Does a Social and Emotional Learning Program Have the Same Effect for all Students Regardless of Their Bullying Roles?

This study analyzed whether students involved in different bullying roles (i.e., victims, bullies, bully-victims, non-involved) benefit differently from participating in the Positive Attitude Upper Middle School (PAUMS) Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) program. Participants were 876 middle school students (i.e., 7th and 8th graders; Mage = 12.81 years, SD = 1.07 years; 440 boys and 436 girls). Five hundred and thirty-one students (60.6%, 29 classrooms) received the intervention, while 345 students (39.4%, 14 classrooms) formed the control groups. Growth Curve Analyses using three measurement points were employed. Students in the intervention groups showed gains over students in the control group in all four social and emotional competencies analyzed. Participation in the PAUMS SEL program led to greater increases in self-control and social awareness for victims and bully-victims and in responsible decision-making for victims than for non-involved students. Participation in the program did not lead to differences in the evolution of any social and emotional competence (SEC) between bullies and non-involved students. Therefore, the current study highlights that participation in a SEL program may lead to different effects on SECs depending on their bullying role.