The initial aims of this research were to assess the extent and nature of normative adolescent appearance-related concerns. Should levels of concern be high, the secondary aim was to explore the possibility that the same psychosocial strategies that are taught to disfigured adolescents (to raise self-esteem about appearance) might be similarly useful. Action research allowed adolescents themselves to construct a questionnaire concerning the extent and nature of concerns (n=50, Study 1), and also to inform the content and delivery of a subsequent intervention study (Studies 4, n=36; Study 5, n=26). Study 2 involved delivery of the questionnaire to pupils throughout one co-educational secondary school (n=304), and Study 3 to Year 9 pupils in various single-sex and co-educational schools (n=339). Studies 6,7,8 and 9 (n=190, 18, 27 and 10 respectively) investigated whether the taught strategies raised confidence in areas previously defined by pupils (in Study 4) as problematic. In addition, Study 6 investigated whether the inclusion of older peers at the 4 intervention sessions improved confidence. All pupils were asked to complete Rosenberg’s Self-esteem Questionnaire for Adolescents. Content analysis of the Study 1 questionnaire elicited that 94% claimed to have appearance-related concerns. 51% specifically cited fear of teasing or bullying about appearance, 31% that lack of confidence in appearance affects academic work. 20% of Year 9 pupils claimed to truant because of perceived poor appearance. Study 4 found enthusiasm amongst pupils for an intervention. In each of Studies 6-9 the taught strategies were shown to significantly raise confidence in areas previously defined as problematic. These were: confidence to speak up in class (p<0.05); confidence to approach those who look very different from self (p<0.001); and confidence to advise friends who are tested or bullied (p<0.01). Perceived levels of bullying decreased by almost two thirds, from 58% to 21%. Appearance concerns are high in a normative population of adolescents and, similar to their disfigured counterparts, these concerns engender social, emotional and behavioural difficulties that are likely to impact on a variety of contexts, including academically. Participants claimed that the strategies offered to alleviate bullying about appearance also transferred successfully to other kinds of confrontation.

Although it is some twenty years since the establishment of the diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a response to extreme psychological trauma, it is still a subject which is surrounded by controversy. This thesis takes a broad-brush approach to workplace trauma, looking at the nature, incidence and treatment of post-traumatic stress within a working environment. A traumatic experience in the workplace takes on a different meaning to employees than traumatic exposures in other settings. Using material collected from traumatised employees the organisational influences on the experience of trauma were demonstrated. This case study material was then used as a mechanism to highlight the need for organisations to consider the best way to meet the needs of traumatised workers. It was essential to this thesis to have an appropriate means to measure post-traumatic stress in the workplace. The development of the IES-E, a post trauma questionnaire, was undertaken to provide organisations with a simple reliable and valid tool to assess the levels of trauma and rates of recovery within its workers. The IES-E questionnaire provided the means to compare the symptoms of being a victim of an armed raid with those of the employee exposed to chronic bullying. The IES-E was also used to provide the means to demonstrate the positive benefits of the post trauma interventions of psychological debriefing and trauma counselling in victims of a major rail crash and a terrorist bomb blast. The requirements for organisations to manage disasters effectively led to the development of a disaster management process that was introduced into a number of organisations. In each of the businesses described, a cost benefit analysis was undertaken indicating that the management approach led to reduced costs and improved mental health.

Bullying in schools has become an increasingly recognised problem. Since Olweus (1978) there has been an increase in research dedicated to this area, highlighting the ways bullying can be defined and its impact on the psychological well being of children and adolescents. As not all young people who are bullied experience psychological consequences, research has also examined differences in coping with

In the third chapter, the results from a pilot study are presented, the first to be conducted in Ireland.  It examines results obtained from 30 self-selected victims, who were interviewed and given a personality test (Cattells’ 16PF5).  Factors contributing to bullying and the effects of bullying were explored, as were the victims’ personality and their perception of the situation. Organisational factors such as stressful and hostile working environments, also the senior position of bullies, their aggressive behaviour and personality were cited by victims as reasons for being bullied.  Most victims reported psychological effects ranging from anxiety to fear, and physical effects ranging from disturbed sleep to behavioural effects such as eating disorders.  In relation to personality, many victims felt they were different, and we found to be anxious, apprehensive, sensitive and emotionally unstable.  Action taken by victims ranged from consulting personnel to taking early retirement. The aim of the investigation reported in Chapter Four was to extend the pilot study and to attempt to make up for its limitations.  Thus, a control group of non-victims was employed, the number of respondents was increased, interviews were conducted in the workplace, and a revised interview schedule and a more appropriate personality test were included.  The sample comprised 60 victims and 60 non-victims, employees from two large organisations in Dublin.  Both samples responded to a semi-structured questionnaire and completed the ICES Personality inventory (Bartram, 1994; 1998).  Results showed that victims were less independent and extraverted, more unstable and more conscientious than non-victims.  The results strongly suggested that personality does play a role in workplace bullying and that personality traits may give an indication of those in an organisation who are most likely to be bullied. In an extension to the main enquiry, the history of respondents with regard to their experience of bullying at school was examined.  Four groups were formed: (1) those who had been bullied both at school and at work, (2) those who had been bullied at work, but not at school, (3) those who had been bullied at school but not at work, and (4) those who had not been bullied at school or at work.  The test results from each group showed that the victim profile was most marked for Group One; Group Four were non-victims throughout their lives; Group Three also produced non-victim profiles; Group Two were most similar to Group One.  In interpreting these findings it is tentatively suggested that Group Three (those without the typical personality characteristics of a victim) were able to shrug off the bullying they experienced at school, whilst Group two had possibly escaped bullying at school because of the support available to them from family and friends, and from being team members of school debating societies and sports teams, support that was no longer available when they were adults. A subsidiary pilot study of Chapter Four re-assessed victims with additional tests of the Interpersonal Behavioural Survey and the Culture-Free Self-Esteem Inventories, second edition.  Results indicated that again, victims had high dependency and in addition, low self-esteem and direct aggression, poor assertiveness and a tendency to denial and to avoiding conflict. Chapter Five represents an attempt to examine the personality characteristics of bullies, using the ICES and IBS and a behavioural workplace questionnaire (BWQ).  Although it proved difficult to obtain a large enough sample of bullies, findings were encouraging.  Bullies proved to be aggressive hostile individuals, high in extraversion and independence.  They were egocentric and selfish, without much concern for other’s opinions.  Most bullies said that they themselves had been bullied at work. Chapter Six extends the personality profiles of bullies and victims to consider their behaviour.

My aim is this thesis is to explore how and why Korean female clerical workers have experienced sexual harassment within the organisational structure of their workplaces.  My data derives from qualitative interviews with 28 female clerical workers who work in Seoul, South Korea. However, my own position and experiences as a Korean feminist scholar are also embedded within the research process and explicitly incorporated into my analysis.  Despite having focused upon the experiences of Korean female workers, this thesis will contribute to an understanding of how experiences of women as sexual victims are embedded within the oppressive of heterosexuality and male-dominated organisational culture regardless of the socio-cultural differences of each society. In order to do so, this thesis first highlights the specificities of Korean heterosexuality and heterosexual culture whilst also examining features of organisational culture in relation to both gender and sexuality. This approach reflects my belief that incidents of sexual harassment are deeply embedded within the socio-cultural features of each society and, in particular, based upon the changing and ongoing features of gender and sexual culture.  The representative elements of Korean heterosexuality are identified as the enforcement of female sexual chastity and subservience and the permitting of solely marital sexual relations for women, while men expect varied sexual experiences. The super-heterosexual forces are interrelated with the promotion and maintenance of male-dominated and sex-discriminatory organisational culture. Thus, I understand the specific features of Korean heterosexuality and organisational culture to be the predominant contributors in the perpetuation of sexual harassment within Korean workplaces. In relation to experiences of sexual harassment, I suggest that the definition of sexual harassment is both flexible and contextual and its varieties diversely constituted within the socio-cultural features of each society.  Moreover, I discover the fact that the victims’ reluctance assertively to respond to sexual harassment is greatly affected by heterosexual and male-dominated organisational culture.  Therefore, my suggestion is that possible strategies to combat sexual harassment would be also based upon these socio-cultural features.

Protective Behaviours is an empowerment process developed twenty-five years ago in the USA. It is used in the States, Australia and the UK in a variety of contexts, including child abuse prevention, anti-bullying work, confidence- and assertiveness-building and the prevention of crime and the fear of crime. Despite its usefulness, it has not spread as quickly or as widely as anticipated. The present study, by an ‘insider’ to the process, looks at the introduction and development of Protective Behaviours in primary schools: it is partly an evaluation and partly a consideration of the resistances that prevent the process being adopted more readily. During the course of the research two teaching packs were developed, one for Key Stage 1 pupils (aged 5-7) and one for Key Stage 2 (8-11), and trialled as part of the research process. One primary school was used as an illustrative study, with evidence from practitioners in other schools that set the findings in a wider context. Because Protective Behaviours is an ‘inside-out’ process, used differently by different individuals, it is not appropriate to evaluate it – as earlier studies have attempted – using quantitative methods. The present research uses observation and interview data to explore feelings and atmosphere and is thus congruent with the Protective Behaviours process itself. A technique for drawing out thematic material from interview data is explored. Innovation in education frequently encounters resistance. However, it was evident that a range of different types of resistance are in play where Protective Behaviours is concerned and that, though the children in the study accepted it readily and enjoyed it, opposition from teachers can prevent it being used most effectively, or at all. The study concludes with some recommendations on how the various resistances may be addressed so that the benefits of the process may be made more widely available.

Mental Violence in present study is similar to a western concept, bullying. But is has its characteristics, forms and causes in Chinese workplace. It is a form of indirect interpersonal aggression and identified through the perceptions of its receivers. It does not involving touching receivers physically but is psychologically damaging. It exists between individuals of equal status, such as colleagues. Moreover, it is a two-way phenomenon, which could be reversible. Mental Violence may be the result of a conflict of values. It is particularly evident among the Chinese New Educated Youth. Chinese New Educated Youth is that cohort of young people who were partly Confucian and Collectivistic for emphasizing harmony but also partly Individualistic and Westernized for pursuing personal goals. For this cohort, the above two orientations were incompatible and dissonant leading to stress. Furthermore, they had a competitive lifestyle which was no longer supported by the welfare of a planned economy this exacerbates their stress. To relieve stress, Mental Violence was employed in their daily contacts, e.g. in workplaces. The evidence in support of this account was discussed and evaluated. There is no excuse for any violence. However, we have to say sometimes a kind of violence is not always too noxious for someone, such as the sender of violence. To some limited extent, violence could be considered as positive and it at least helped people to relieve stress and recover a balance from unbalanced situation. Mental Violence is such violence. It is a result of negotiation and a side effect of stress as well. Nevertheless, most of things are double-edged swords. Mental Violence is no exception. For the sender, it might be a buffer and makes him or her relaxed; for the receiver, it is absolutely negative, discomfort and even aggressive. For helping readers to clearly understand such violence, and for advising others to raise their awareness of the violence, this study would explore its causes and characteristics. From ancient traditional society to the present modern one, Confucianism and Collectivism afterwards represent a kind of gentle culture which deeply influences traditional Chinese. Chinese traditional philosophy, such as Confucianism and Taoism, stresses the significance of the harmony relationship for the growing, maturing and success of the Chinese. Chinese New Educated Youth who were disciplined for such a culture in thoughts and behaviours while growing up. Therefore, to keep harmony and to avoid conflict becomes a key characteristic for Chinese interactions in a collective society. However, the opening policy to the West world exposed China to the influence of Individualism which is absolutely unlike Confucian or Collectivism. Confucianism s influence has been challenged by Westernized values because of globalization. The difference between two values made Chinese New Educated Youth confused in their thoughts and appropriate behaviours in interpersonal relationships. To recover a balance, they need to relieve such a stress from the confusion and other stressors as well. While using the two value systems in interaction with others, Mental Violence usually happened. Therefore, the conflict of two different values in dealing with social relationship became one cause for Mental Violence. In present research, I tried to reveal Mental Violence, a particular kind of daily conflict in interactions among modern Chinese. For pursuing why Chinese New Educated Youth was special and experienced Mental Violence often, they were compared with other generations in China. Therefore, this research invited participants from three generations (Chinese New Educated Youth, the older generation who were born before 1970s, and the younger generation who were born in 1980s) and from different cities in China. Participants occupations covered different professions, and all of them worked in three sizes of offices (small, big and single). Both of qualitative and quantitative data collecting methods were used in the study. They contained semi-structural interviewing and filling up the questionnaire. And main methods of data analysis are factor analysis, correlation and Thematic Analysis. The result indicated that Mental Violence of Chinese educated youth occurred in workplace was the most often, but was largely unseen by people outside of the group. Because I had to establish why this cohort would be inclined to apply more Mental Violence in daily life, I compared them with their previous generation and the later generation through measuring demographics, westernised, individualism and collectivism. Three generations are different in the Individualism-Collectivism tendency. Chinese New Educated Youth were always in the middle. They were seemed as partly Collectivistic and partly Individualistic. Linked with categories of Mental Violence Chinese New Educated Youth usually experienced, it seems they applied double standards to deal with social interactions. Due to such standards made them failed in establishing good relationships with colleagues, in other words, whatever Chinese New Educated Youth or their colleagues did not feel happy in their social interactions, it means Chinese New Educated Youth have conflict in Individualism-Collectivism tendency. Otherwise, through the investigation, I noticed significant demographical difference other than the generation in experiencing Mental Violence. Male participants reported experiencing Mental Violence more than female ones. The higher education the participant got, the more he or she experienced Mental Violence. Comparing with other occupations, intellectual respondents reported sending Mental Violence the most. Participants who worked as staffs experienced Mental Violence more than people who worked as administrators in the workplace. And people who were singles experienced Mental Violence the most in workplace. Because conflict of relationship seems a sensitive topic for Chinese, I started interviews from talking about overviews of participants workplaces with them. Therefore, the result also shows characteristics of structure and social relationship of Chinese modern offices. China had lot of small size offices in which 2 to 10 staffs worked. Small offices organised small relative closed groups. In such a group, staffs had long time for face to face interaction everyday. Such offices were much more than single offices where only one person worked in and big offices where more than ten persons in. Both of the above characteristics of workplace are not beneficial for physical aggressions as previous study proved but could considered as a structural factor for Mental Violence. Actually, the Mental Violence which reported occurring in small offices is the most often, especially among Chinese New Educated Youth. Hope this research could be a model for further more thorough relevant study. All of the above would be a step towards further study on Mental Violence and Chinese New Educated Youth.

The study is concerned about employers’ liability to protect the mental welfare of employees alongside their physical health. The need for protection is demonstrated in several ways. Firstly, the introduction examines the statistical evidence of harassment in the workplace and its effect on its victims. Secondly, data was collected from nine participants who had taken their employer to court claiming that they had been bullied out of their jobs. These documents which were supplemented in some cases by personal statements, were analysed using the Glaser and Strauss Grounded Theory method tempered with Case Study method. Ethical issues coming to the fore during data collection supplied additional material for a chapter which eflects on problems researchers will encounter when working with vulnerable research participants. Analysis showed the importance of social support for victims and implicated the role the trade unions, the medical and legal professions plays in secondary victimisation for victims of workplace bullying. A review of existing legislation was conducted to determine if internal voluntary guidelines or new legislation would give best protection. Employer-led bullying was identified as the form on which internal guidelines have no impact. Workplace bullying was always found to be morally wrong and the issue of what is legally right but not morally right was discussed. The findings emerging from the analysis together with recommendation to place protection of harassment at work within Health and Safety policies was presented to opinion makers to gauge the level of interest in the investigator’s recommendation that European Union Health and Safety officials should take the lead in advancing legislative change outlawing workplace harassment.

Stalking may be described as an extraordinary crime, one that is easy to commit but difficult to define and prosecute. This is because many activities of stalkers are ostensibly routine and harmless. Section one of this thesis however demonstrates that although English and Welsh law does not define criminal stalking, the general public hold shared ideas on what does and does not constitute stalking behaviour. It is concluded that anti-stalking legislation that does not tightly prescribe stalking acts may best capture public concerns about this highly prevalent form of harassment. Further, researchers in different countries are investigating the same phenomenon in that previous studies have detailed similar patterns of stalker behaviour. Section two reports two victim surveys that provide a preliminary picture of stalking experiences in the United Kingdom. These indicate that both stalking and the victims’ reaction to it are changeable rather than constant, that any person can become a victim of stalking, and that stalkings themselves are a diverse group. Section three deals with the classification of stalkers. First, one specific classificatory factor, the nature of the stalker-victim prior relationship, is focused upon. Evidence that ex-partner stalkers are the relational group most likely to be violent toward their victims is provided, although stranger stalkers are most likely to be convicted for stalking activities. Next, a vignette study demonstrates how social psychological theory can account for the misattribution of ex-partner stalkers’ behaviour. Finally, a taxonomy of stalkers that was specifically created for use by law enforcement agencies is presented. This classification illustrates how different interventions can have varying success according to the type of stalking involved. More generally, this thesis confirms some previous work for the first time with British samples, and provides practical insight into the course and nature of stalking as it occurs in the United Kingdom.

This thesis evaluates the effectiveness of peer mediation programmes in 3 primary schools in Birmingham. It investigates whether the ‘Iceberg’ system of peer mediation training, and the setting up of a peer mediation service, can reduce bullying, and have an effect on the self-concept of Year 5 pupils. The literature review section of the study reviews existing literature concerning peer mediation, humanism in education (humanistic values underpin the mediation process) behaviour management in schools and bullying. These are all areas that are revisited as part of the empirical research. The empirical research has a quasi-experimental research design which uses both quantitative and qualitative analysis. The experiment was set up to answer the main research questions as objectively as possible, given the author’s existing wider involvement in this area of work. Pre test and post-test measures include pupil questionnaires and interviews with teachers and headteachers. The positivist framework of the main experiment, however, proved to be somewhat restrictive in answering some interesting new questions which emerged as a result of the programme not being implemented as planned in 2 of the experimental schools. The findings suggest that peer mediation can be used as a strategy to reduce bullying and improve pupil feelings of empowerment and self-esteem provided it forms part of a wider strategy to empower pupils and improve their personal and social skills. The difficulties of carrying out an experiment in a school setting, however, make the results inconclusive and more research is recommended in order to understand the links between peer mediation, humanistic practices in the classroom, and the apparently central role of the headteacher.

This thesis is concerned with the presentation of a three year project investigating mainstream teachers’ attitudes towards inclusion in one Local Educational Authority in the Southwest of England. The study used both quantitative and qualitative techniques. The first phase of the project involved a survey which indicated that educating students with significant disabilities in mainstream classrooms results in positive changes in educators’ attitudes. Here, the study confirmed previous research, which reported that teachers show positive commitment after they have gained mastery of the professional expertise needed to implement inclusive programmes. Further, the survey highlighted the importance and effectiveness of substantial self-reflective critical professional development, which results in the acquisition of generic teaching skills necessary for meeting the needs of all children, as opposed to short term technical responses to specific needs. The qualitative phase of the project involved in-depth case studies of two individual schools which considered the whole issue of inclusion from a holistic perspective. The results of the qualitative phase indicated that there are distinctions to be drawn between integration (seen as “participation”) and inclusion (“participation’ and “belonging”) -this was further highlighted by students’ personal accounts of bullying within the secondary school which described itself as “inclusive”. The qualitative aspects of the study highlighted the conclusion that “inclusive practice” is seen more in terms of integration than inclusion – students have their specific learning needs well met within the schools, but their personal needs are not well supported. The results indicate that in order to achieve inclusion, schools must look to restructuring to support personal as well as social needs. Such restructuring is dependent on specific professional development (as indicated in the quantitative study) which supports the needs of learners within “inclusive” (holistic) frameworks.

The present project of research consists of four different studies. The first study is a correlational investigation conducted with a sample of 285 students from a secondary school in Rome; the aim of the study was a first attempt to look at different possible risk factors explaining bullying and victimisation. These factors are both related to individual characteristics as well as family and social ones. The second study was developed according to the results of the first study, using the same methodology and design but a different sample. The aim was to overcome some of the limitations from the first study, mainly: sample size, type of school and selection of risk factors (individual characteristics). The second study was conducted with a sample of 679 students. Other personal and social variables were included in the design to better explain bullying and victimisation. Results indicate the correlational effect on bullying of individualistic variables such as impulsiveness and coping strategies. The third and fourth studies, conducted with two different samples of students, focus on the evaluation of the efficacy of an intervention programme for the prevention of school violence. Study 3 looks at the effects of intervention programme on student’s attitudes to violence at home and to bullying. To test significant differences, results from an experimental group that received the programme were compared with those of the control group that did not get the programme. The study presents significant changes in attitudes towards violence. The last study looked at the effects of the intervention programme on bullying behaviour. The study collected data before and after the intervention in an experimental group (that took part in the intervention), and in the control group, matched with the experimental one, that did not receive the intervention in order to draw comparisons. The aim was to check for significant changes in the prevalence of bullying and victimisation, types of bullying, and feelings about bullying. Results indicate a significant effect of the intervention on the reduction of victimisation especially in case of girls and older students.

The adequacy of the theory underpinning current careers guidance practice is increasingly being questioned for particular client groups, including girls and women. Key criticisms relate to the philosophy of science that has dominated the research informing these theories, neglect of context, bias in sampling procedures and their failure to take account of changes in the labour market. The research reported in this thesis explores some of the factors that inhibit women’s career development in the UK, as well as some that enhance it, in a way that takes account of these criticisms. The focus is on both the theory and practice. Grounded theory informed the data collection and analysis phases of the research. Two questionnaires, the first of which was completed by one hundred and two participants, provided a progressive focusing of the study. In-depth interviews with nine of the female participants who had experienced discrimination in employment comprised the final stage of data collection. The research highlights, simultaneously, the similarities of the experiences of girls and women compared with boys and men, and the different ways girls and women responded to these experiences. Findings relate both to the contextual and individual factors that have influenced the career development of participants. Discrimination and sexual harassment emerge as important, and the strategies developed by participants to cope are identified. Perhaps most importantly, the research examines the lived experiences of women participants conveyed in their own voices. Implications for careers guidance practice are discussed. An accurate understanding of the context in which women’s career development in the UK occurs is emphasised together with strategies which could improve guidance practice.

This thesis contains two studies, based on systemic thinking and qualitative research methodologies. Both studies address the issue of bullying, social exclusion and similar peer-relationship difficulties, involving deaf children. The first study is a case study of a secondary school which provided integrated education to approximately 25 moderate to severely deaf students. Grounded theory was used to analyse semi-structured interviews with a total of 44 participants drawn from a variety of sub-groups within the school system. The main findings relate to the way the construct of ‘same versus different’ was central to the reaction of the majority group towards the deaf students. The analysis addresses in turn peer reactions to this form of difference; the school’s reaction to this form of difference; and the overt function performed by the specialist staff of meeting the practical needs of the deaf children; and the more covert function the specialist staff performed in managing anxiety generated within the system by this form of difference. From these themes it is possible to offer a systemic analysis of the nature and management of bullying in this school. The second study is a retrospective study with 35 deaf adults drawn form the deaf community and patients from an NHS department of audiology. The participants varied primarily in their level of deafness [moderate to profound] and their educational placements as children. Participants took part in semi-structured interviews which were also analysed using grounded theory. The separate group processes of ostracism and scapegoating were identified as likely causes of some bullying-type behaviour: ostracism as part of the explicit functioning of the group, scapegoating as part of the implicit functioning of the group. Two premises developed in the adult study – boundary actions as a feature of bullying, and the possible relevance of implicit and explicit levels of functioning within systems – were then developed using material from both studies. Two levels of intrapsychic functioning and two levels of functioning in two-person relationships is hypothesised.

Few studies have examined the social skills problems of victims of bullying. Thus, the general aim of this thesis was to assess social skills problems and peer victimisation in Junior School pupils. A Peer Nomination Inventory (PNI) was developed to assess social skills problems, peer victimisation and friendship/peer acceptance. In addition, a number of psychosocial adjustment variables (i.e. depression, anxiety, self-esteem) were assessed, using self-report. 449 children (aged 9 to 11 years) completed the measures at three time points over the course of an academic year. Using the data collected at Time 1 and Time 3 (N=449) concurrent and longitudinal associations between social skills problems, peer victimisation, and friendship/peer acceptance were investigated (‘Study One’). Study One found that social skills problems predicted an increase in peer victimisation over time, and that this relationship was weaker for those children with lots of friends, and for those children with a ‘popular’ best-friend. On the basis of the data collected at Time 1, 28 children were selected to take part in a Social Skills Training Programme for victims of bullying. Using the data collected at all three time points, it was possible to evaluate the effectiveness of this intervention (‘Study Two’). Study Two found that there was an increase in ‘global self-worth’ (i.e. self-esteem) for the experimental group (compared to the control group). However, there were no other significant improvements, e.g. in terms of social skills problems or victim status. These findings have important implications for interventions to tackle the problem of bullying in schools.

Method:  18 adults, aged between 19 and 56 years, completed a set of questionnaires as well as a semi-structured interview examining various aspects of the participants’ social and interpersonal experience: Semi-Structured Interview, the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsiveness Scale (Y-BOS), the Maudsley Obsessive Compulsive Inventory (MOCI), The Inventory of Interpersonal Problems (IIP), The Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory 3rd Edition (MCMI-III), the Relationship Scales Questionnaire (RSQ), the Multi-Item Measure of Romantic Attachment (MIMRI). Results:  Evidence of high rates of fearful attachment styles among participants was noted from the RSQ and the MIMRA, as well as significant interpersonal difficulties among half the participants from the IIP was gathered. A pattern of significantly elevated mean scores on a number of dimensions from the MCMI-III (including those related to the ‘dependent personality pattern’ and ‘anxiety disorder’) was recorded. Data from semi-structured interviews provide evidence of high levels of family disturbance, parental mental illness, and parental conflict in the participants’ childhood experience as well as high levels of bullying in school. Discussion:  The discussion examines the significance of these findings and their implications for clinical practice. A tentative interpersonal model is proposed derived from the findings of this study. The findings are considered in relation to the interpersonal model and suggestions are made around changes to this model that allow the impact of certain kinds of experiences on the development of rituals and ruminations to be understood. A number of limitations in the present study relating to sampling procedures, use of specific questionnaires to assess interpersonal functioning and perception are also outlined and recommendations for future lines of research relating to the interpersonal experience of people with OCD put forward.

Results indicated that the new Q.S.L. scale has good psychometric qualities both in the Scottish and the Greek sample, although such qualities need to be investigated further. Personality factors were found to be the best predictors of Q.S.L. in two studies. In the study regarding the correlates of Q.S.L., it was found that school self – esteem was the best predictor of Q.S.L., whereas in the cross – cultural study between Scotland and Greece it was found that, for both Scottish and Greek samples, positive affectivity was the best predictor of Q.S.L. However, both Greek and Scottish samples in the cross – cultural study consisted of 4th or 6th graders, whereas the sample in the study regarding the correlates of Q.S.L. (Scottish only) consisted of 1st to 6th grade secondary school pupils. Greek and Scottish pupils were found to differ in relation to Q.S.L. levels total and across domains with a privilege of Scottish pupils regarding Q.S.L. Q.S.L. was not found to be the best predictor of self – rated performance neither across subjects nor overall. School self – esteem was found the best predictor of self – rated performance overall. However, Q.S.L. was found to be associated with school misbehaviour, but again it was not its best predictor. The best predictor of school misbehaviour was found to be gender, with males being more likely to misbehave than females. Nevertheless, Q.S.L. was found the best predictor of overall involvement in bullying and / or victimisation, alongside with school stress, implying its significant association with the phenomenon as a whole. It was also found that peer self – esteem and demographics, such as gender, differentiate bullies and victims. Finally, Q.S.L. was found to predict at best smoking maintenance, whereas other factors (e.g. school stress) where found to predict at best experimentation with smoking, alcohol and illicit drugs and maintenance of alcohol use.