Speaker
Description
Introduction:
Bullying poses unique challenges in foster care homes, as these environments are not traditional school settings but rather family-like groups. Children in these homes often carry the weight of severe trauma, impacting their emotional, neurological, and behavioral functions. This project, conducted over two years in a Hungarian foster care home, aimed to develop a trauma-informed bullying prevention methodology suited to residential child care environments.
Method:
Five professionals specializing in bullying prevention, trauma therapy, and restorative practices led the project. Both the adult staff and the children in the foster care home were involved. The project began with situational assessments, including focus groups and bullying sociometry, to understand the dynamics within the home. Training sessions for staff and children focused on bullying, trauma awareness, and restorative approaches. The professionals also offered continuous case discussions, mentoring, and empowerment activities to the staff.
Results:
Operational challenges and the mental health struggles of the staff led to ongoing revisions of the original plans. However, significant achievements included building trust with staff, shifting their perspective toward trauma-informed practices, and introducing proactive and reactive restorative tools. These changes indirectly improved the prevention and management of bullying incidents.
Discussion:
The project highlights that implementing trauma-informed principles within children’s homes is crucial for effective bullying prevention. This shift requires not only new methods but a fundamental change in attitude. Many staff members face secondary traumatization and personal trauma, compounded by frustrations with systemic issues, which can impede bullying prevention.
Keywords
bullying prevention program, foster care, trauma-informed, restorative
| Please also indicate what kind of contribution it is: | Practitioner experiences |
|---|---|
| Please indicate what type of scientific contribution it is | Not applicable |
