In the previous chapters I have discussed the stressors related to being the child of military personnel, the related risk factors associated with becoming a the target of peer victimization, and the assets that the bioecological model can provide as a lens for further exploring this issue. In this chapter I will discuss the specific methods that I will employ to generate research on the topic at hand and express the possible benefits in addressing the issue of identifying and assisting military student’s who are experiencing bullying issues.
This study used a qualitative, longitudinal approach in researching the risk factors and effects of possibly bullying for military youth. Triangulation was achieved through the use of three methods of collecting data from participants. The three methods include interviews, observation, and focus groups. In the following section each of these methods will briefly be described and the use of each method in the present study will be explained.
Interviews
Interviews may be one of the most commonly used forms of qualitative research (Perakyla, 2005). This may be due to the capabilities of interviews to reach areas of individuals’ reality and subjective experiences that would otherwise remain unattainable. Interviews allow researchers to overcome distances in both space and time by conveniently utilizing interviews. An interview can be defined as a process that takes place between two or more individuals, during which their interaction leads to the creation of a collaborative effort (Fontana & Frey, 2005). One key aspect of interviewing is the active nature of the process, which leads to a “contextually bound and mutually created story – the interview” (Fontana & Frey, 2005, p.696). I...
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... Handbook of Qualitative Research (3rd ed., pp. 659-727). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.
Fontana, A., & Frey, J.H. (2005). The interview. In N.K. Denzin, & Y.S. Lincoln (Eds.), The
Sage Handbook of Qualitative Research (3rd ed., pp. 659-727). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.
Kamberelis, G., & Dimitriadis, G. (2005). Focus groups. In N.K. Denzin, & Y.S. Lincoln (Eds.),
The Sage Handbook of Qualitative Research (3rd ed., pp. 659-727). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.
Kitzinger, J. (1994). The methodology of focus groups: The importance of interaction between
research participants. Sociology of Health & Illness, 16(1), 103-121.
Perakyla, A. (2005). Analyzing talk and text. In N.K. Denzin, & Y.S. Lincoln (Eds.), The
Sage Handbook of Qualitative Research (3rd ed., pp. 659-727). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.
Though, some may not understand how bullying can be dangerous and extremely hurtful, not only physically, but mentally; it is best to properly explain that bullying is actually defined as “intentional aggressive behavior characterized by an imbalance of strength or power” (Fields). KidsHealth, in 2004, with the help of children revealing that they are one of these bullies, provided a survey showing that “40 percent of children in between the ages of nine to thirteen are one of these bullies” (Turley).
Salmivalli, C. (2010). Bullying and the peer group: A review. Aggression & Violent Behavior, 15(2), 112-120. doi:10.1016/j.avb.2009.08.007
The proportion of children who is exposed to bullying is eighty-six present with age range between 12 and 15.(the book) Bullying is a problem that got people attention since it became wide spread among children and young adult. This issue also has been studied by psychologists to reach the core of the problem and to analyze its dimensions. These studies include definition of bullying, type of bullying, and how family relation associated with being bully or victim.
Bullying, often dismissed as a normal part of growing up, is a real problem in our nation's schools, according to the National School Safety Center. One out of every four schoolchildren endures taunting, teasing, pushing, and shoving daily from schoolyard bullies. More than 43 percent of middle- and high-school students avoid using school bathrooms for fear of being harassed or assaulted. Old-fashioned schoolyard hazing has escalated to instances of extortion, emotional terrorism, and kids toting guns to school. It is estimated that more than 90 percent of all incidents of school violence begin with verbal conflicts, w...
Bullying, a loathsome and unsavory act, is widely seen in all aspects of life, but more particularly in school settings. It features an aggressor intimidating or tormenting a weaker person in one way or another. This act usually ends badly for the victims and leaves him or her in a vulnerable and pitiful state. Thirty percent of U.S. students in grades six through ten are involved in moderate or frequent bullying; as bullies, as victims, or as both (National Survey). Bullying is increasingly viewed as an important contributor to youth violence, including homicide and suicide. It is more prevalent among males than females and occurs with greater frequency among middle school-aged youth than high school-aged youth; children who are obese, gay, or have disabilities are up to sixty three percent more likely to be bullied than other children ( Sognonvi, 2009). The act of bullying, while objectionable and despicable, could be deeply rooted in psychological, social, and family issues.
The unstructured interview approach, is an excellent way of creating multiple realities by giving the control of the interview over to the participants being interviewed and inviting them to tell their stories peaked by only an open-ended question. This method requires an environment in which the participants readily open up (Hill, 2001). To the credit of the current study, the interviewees did provide detailed accounts when interviewed. Additionally, as the stories are elicited by the participants own volition, they can cover a broad range of topics allows for unplanned comments and topics to come up that may have otherwise been left untouched in a more structured methodology (Kvale, 1983). However, because the responses are so gloriously open ended they are difficult to compare across different cases, and large amounts of irrelevant data must be sifted through in a time consuming manner. The benefit of qualitative phenomenological research is that while most scientific methods focus on what can be physically observed and quantitatively measured, this leaves a gapping hole in our ability to evaluate the human condition as most of what we do is determined by unseen forces in our psyches (Kvale, 1983). Therefore, open-ended phenomenology allows researchers to break the restrictive mold and attempt to discover insights into lived experience that would normally remain invisible to more traditional scientific study (Dale,
Stewart D. W., & Shamdasani P. N., (1990), Focus Groups: Theory and Practice, London, Thousand Oaks, New Delhi: SAGE Publications
This article hasn’t provided an introduction; however a lengthy summary of the study which identifies the problem, purpose and rationale for the research study has been provided in the background. The introduction should give the reader a general sense of what the document is about, and preferably persuade the reader to continue reading. This prepares the reader for reading the rest of the document (Burns & Grove, 2001 p.636; Nieswiadomy, 2008 p.380; Stockhausen and Conrick, 2002).
Reviewing the previous qualitative studies, the interview has become one of key research approaches (along with field observations and document analysis) for gathering data that is closely conducted by qualitative researchers. (Kvale, 1996; Brinkmann, 2008; Seidman, 2006). As Gubrium & Holstein (2003) suggest that the qualitative interviews are able to assist researchers to investigate the discovery-oriented enquiries and the increased understanding of subjectivities in the researching fields of social science, media, health care, etc.
Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Qualitative research is an approach that attempts to situate an activity that locates the observer in the world by providing the study to occur in their natural setting and by attempting to make sense of, or interpret information (Denzin and Lincoln, 2005). A characteristic of qualitative research is to use a variety of empirical materials such as personal experience, interviews, and questionnaires. It is imperative to understand the task at hand and how to fully carry out the study when using a qualitative research approach in order to find out the information needed. One view of qualitative research is it involves examining individual’s experiences and documenting those experiences in detail (Jones, 2011). By documenting these observations the researcher is ensuring validity in his or her data and giving the correct creditability to those who participated in the study.
Liamputtong, P. & Ezzy, D., 2005, Qualitative research methods, 2nd ed., Oxford University Press, South Melbourne, Victoria, pp. 12-31.
In a CNN study by Chuck Hadad he states “That bullying is pervasive even though the schools have anti-bullying programs from kindergarten through 12th grade, assemblies throughout the year, and a peer-to-peer program where older students talk to younger students about the dangers of bullying” (Hadad). Robert Faris, a sociologist found that bullies and victims are generally the same person. Whe...
Everyone has been bullied or encountered someone being bullied at some point of their life. Whether it would be physically or verbally both can be exceedingly traumatizing and can have a long-term psychological influence on children’s development. Majority people may define bullying in a more physical term; nevertheless that’s not always the case. The act of bullying can occur in several ways and in reality affect the individual in the same way. Bullying is generally defined as repeated, negative, and harmful actions focused at target throughout a course of time, exhibiting a sense of power difference between the bully and the victim (Olweus, 1993; Limber & Mihalic, 1999 as cited from Douglas J. Boyle, 2005). A survey was conducted in the United States estimating that over six million children, about 30% in grade six through ten have experienced frequent bullying in a school environment (Nansel, 2001 as cited from Douglas J. Boyle, 2005). Many people might debate that bullying is something that every child goes through and is simply a part of growing up, although there are several damaging consequences that happens to the child’s brain. Bullying causes the child to feel upset, isolated, frightened, anxious, and depressed. They feel like they reason they are being picked on is because there is something wrong with them and may even lose their confidence feel unsafe going to school (Frenette, 2013 as cited from Douglas J. Boyle, 2005) Anthropologically, sociologically, or psychologically, bullying can be analyzed through different perspectives and several questions can be asked based on the topic:
Bullying is a devastating issue that threatens the well-being of today’s youth. Those who are most likely at risk are those who; have a learning or physical disability i.g., autism or ADHD, are underweight or overweight, are gay/lesbian/transgendered, or speak a different language. Of course, there are no specific guidelines of who will become victims of bullying. Children who are bullied experience lower self-esteem, greater loneliness, greater anxiety, and more depression in addition to the already stressful adolescent years. The longer the bullying occurs the more profound the symptoms can become. As a low-level, subtle form of violence, bullying creates an unsafe school environment and can lead to more serious types of violence among students (Whitted & Dupper, 2005).