Peer victimization is a documented antecedent of poor mental health outcomes for children and adolescents. This article explored the role of coping effectiveness in the association between victimization and perceived school safety. A sample of urban middle school students (N = 509) in the southeastern United States were surveyed regarding victimization, coping behaviors, and school climate. Data analysis were conducted in Mplus (Version 6.1) with a Bayesian analytic approach that allowed for incorporation of findings from a previous study using comparable measures (Varjas, Henrich, & Meyers, 2009). The findings supported a hypothesized buffering effect of coping effectiveness on the association between victimization and school safety. Unexpectedly, there was a suppressing indirect effect of coping effectiveness on the association between victimization and safety. These findings are discussed in terms of the importance of participatory action models of research and understanding developmental trends in childrens coping behavior.

Demographic Trends and Advocacy Experiences of Gay–Straight Alliance Advisors

Using an ecological model, the individual-, school-, and sociocultural-level characteristics that affect gay–straight alliance (GSA) advisors were examined in the current study. The formation of GSAs has been one way that schools have sought to improve the school climate for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth. Limited information is available about the demographics and experiences of GSA advisors who lead these clubs. GSA advisors are on the front line of LGBT advocacy in schools. The purpose of this study is to add to the minimal literature on GSA advisors by describing the demographics and the experiences of the largest known sample of GSA advisors in the research literature. In the current study, 262 GSA advisors provided information through a 67-item survey about their demographic characteristics and their experiences advocating for LGBT youth in schools. The results suggested this sample of advisors was a demographically homogenous group. Exploratory factor analysis identified two dimensions (i.e., barriers, facilitators) by which the advisors appeared to define their experiences when advocating for LGBT youth. These two factors accounted for 47.98% of the variance in the advisors’ experiences. Limitations and future research directions are discussed.

''The Internet is a Mask'': High School Students' Suggestions for Preventing Cyberbullying

Introduction: Interactions through technology have an important impact on todays youth. While some of these interactions are positive, there are concerns regarding students engaging in negative interactions like cyberbullying behaviors and the negative impact these behaviors have on others. The purpose of the current study was to explore participant suggestions for both students and adults for preventing cyberbullying incidents. Methods: Forty high school students participated in individual, semi-structured interviews. Participant experiences and perceptions were coded using constant comparative methods to illustrate ways in which students and adults may prevent cyberbullying from occurring within their school and community. Results: Students reported that peers would benefit from increasing online security, as well as becoming more aware of their cyber-surroundings. Regarding adult-provided prevention services, participants often discussed that there is little adults can do to reduce cyberbullying. Reasons included the difficulties in restricting online behaviors or providing effective consequences. However, some students did discuss the use of in-school curricula while suggesting that adults blame people rather than technology as potential ways to prevent cyberbullying. Conclusion: Findings from the current study indicate some potential ways to improve adult efforts to prevent cyberbullying. These strategies include parent/teacher training in technology and cyberbullying, interventions focused more on student behavior than technology restriction, and helping students increase their online safety and awareness.

The meaning and importance of cultural construction for global development

The impetus for this Special Issue was multifaceted and informed by critiques of existing research in psychology and international development initiatives. The cultural relevance of psychology rese...