Children with language impairment (LI) can experience a wide range of social and emotional difficulties in addition to linguistic difficulties, but there is limited understanding about how LI impacts on these broader, psychosocial aspects of children’s lives. Furthermore, psychosocial outcomes for children are not assessed routinely in speech and language therapy research and practice. Studies of experiences of disability and impairment in other areas have highlighted the importance of addressing the psychosocial beyond the medical. This study draws on interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) to explore children’s, parents’, peers’ and professionals’ experiences of children’s LI. Using a phenomenological methodology to explore LI from multiple-perspectives, the study sought to uncover psychosocial features of LI and identify goals for support. Four children, aged 8-10 yrs with a diagnosis of LI, were interviewed about their experiences using arts-based methods. Children’s parents, teachers, learning support assistants, speech and language therapists and siblings and/or friends were also interviewed. Analysis of the 22 interviews is presented as four case studies that include each perspective around the child. Themes were identified through coding and analysing within and across cases. A second stage literature review was undertaken to understand, theorise and discuss emerging themes. Analysis revealed three themes: Agency, Understandings and Misunderstandings, and Making Sense of Difference. Children’s experiences of agency were associated with their emotions and their engagement in classroom and social activities, and not always dependent on their communication abilities. Children with LI often had different understandings of others’ intentions, situations and instructions to that of their peers, professionals and parents. Mismatches in understandings were associated with children being considered unusual, immature, egocentric or rude by others, impacting on their risk for bullying and social exclusion. There were divergent experiences and understanding of LI. Interpretations included impaired speech, language and social communication; social and emotional immaturity; parental neglect; and other people’s attitudes and behaviours. For children, LI was predominantly relational, that is, it was mainly experienced in relationship with others. Psychosocial goals for intervention include addressing attitudes, understandings and behaviours of professionals and peers towards children, in addition to children’s understanding and use of language; promoting children’s experience of agency; and addressing children’s emotional wellbeing and risk for bullying. Good communication and understanding between children, families and professionals is essential for intervention.

The aetiology and impact of inappropriate behaviour in Malaysia is not well understood. This study was designed to explore inappropriate behaviour at work in Malaysia among health care employees. In this research, inappropriate behaviour was defined as harassment, bullying or mobbing, according to the definitions from the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland and Labour Relations Agency (2006). The research was conducted in three stages: an explanatory study; a large-scale quantitative survey; and an interview-based qualitative study. Results indicated that 42.6% of employees experience inappropriate behaviour in the.workplace. The inappropriate behaviour perpetrators are both superiors and co-workers, but the pattern of findings suggests that there is no association between demographics and the reports of inappropriate behaviour. This suggests that inappropriate behaviour occurs throughout the workforce. However, there was little variation in ethnicity in the sample, so conclusions about this variable are tenuous. When compared to participants who had not experienced harassment, those who did were less satisfied with the support provided by the organisation in this situation and were less satisfied at work, according to scores on the Job Satisfaction Scale (JSS). Additionally, the research suggests that the factor structure of the JSS may not be appropriate in a Malaysian sample and an alternative factor structure is proposed. In the final qualitative study, participants from different professions expressed feelings of frustration at their experiences of inappropriate behaviour and a sense of helplessness/hopelessness that anything could be done to remedy this situation. Consequently, participants found themselves in a situation where they felt forced to tolerate the inappropriate behaviour because they feared the adverse consequences of making a complaint about their experiences. Overall, these findings contribute to an awareness of inappropriate behaviour at work, its enablers and its consequences in a culturally diverse, non-Western society.

This study analyses ‘Gifted and Talented’ (‘G&T’) identities in post-16 education, exploring ‘G&T’ identity construction processes and how students manage ‘G&T’ identities once labelled as such. Bourdieu’s work, social constructionism and identity theorising are used to analyse how ‘G&T’ labelling processes, arising from government policies, located within family, peer and school institutional cultures impact on students’ identities, and their responses to identification. Constructionist critical-realist epistemology is used, with data drawn from semi-structured interviews conducted with 16 post-16 students; 16 e-mailed questionnaires with their parents; and three e-mailed questionnaires with GATCOs (‘G&T’ Co-ordinators), from three schools in Eastern England. Eight follow-up informal couple-interviews were conducted with students and their parents. My data analysis of ‘G&T’-students’ subjectivities shows ‘G&T’ identification has repercussions affecting self-esteem, confidence levels, and other aspects of identity constructions. I identify varied ways in which ‘G&T’ post-16 students actively construct ‘G&T’ identities in family and school cultural contexts, using peer-subcultures to manage ‘G&T’ roles, and show how school institutions differ in ‘G&T’ emphasis. Students display agency in ‘choosing’ routes through their ‘G&T’-journeys, on a continuum ranging from ‘conformity’ through to ‘resistance’. Through my analysis of rich qualitative data, some consequences for students of ‘G&T’-identity construction are revealed to be: fear-of-failure, perfectionism, bullying, eating disorders, stress; as well as confidence, pride, motivation and satisfaction. I argue that what is constructed and identified as ‘G&T’ is the result of social class based cultural capital, as the middle-classes access ‘G&T’ provision disproportionately. I conclude that ‘G&T’ policies function as neoliberal educational differentiators, in further separating the advantaged from the disadvantaged, entrenching class divisions. Recommendations include inclusive, personalised provision for all students. Students, parents and teachers revealed how differentiation within classrooms is as necessary as provision allowing for meeting the ‘like-minded’ e.g. through vertical tutoring, leadership programmes and establishing ‘learning communities’ within schools. I argue that school and family cultures need to ‘scaffold’ developing identities of post-16 students ensuring their potential is reached in academic, confidence and identity domains. The label of ‘G&T’ is not needed in order to achieve these aims of ‘gifted’ education for all students to at least sometimes feel like they are ‘fish in water’.

There is limited research into the impact of non-specific factors on the outcome of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT). This current study aimed to investigate the relationship between client and therapist attachment styles and client interpersonal problems to the therapeutic relationship and symptom reduction over eight sessions of CBT. Seventeen therapist-client dyads were asked to complete measures of interpersonal problems, attachment style and report on the therapeutic relationship. Results showed that in this small sample there was a relationship between core alliance, as rated by clients, to reduction in symptoms of depression over the course of eight sessions of CBT (TB=0.423, p<0.05) but not anxiety. Client level of confidence in relationships was negatively correlated with the reduction in anxiety symptoms over time (TB =-.320; p<0.05). The level of difference in scores on a measure of ‘confidence in relationships’ between therapists and clients was found to be positively correlated to the level of reduction in anxiety scores over eight sessions (TB = .0428; p<0.05) and negatively correlated to the therapist rated core alliance (TB=-.428, p<0.05). These results indicate that the role of attachment styles in CBT warrants further investigation and both clinical and theoretical implications of these findings are discussed. Key words: Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, therapeutic relationship, treatment outcomes, attachment, interpersonal problems Service Improvement Project Title: What is helpful about attending an Alzheimer’s café: does it do what it says on the tin? Abstract: Alzheimer’s Cafes were developed in 1997 in the Netherlands and have since been set up all over the world. They are a post-diagnostic support group for people with dementia and their families with an aim to reduce stigma around having dementia. As yet there have been very few evaluations of these cafes. This project aimed to find out what family carers of people with dementia found helpful about attending one of two Alzheimer’s cafes. Seven carers took part in a focus group and two were interviewed individually about what they found helpful about attending an Alzheimer’s Café and what they thought could be improved on in the future. Results showed that people found the opportunities to socialise with others ‘in the same boat’ the most helpful aspect as well as meeting professionals outside of the clinic. The results of this study will enable the development of a questionnaire that can be used to continue to evaluate the café and the feedback provided used to guide future service development. Key words: Alzheimer’s Café, social support, dementia, service evaluation Critical Literature Review Title: Risk and protective factors for psychological adjustment of children born with a cleft lip and/or palate and their families: A review of the literature Abstract: Research suggests that around 30-40% of children born with a cleft lip and /or palate will develop psychological difficulties. Services supporting these individuals need to be able to identify those that might be vulnerable as early as possible so that preventative support can be offered. This review summarises findings from research studies looking at within-group differences in samples of children with a cleft and their families. Risk factors found included being male, experiencing bullying or having additional difficulties. Protective factors included satisfaction with appearance and social support. The methodological strengths and weaknesses of these studies are discussed along with implications of the findings for theory and clinical practice.

The purpose of this study is to increase understanding about the experiences of a group of Pakistani young people in a primary school. The literature revealed that there are significant differences between different ethnic groups in terms of attainment levels, social background and levels of special educational need. My aim was to include, specifically, the voice of Pakistani young people and their experience of school. I am approaching this research from a feminist perspective with the aim of uncovering marginalized voices and hidden experiences. In view of previous research which has focussed on the experience of school: my research question is: How do Pakistani young people interpret their experiences of school? I carried out semi-structured interviews with six primary school pupils from Pakistani backgrounds from year six, aged between 10 to 11 years old from the same school. The epistemology underpinning the research is critical realism, which emphasises the personal and social contexts within which people experience what is “real”. I analysed the narratives from these interviews using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). IPA is an interpretative, idiographic approach to methodology which is used to generate super-ordinate and sub-ordinate themes. The analysis found seven super-ordinate themes: the emotional experience of learning, the cultural impact of the school curriculum, the importance of enduring friendships, the impact of the segregation between communities, the impact of gendered power struggles, the impact of bullying and the impact of cultural identity. The possible implications for school staff focused on understanding the benefits of the curriculum, the cultural differences experienced in the school, ethos and anti-racist/sexist programmes. For Educational Psychologists, implications focused on awareness-raising and work with young people from different communities. Recommendations for future research are also discussed including the usefulness of IPA for drawing out rich and detailed narratives providing depth in the analysis.

Psychological models of psychotic experiences suggest that social adversity (e.g., difficult family relationships, bullying) and anomalous percepts play an important role in the development of paranoid thinking, while intrusive cognitions and problems in reality discrimination play an important role in the development of auditory hallucinations (AH). The studies reported in this thesis examined a number of research questions relevant to these models, by investigating psychotic experiences in non-clinical populations (typically referred to as psychotic-like experiences, or PLEs). In Study 1 it was shown that the association between poor parental bonding and PLEs is mediated by individual differences in exposure to bullying and levels of negative affect. In Study 2 it was shown that associations between insecure attachment styles and paranoid thinking are mediated by individual differences in loneliness. In Study 3 it was shown that the association between experiencing anomalous percepts and paranoid thinking is moderated by individual differences in attachment anxiety. In Study 4 it was shown that the association between experiencing intrusive thoughts and AH-proneness is moderated by individual differences in reality discrimination skills. Finally, in Study 5 it was shown that a person’s reality discrimination abilities can be weakened through the induction of a negative mood. The studies included in this thesis, therefore, show how a variety of social, emotional, and cognitive factors interact with each other to foster or preclude the development of PLEs in ways that extend current psychological models of AH and paranoid thinking.

Histories of the working class in France have largely ignored the existence of working-class conservatism. This is particularly true of histories of the interwar period. Yet, there were an array of Catholic and right-wing groups during these years that endeavoured to bring workers within their orbit. Moreover, many workers judged that their interests were better served by these groups. This thesis explores the participation of workers in Catholic and right-wing groups during the 1930s. What did these groups claim to offer workers within the wider context of their ideological goals? In which ways did conservative workers understand and express their interests, and why did they identify the supposed ‘enemies of the left’ as the best means of defending them? What was the daily experience of conservative workers like, and how did this experience contribute to the formation of ‘non-left’ political identities? These questions are addressed in a study of the largest Catholic and right-wing groups in France during the 1930s. This thesis argues that, during a period of left-wing ascendancy, these groups made the recruitment of workers a top priority. To this end, they harnessed particular elements of mass political culture and adapted them to their own ideological ends. However, the ideology of these groups did not simply reflect the interests of the workers that supported them. This thesis argues that the interests of conservative workers were a rational and complex product of their own experience. They were formed by a large range of materials, from preconceived attitudes to issues such as gender and race, to the everyday experience of bullying and intimidation on the factory floor. This thesis shows that workers could conceive of their interests in a number of different ways, and chose from a range of different groups to try and further them.

From 2011 to 2012, 1.1 million workers were impacted by work related stress, lack of professional support and bullying (Health and Safety Executive, 2013). “Burnout” is not easily defined but it can be described as a phenomenon that affects both the personal and professional dimensions of an individual’s life. This study investigates counselling psychologists’ experience and management of “burnout” using the qualitative method of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Six qualified counselling psychologists from the United Kingdom, New Zealand and the United States of America were interviewed via telephone. The three main themes that were found are: (1) “batteries run out” which includes the physical and emotional effects, as well as the disillusionment of the reality of the profession, (2) “Prisoner of an eroding system” describes the professional dimension of the experience such as locus of control, effect on client work, boundaries and values, and (3) “Recharging the batteries” which gives an insight into how the participants managed their experience, such as their personal view of “burnout”, the issue of reclaiming their space and time, as well as the role of support. Overall, there was an underlying sense that the participants wanted to be taken care of by others but were unable to ask for help. The relevance of this study to the field of Counselling Psychology is discussed in relation to theory and professional practise. The limitations and shortcomings of this investigation are highlighted and suggestions for future research are made.

Bullying is a widespread public health problem. While its prevalence, key correlates and major health outcomes have been well researched, important gaps or controversies remain. In particular, the association between bullying and both socioeconomic status and ethnicity remains unclear. Furthermore, other areas are under-researched, such as sibling aggression and its relationship to peer bullying. Finally, while there is evidence of the adverse effects of bullying on mental health, there is still uncertainty whether any experience of being bullied, or only sustained, chronic victimisation, will lead to adverse consequences. Do those who escape bullying fare better? This thesis comprises five studies. Study 1, a meta-analysis, explored the relationship between bullying and socioeconomic status, finding victims and bully-victims, but not bullies, more often came from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Study 2 examined sibling aggression, identifying a strong homotypic association with roles taken in school bullying. Study 3 explored ethnic differences in bullying, finding ethnic minority children were not more likely to be victims, but in some cases were more often bullies. Study 4 identified individual, social and sociodemographic correlates of school bullying. Distinct profiles were observed for each bullying role. Finally, Study 5 examined the timing of bullying in relation to individual and social outcomes. Stable and concurrent victimisation was associated with more negative outcomes, while escaping bullying reduced the adverse consequences. The findings are considered in relation to ecological systems theory. Distant environmental factors, such as socioeconomic status, were only weakly associated with school bullying, while more immediate socio-ecological influences, including sibling relationships and individual characteristics, predicted victim, bully and bullyvictim roles. Further research should focus on the association with sibling aggression, and identify characteristics which can explain why some children escape being bullying, thereby limiting the adverse consequences. The findings have implications for interventions, which should take account of children’s home environments.

A body of research has focused on exploring educational attainment and links between outcomes from one generation to the next, with a complex array of factors revealed. One influential factor linked to outcomes is the aspirations that parents have about school for their children. Research to date however has provided only limited insight into the ways parents, or mothers in particular view school for their child, based on their own experiences. This study aimed to understand more about what a negative school experience meant to a group , mothers of children 3 years and under. It also sought to elicit their views about their children’s schooling. Through a process of interpretative phenomenological analysis of the semi-structured interviews, this study identified factors that served to help and support them around their school days, and what could potentially help them gain more confidence in their children’s education. The key super-ordinate theme to emerge was the power of their negative experience to cloud what was positive about their school days. What became apparent was the degree to which for three mothers, this centred on persistent, inescapable bullying. Additional factors (and sub-themes) identified included: being ignored and left to get on with learning; not being heard by teachers and parents; and the power of all these negative experiences to undermine confidence, self-worth and future pathways in life. However, an additional super-ordinate theme focused on positive factors that had helped them cope in school. Two further super-ordinate themes identified the conflicting emotions felt about school for their child, and how they had given great thought to the future education of their children. Within these factors emerged a strong desire for them to have a different, more enjoyable experience of school and how they considered their role to be a protective influence in their lives. This thesis offers an insight into the ways educational professionals, including psychologists, can provide support to parents with negative school experiences, helping to build confidence and trust in a positive future for their children in school.

This research was motivated by the limited penetration of the Internet within emerging economies and the ‘mobile miracle’, which refers to a steep increase of mobile phone penetration. In the context of the developing world, harnessing the ‘mobile miracle’ to improve Internet access can leverage the potential of the Web. However, no comprehensive model exists, which can identify and measure indicators of Mobile Web uptake. The absence of such a model creates problems in understanding the impact of the Mobile Web. This has generated the key question under study in this thesis: “What is a suitable model for Mobile Web uptake and its impact in the developing world?” In order to address the research question, the Model of Mobile Web Uptake in the Developing World (MMWUDW) was created. It was informed by a literature review, pilot study in Kenya and expert reviews. The MMWUDW was evaluated using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) with the primary data that consisted of the questionnaire and interview data from Indonesia. The SEM analysis was triangulated with the questionnaire results and interview findings. Examining the primary data to evaluate the MMWUDW was essential to understand why people used mobile phones to make or follow links on the Web. The MMWUDW has three main factors. These are Mobile Web maturity, uptake and impact. The results of the SEM suggested that mobile networks, percentage of income for mobile credits, literacy and digital literacy did not affect Mobile Web uptake. In contrast, web-enabled phones, Web applications or contents, and mobile operator services strongly indicated Mobile Web maturity, which was a prerequisite for Mobile Web uptake. The uptake then created Mobile Web impact, which included both positive and negative features; ease of access to information and a convenient way to communicate; being entertained and empowered; maintaining of social cohesion and economic benefits, as well as wasting time and money, and being exposed to cyber bullying. Moreover, the research identified areas for improvement in the Mobile Web and regression equations to measure the factors and indicators of the MMWUDW. Possible future work comprises advancement of the MMWUDW and new Web Science research on the Mobile Web in developing countries.

This thesis investigates cognitive mechanisms underlying youths’ vulnerability for involvement in bullying and developing adjustment problems. The aim of this thesis was threefold: (1) investigate whether early cognitive functioning acts as a developmental marker for children’s later involvement in bullying; (2) investigate the cognitive processing of bullied children and whether these skills were associated with adjustment problems; (3) investigate whether early cognitive functioning acts as a differential marker for bullies and non-bullies who have other antisocial behaviour problems. Participants were members of the Environmental-Risk (E-Risk) Longitudinal Twin Study, a nationally representative sample of 2,232 children and their families, and the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study, a longitudinal birth cohort of 1037 children born in Dunedin, New Zealand. Using multiple informant reports, measures of bullying, antisocial behaviours, cognitive functioning, child-specific and family factors were collected during childhood, adolescents and adulthood. Poor theory of mind (ToM) in early childhood predicted becoming a victim or bully-victim in adolescence over and above child-specific and family factors. For bullies, the risk of having poor ToM was overridden by socioeconomic deprivation and child maltreatment. Bullied children reported biased interpretation of their environments when compared to their non-bullied co-twin. Children who used biased attribution styles when interpreting the cause of negative events had higher levels of adjustment problems. Bullies did not differ in their early cognitive processing, temperament and family environment from children with high antisocial behaviours, but did from children with moderate antisocial behaviours. Being a bully or having antisocial behaviours predicted adjustment problems in adolescence and adulthood. Being a bully had an independent effect on substance use in adolescence and emotional problems in adulthood over and above the risk posed by having antisocial behaviours. Findings from this thesis identify cognitive functioning as an early developmental marker for children’s involvement in bullying and a mechanism that may be negatively affected by children’s bullying experiences. Supporting positive cognitive development throughout childhood may help to reduce children’s risk of being involved in bullying and maintain healthy cognitive processing techniques that promote mental wellbeing.

Throughout the last twenty years, following accession to the European Union (EU), legal economic migrants (and their families) have the right to live and work in European member states. Economic migrants who are European citizens of member states now assume immigrant status and co-exist in countries with pre-existing immigrant communities that have affiliations to the former British Empire. With demographic composition changes of immigrant communities in Europe, difference and discrimination of populations from diverse cultural backgrounds has become a focal issue for European societies. A new, multi-ethnic Europe has thus emerged as one context for understanding cultural uncertainties associated with youth and migration at the end of the twentieth century and the start of the twenty first century. These uncertainties are often associated with the impact of new nationalisms and xenophobic anxieties which impact mobility, young people, and their families (Ahmed, 2008; Blunt, 2005). In this dissertation I seek to examine young peoples’ experiences of migration and school exclusion as they pertain to particular groups of immigrant and minority ethnic groups in England. In particular, the study explores the perceptions and experiences of two groups of diverse young people: British ‘minority ethnic’ and more recently migrated Eastern European ‘immigrant’ youth between the ages of 12-16. It provides some account of the ways in which migrant youth’s experiences with both potential inclusion and exclusion within the English educational system, particularly in relation to the comparative and temporal dimensions of migration. Young people’s opinions of inclusion and exclusion within the English educational system are explored in particular, drawing, in part, upon the framework of Critical Race Theory (CRT) and other theoretical positions on ethnicity and migration in order to paint a picture of contemporary race relations and migration in Buckinghamshire county schools. The methodological approach is ethnographic and was carried out using qualitative ethnographic methods in two case secondary schools. The experiences and perceptions of 30 young people were examined for this research. Altogether, 11 student participants had Eastern European immigrant backgrounds and 19 had British minority ethnic backgrounds (e.g. Afro Caribbean heritage, Pakistani/South Asia heritage, and African heritage). The methods used to elicit data included focus groups, field observations, diaries, photo elicitation, and semi-structured interviews. Pseudonyms are used throughout to ensure the anonymity of participants and to consider the sensitivity of the socio-cultural context showcased in this dissertation. Findings of the study revealed that Eastern European immigrants and British minority ethnic young people express diverse experiences of inclusion and exclusion in their schooling and local communities, as well as different patterns of racism and desires to be connected to the nation. The denial of racism and the acceptance of British norms were dominant strategies for seeking approval amongst peers in the Eastern European context. Many of the Eastern European immigrant young people offered stories of hardship, boredom and insecurity when reflecting on their memories of post-communist migration. In contrast, British minority ethnic young people identified culture shock and idealised diasporic family tales when reflecting on their memories of their families’ experiences of post-colonial migration. In the schooling environment both Eastern European immigrants and British minority ethnic young people experienced exclusion through the use of racist humour. Moreover, language and accents formed the basis for racial bullying towards Eastern European immigrant young people. While Eastern European immigrant youths wanted to forget their EU past, British minority ethnic young people experienced racial bullying with respect to being a visible minority, as well as in relation to the cultural inheritance of language and accents. The main findings of the research are that British minority ethnic young people and Eastern European immigrant young people conceptualise race and race relations in English schools in terms of their historical experiences of migration and in relation to their need to belong and to be recognised, primarily as English, which is arguably something that seems to reflect a stronghold of nationalist ideals in many EU countries as well as the United Kingdom (UK). Both of these contemporary groups of young people attempted both, paradoxically, to deny and accept what seems to them as the natural consequences of racism: that is racism as a national norm. The findings of this study ultimately point towards the conflicts between the politics of borderland mentalities emerging in the EU and the ways in which any given country addresses the idea of the legitimate citizen and the ‘immigrant’ as deeply inherited and often sedimented nationalist norms which remain, in many cases, as traces of earlier notions of empire (W. Brown, 2010; Maylor, 2010; A. Pilkington, 2003; H. Pilkington, Omel’chenko, & Garifzianova, 2010).

Building on a small body of research, the present study explores the perceptions of teaching staff about their work with Gypsy, Roma, Traveller (GRT) children and young people. Specifically the research is concerned with participants’ views about the relationship between GRT children and schools in relation to attainment, social inclusion, the GRT culture and lifestyle and wider systemic factors. Existing literature and research about the educational experiences of GRT children and young people is explored. Situated within a critical realist epistemology, the present study utilises semi-structured interviews with 13 members of teaching staff across five schools in Greenshire County Council (pseudonym). Transcripts were subjected to thematic analysis following the model proposed by Braun and Clarke (2006). Six superordinate themes (educational outcomes; barriers to education; GRT parents; social inclusion; cultural dissonance and inclusive practices) were identified. Findings are explored in relation to previous research. One key finding concerns the views participants expressed about GRT children’s reports of bullying or racism. Implications for practice and future research are considered.

This Research Project critically appraises the current dispute resolution mechanisms for employment law in Ireland. This exploration provides the basis for submissions to improve the overall service for workers, employers and Government. The researcher undertook the following strands of analysis: A comprehensive study and critical analysis of existing employment dispute resolution fora in Ireland both on a systematic level, and on a forum-specific level.

Existing research into cyberbullying has tended to utilise surveys in order to understand the extent to which cyberbullying is experienced by young people in society. However, there has been little homogeneity between researchers when attempting to define cyberbullying and consequently there is disparity in how it has been operationalised. As well as this, recycling of the term ‘bullying’ brings with it certain presumptions and qualifications which may not be apt for social interactions in the new and ever evolving virtual world. Furthermore, it implicitly assumes that cyberbullying will bother young people, whilst simultaneously failing to acknowledge the situations which may bother young people but which do not constitute cyberbullying. In the present study the word ‘cyberbullying’ was thus omitted from use with participants in an attempt to circumvent the ‘trouble’ inherent with the term. The aim of this study was to gain an understanding of what bothers young people when on Facebook. A research methodology was sought which minimised the potential for researcher bias and maximised the opportunity for young people to give their personal account. Accordingly, Q methodology was employed to explore how 41 young people ranked 54 statements depicting hypothetical problem scenarios on Facebook. Participants sorted the statements according to personal significance from most agree (would bother) to most disagree (would not bother). The overall configuration of statements was subjected to factor analysis, from which a four factor solution was identified; ‘I want to protect others’; ‘I am worried about the dangers on Facebook’; ‘I know who I am and what I’m doing’; and ‘I don’t want any trouble’. The emergent social viewpoints were discussed further with four young people and an understanding was gained of what they perceived of Facebook; what action they would take if they experienced something negative on Facebook and what role they felt school should play in such situations. The findings were discussed in relation to existing literature, and the potential roles of schools and Educational Psychologists were considered. Limitations were acknowledged and recommendations for further research suggested.

School bullying research has often focused on children, but neglected the parent’s perspective. Little is known about how parents respond to their child’s peer victimisation and how these responses are related to children’s experiences. Thus, this thesis aimed to address three main research questions: (a) how do parents respond to their children’s peer victimisation? (b) What factors are associated with parents’ responses to their children’s peer victimisation? (c) How are parents’ responses related to children’s experiences of peer victimisation? A mixed-methods sequential exploratory design, comprising of three stages, was utilised. Firstly, focus groups and interviews were conducted with parents to gain greater understanding of their perspective. The focus group/interview findings informed the content of parent and child questionnaires which were developed in a series of pilot studies, during stage two of the research. In the third stage, these questionnaires were administered to parents and children (aged I 1-12 years) to examine parental responses to peer victimisation, factors related to parental responses, and children’s victimisation experiences. The findings suggested three categories of parental responses: supportive/problem solving, confrontational and avoidant. Parents’ responses were related to their perceptions of how their child would cope, and their attitudes towards how schools/teachers deal with bullying. Additionally, parents’ perceptions of their role in school bullying were influenced by what they thought a ‘good’ parent should do. Children’s perceptions of avoidant and parental supportive/problem solving responses moderated the relationship between peer victimisation and loneliness; there was also an indirect relationship between perceived parental responses and peer victimisation, through child coping. This thesis concludes that in school bullying situations, parents form one element of a broader system, which also involves children and teachers. Thus, parentteacher communication and collaboration is vital and the importance of empowering parents to take a supportive/problem solving approach when helping their child is highlighted.