High School Teachers' Perceptions, Attitudes, and Intervention Experiences Regarding Peer Bullying

Imagine the school hallways as a giant, bustling ecosystem, like a coral reef teeming with life. In this underwater world, most fish get along, but sometimes, a few sharks start nipping at the fins of smaller fish. This isn't just a squabble over who gets the last piece of coral; it's a pattern of one-sided, repeated biting that makes the smaller fish feel unsafe and scared to swim. Scientists call this "peer bullying." While it happens everywhere, it's a tricky problem because it's not just about the sharks and the small fish; it's about the whole reef. Teachers are like the reef guardians, the ones who walk the halls and try to keep the water clear. But how do these guardians see the problem? Do they know the difference between a playful splash and a dangerous bite? And when they see a shark acting up, do they just yell, or do they try to understand why? This paper dives into the minds of high school teachers in Türkiye to find out how they spot bullying, how they feel about the bullies and the victims, and what tools they use to fix the reef.

The researchers, Onur İbrahim Atay and Fatoş Bulut Ateş from Cukurova University, decided to stop guessing and start listening. Instead of handing out surveys with checkboxes, they sat down (virtually, over Zoom and Google Meet) with 25 high school teachers from different cities and schools. They asked these teachers to tell stories about bullying they had seen, how they defined it, and what they did about it. Think of it as a "story circle" where the teachers shared their real-life experiences rather than just ticking "yes" or "no."

Here is what the teachers told the researchers, broken down into the main parts of the story:

1. What Counts as a Bite?
When asked to describe bullying, the teachers mostly talked about the loud, obvious stuff. Most of them (22 out of 25) said bullying is mostly about mean words, teasing, and mocking. A lot of them (17 out of 25) also mentioned physical hitting or shoving. They also recognized emotional bullying, like making someone feel threatened or pressured (15 teachers). However, the "invisible" kinds of bullying were much harder for them to spot. Only a few teachers mentioned cyberbullying (hurting someone via social media), and only one or two talked about sexual bullying. It's like the teachers are great at seeing the shark that jumps out of the water, but they might miss the shark swimming silently underwater.

The teachers were also very good at telling the difference between a "fight" and "bullying." They explained that a fight is like two kids arguing over a game; it's two-sided, and they might both be angry. Bullying, they said, is different. It's one-sided, like a bully picking on someone who can't fight back. It's about a power imbalance, where one kid has the upper hand and keeps doing it over and over. Most teachers (24 out of 25) could clearly see this line, though one teacher admitted they sometimes got confused.

2. The Two-Faced Guardian
This is where the story gets interesting. The teachers' feelings toward the bullies and the victims were like two different sides of a coin. When they thought about the bullies, many felt angry, tense, or frustrated (16 teachers). Some even admitted they lost motivation to work with that student or felt a negative vibe toward them. But here's the twist: most of those same teachers said that if they took the time to get to know the bully and understand their background, their anger would fade, and they could see the student more clearly.

On the flip side, when they thought about the victims, the teachers' hearts went out to them. They felt a strong sense of compassion, pity, and a desire to protect (14 and 13 teachers, respectively). Some even felt so close to the victim that they admitted it was hard to stay completely neutral. One teacher said, "I feel sorry for the bullied child; they hurt me more." This creates a tricky situation: the teacher loves the victim so much that they might get extra angry at the bully, which can sometimes make the teacher's reaction feel a bit like bullying itself.

3. How They Tried to Fix It
When it came to taking action, the teachers had a few go-to moves.

• For the Bully: They mostly tried to have private, one-on-one chats (19 teachers) to give behavioral guidance and warnings (17 teachers). They preferred to talk in an empty classroom rather than in front of everyone, to avoid embarrassing the student. Some tried to make the bully understand how it feels to be on the receiving end.
• For the Victim: The main strategy was to be supportive (21 teachers). They tried to make the victim feel safe, included them more in class, and gave them responsibilities to boost their confidence.
• For the Whole Situation: They often called in the backup team. Collaborating with school counselors (17 teachers) and the school administration (12 teachers) was very common. They also tried to talk to families (10 teachers).

However, the teachers also admitted that sometimes they made mistakes. A few teachers (2 out of 25) confessed that in moments of frustration, they might have used harsh words or even "bullied" the bully back to show them how it feels. They knew this wasn't the right way, but it happened.

4. The Roadblocks
Why is stopping bullying so hard? The teachers pointed to three big walls blocking their path:

• The Family Wall: The biggest hurdle was getting parents to cooperate (14 teachers). Some parents didn't believe the problem existed, or they were hard to reach.
• The Teacher Wall: Sometimes, the problem came from other teachers or the school system itself. Some teachers didn't recognize bullying, or they treated it as normal (7 teachers). Others blamed the victim or didn't work together as a team.
• The Social Media Wall: It's hard to watch what happens on phones. Teachers said they couldn't control social media, where a lot of the bullying happens outside of school hours (7 teachers).

5. What They Suggest
To break down these walls, the teachers offered a list of ideas. They want more training for teachers (19 teachers) to help them spot the hidden kinds of bullying and learn how to talk to students without being mean. They want better support from school counselors and a stronger system for working with families (12 teachers each). They also think society needs to wake up and realize that bullying is a big problem, not just "kids being kids."

The Bottom Line
This study suggests that teachers in Türkiye are generally aware of what bullying is and want to help. They are great at spotting the obvious physical and verbal attacks and can tell the difference between a fight and bullying. However, they struggle with the invisible types like cyberbullying. Their hearts are with the victims, but their anger at bullies can sometimes get in the way of a fair solution. The paper suggests that fixing bullying isn't just about one teacher yelling at a student; it's about building a whole team of teachers, parents, and counselors working together. It's a complex puzzle, and while the teachers have the pieces, they need a better picture on the box to put them all together. The authors note that this is based on what teachers said happened, so it's a snapshot of their experiences, not a final proof of everything, but it gives us a very clear look at how the guardians of the school reef are feeling and thinking.