This paper reports on a project to systematically review and perform a meta-analysis of the effectiveness of school-based anti-bullying programs; it describes the methodology for analyzing the research studies; and discusses the findings which indicate that the programs are effective in reducing school-bullying perpetration and victimization.
A comprehensive and extensive systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of bullying prevention programs is presented. This report updates earlier research conducted by Farrington and Ttofi (2009). Systematic searches of online databases (i.e., Web of Science, PsychARTICLES, PsychINFO, EMBASE, DARE, ERIC, Google scholar, and Scopus) were conducted for primary studies published from 2009 to December 2016. Searches were also conducted for unpublished reports. To be included in the systematic review, primary studies must: (1) describe an evaluation of a school-based anti-bullying program; (2) utilize an appropriate operational definition of school-bullying (e.g., Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014; Farrington, 1993; Olweus, 1992); (3) measure school-bullying perpetration and/or victimization behaviors using quantitative measures; and (4) use an experimental or quasi-experimental design with adequate control group. (Published Abstract Provided)