School Staff Responses to Gender-Based Bullying as Moral Interpretation

Abstract

Gender-based bullying is the most common form of violence that students encounter in U.S. public schools. Several large-scale surveys reveal its consequences for students. Fewer studies examine how school staff members make sense of and respond to such violence. The authors address this knowledge gap by presenting analyses of interviews conducted with high school faculty and staff. Synthesizing sociological studies of violence and positioning theory, the authors illuminate the webs of relationships and cultural narratives in which school staff responses to gender-based bullying are situated. The authors find that, although school staff members felt compelled to intervene when male students sexually harassed quiet girls, they were reluctant to intervene in abusive heterosexual dating relationships and were ambivalent about their responsibility toward gay and lesbian targets of bullying. The authors argue for expanding prevention efforts beyond intervention to engage school staff in critically examining sexist and heterosexist roles, norms, and practices.