The work has sparked suggestions that UK schools could benefit from similar guidance to help them monitor and record bullying.
The new US definition states: “Bullying is any unwanted aggressive behaviour(s) by another youth or group of youths who are not siblings or current dating partners that involves an observed or perceived power imbalance and is repeated multiple times or is highly likely to be repeated. Bullying may inflict harm or distress on the targeted youth including physical, psychological, social, or educational harm.”
The Uniform Bullying Definition Project was set-up to provide a consistency of measurement across the US, which individual states can opt to use in the national surveillance surveys. The American project team included UK expert in bullying behaviour, Professor Ian Rivers from Brunel University.
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