Preschool Bullying: Does it Exist, What Does it Look Like, and What Can be Done?

Bullying is a nationwide problem happening in our schools, homes, and workplaces. There have been numerous studies conducted to find out causes of bullying, prevention methods, and effects of bullying in children and adults. All of these studies have looked at children in kindergarten or older. This qualitative study had the goal of determining if bullying was happening in the preschool-age group, and if so, what was currently being done about it. In-person interviews and focus groups were done with seven preschool teachers. Through these interviews it was determined that bullying does happen as early as preschool and that there is no curriculum or consistency in how it is handled from center to center or even teacher to teacher. Implications of this research show a need for both bullying-prevention and language-development curriculum in preschools. Another implication is that teachers stated they specifically need social workers involvement in preventions and interventions. Finally, this research found the need for nation-wide polices and language surrounding bullying starting in preschool.