Understanding the cycle of violence: An examination of bully and victim social roles in early childhood

The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of bullying and victimization in a metropolitan area. A cross-sectional study with kindergarten (n = 127) and first grade (n = 126) children was conducted in two Miami-Dade County Public Schools and three private schools in the same area. Bullying and victimization behavior and social acceptance were assessed through peer nomination and the mental health outcomes of depression and anxiety were assessed through children's self-report. Teachers and parents also completed a social behavior scale for each child. Three areas of analyses were conducted pertaining to membership classification of social roles and the social acceptance and mental health outcomes associated with those roles, reporter agreement within the social roles, and the psychometric properties of the Childhood Social Behavior Scale. Results showed an overall negative pattern of adjustment for children identified as a member of any of the negative social roles. Also, the results support a new analytic approach to the investigation of social roles. The implication of these findings for early identification, social policy, and effective prevention strategies are discussed. ^

Deconstructing the Religious Archive and its Secular Component and its Relationship to Violence

The thesis argues for the inclusion of the study of religion within the public school curriculum. It argues that the whole division between “religious” and “secular” spaces and institutions is itself rooted in a specific religious tradition. Using the theories of Jacques Derrida, I argue that, unless the present process of globalization is tempered with alternative models of organizing that don’t include this secular/sacred division, the very process of Western globalization acts as a moral religion. Derrida calls this process “globalatinization,” the imposition of Western defined institutions upon other cultures. The process creates a type of religious violence through act of imposing notions of “secular/public” and “sacred/private.” Drawing from Mark Juergensmeyer’s theory of religious violence, and Derrida’s and Foucault’s understanding of discursive formations, I argue that religious studies should enter this “secular/public” space in the form of educating about the world’s religions. Such education would go a long way in preventing the demonization of the “other” through promoting empathy, understanding, and respect for “other” traditions. Finally, education would provide a needed self-critique of the dividing of “secular/sacred” in contemporary Western life.

Understanding the cycle of violence: an examination of bully and victim social roles in early childhood

The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of bullying and victimization in a metropolitan area. A cross-sectional study with kindergarten (n = 127) and first grade (n = 126) children was conducted in two Miami-Dade County Public Schools and three private schools in the same area. Bullying and victimization behavior and social acceptance were assessed through peer nomination and the mental health outcomes of depression and anxiety were assessed through children's self-report. Teachers and parents also completed a social behavior scale for each child. Three areas of analyses were conducted pertaining to membership classification of social roles and the social acceptance and mental health outcomes associated with those roles, reporter agreement within the social roles, and the psychometric properties of the Childhood Social Behavior Scale. Results showed an overall negative pattern of adjustment for children identified as a member of any of the negative social roles. Also, the results support a new analytic approach to the investigation of social roles. The implication of these findings for early identification, social policy, and effective prevention strategies are discussed.