Abstract
Background
Bullying is a major health problem. The KiVa antibullying program has been evaluated in Finland and other European countries, showing preventive effects on self-reported bullying victimisation and bullying perpetration. No evaluations of this program have been conducted in Latin America.
Methods
A cluster randomised controlled trial to assess the effectiveness of the KiVa antibullying Program in grades 5 and 6 students (aged 10-12 years) was conducted at socially vulnerable schools in Santiago, Chile. Schools were randomly assigned (1:1:1) to three groups: the full KiVa group (including the online game), the partial KiVa group (did not include the online game), and the control group in which the regular school curriculum was implemented. The primary outcome was self-reported bullying victimisation, assessed at the end of the academic year (November, 2016) and 12 months later after the intervention. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02898324.
Results
39 schools (13 in each group) were included; no schools withdrew. The baseline survey included a total of 5923 participants, and the endpoint survey included 3968 participants. Participants in the partial KiVa group had lower bullying victimisation at endpoint survey than those in the control group (OBVQ-R adjusted mean difference 0.14; 95% CI, -0.26 to -0.01; effect size -0.13, 95% CI -0.24 to -0.01, p=0.035). There was no effect of the full KiVa group for bullying victimisation compared with the control group and the partial KiVa group. Compared to the control group, participants in the partial KiVa group had lower witnessing bullying at school (adjusted mean difference =-0.25; 95% CI -0.45 to -0.05; effect size -0.18, 95% CI, -0.32 to -0.04, p=0.013). No effects were found for bullying perpetration in any of the comparisons between arms.
Conclusions
The KiVa antibullying Program had small effects in its implementation in Chile, mainly for bullying victimisation and witnessing when delivered without the online game. More antibullying research is needed in Latin American countries.
Bullying is a major health problem. The KiVa antibullying program has been evaluated in Finland and other European countries, showing preventive effects on self-reported bullying victimisation and bullying perpetration. No evaluations of this program have been conducted in Latin America.
Methods
A cluster randomised controlled trial to assess the effectiveness of the KiVa antibullying Program in grades 5 and 6 students (aged 10-12 years) was conducted at socially vulnerable schools in Santiago, Chile. Schools were randomly assigned (1:1:1) to three groups: the full KiVa group (including the online game), the partial KiVa group (did not include the online game), and the control group in which the regular school curriculum was implemented. The primary outcome was self-reported bullying victimisation, assessed at the end of the academic year (November, 2016) and 12 months later after the intervention. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02898324.
Results
39 schools (13 in each group) were included; no schools withdrew. The baseline survey included a total of 5923 participants, and the endpoint survey included 3968 participants. Participants in the partial KiVa group had lower bullying victimisation at endpoint survey than those in the control group (OBVQ-R adjusted mean difference 0.14; 95% CI, -0.26 to -0.01; effect size -0.13, 95% CI -0.24 to -0.01, p=0.035). There was no effect of the full KiVa group for bullying victimisation compared with the control group and the partial KiVa group. Compared to the control group, participants in the partial KiVa group had lower witnessing bullying at school (adjusted mean difference =-0.25; 95% CI -0.45 to -0.05; effect size -0.18, 95% CI, -0.32 to -0.04, p=0.013). No effects were found for bullying perpetration in any of the comparisons between arms.
Conclusions
The KiVa antibullying Program had small effects in its implementation in Chile, mainly for bullying victimisation and witnessing when delivered without the online game. More antibullying research is needed in Latin American countries.
| Original language | American English |
|---|---|
| Journal | Prevention Science |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 24 Jun 2022 |
Keywords
- Bullying
- KiVa program
- Effectiveness
- Children
- Adolescents