TPC-Journal-V5-Issue4

The Professional Counselor /Volume 5, Issue 4 Implications for School Counselors This study has practical implications for school counselors. The findings provide preliminary evidence for a brief, stand-alone bystander psychoeducation program in increasing bystanders’ knowledge of bullying and confidence intervening when they observe bullying at school. In addition to equipping bystanders to intervene, unlike comprehensive, school-wide programs, the STAC training can be brief and cost effective, allowing schools to have access to program implementation on a broader scale. The implementation of a stand-alone bystander program also can establish school counselors as leaders in addressing bullying in their schools since school counselors do not have to rely on teachers to instruct students through the context of their classroom setting. School counselors can work collaboratively with a counselor education program at a local university to implement the STAC training and strategies as a brief, stand-alone bystander intervention program. This can be helpful to school counselors because they can be leaders and liaisons in implementation, without having the task of developing another program to be implemented at school. Furthermore, after implementing the STAC training and strategies, school counselors can follow up with small group activities for the middle school students who were trained as peer advocates. The small groups can serve several purposes: (a) to check in with peer advocates assessing whether they utilized the strategies and found them helpful, (b) to support peer advocates in implementing the strategies by practicing role-plays based on situations encountered, teaching advocates to link two or more strategies together, and discussing how peer advocates can work as a team in relevant situations, and (c) to learn more about bullying at school through a student perspective to guide future interventions. This is consistent with the ASCA National Model that emphasizes group activities specific to student needs and interests and supports a comprehensive school counseling program that impacts all students (ASCA, 2012). Conclusion This study evaluated the effectiveness of a brief, stand-alone bystander bullying psychoeducation program for middle school students. Results indicated the STAC training was effective in increasing students’ ability to identify what different types of bullying look like, knowledge of the STAC strategies, and general confidence intervening as a peer-advocate. Findings provide preliminary support for the use of STAC as a brief, stand-alone bystander program, thereby providing school counselors with a low-demand approach that equips students to intervene as bystanders. This study is a first step in assessing the effectiveness of the STAC program, providing a foundation for future research examining the impact of STAC training on reducing bullying behaviors in the school setting. Conflict of Interest and Funding Disclosure The author reported no conflict of interest or funding contributions for the development of this manuscript.