The trauma of bullying: Evaluating the impact of a trauma-informed therapeutic intervention to support children who have been chronically bullied in school

Abstract

The poor mental health outcomes associated with being bullied in school are well documented in the research literature. Trauma-informed approaches offer one possible avenue of support. The aim of this study is to examine the traumatic impact of being chronically bullied in school and evaluate the use of a pilot trauma-informed therapeutic intervention. In this study, 18 parents in England whose child was receiving a new bullying-focused trauma-informed therapy completed an online questionnaire about their child’s experiences of bullying and their trauma symptoms. Their children were aged between 8 and 16 years old (M_age = 11.28 years, SD_age = 2.24 years), 9 (50%) young people were male, and 9 (50%) were female. The questionnaire was completed before and after the 12-week therapeutic intervention. The findings of the study highlight the negative impact being bullied has on poor mental health, particularly on symptoms of trauma. The results of the small-scale evaluation also highlight how the trauma-informed therapeutic intervention reduced symptoms of trauma and supported children and young people to cope with their experiences of bullying. While a pilot study, the findings offer a potential avenue for helping young people being chronically bullied in school.