Bullies and victims in schools

Bullying is a covert problem, buried in the subculture of a school. Even the most violent and consistent bullying can remain undetected, and its effect upon the victim can be pervasive and long-term. But what kind of child becomes a bully or a victim, and why? What family and social context produce them? How important are the factors of race and gender in the bullying cycle? Valerie Besag provides a guide to understanding bullying, a teachers' handbook for dealing with it, and an analysis of how schools can produce an environment which protects against bullying but which can respond effectively in a crisis. She emphasizes the necessity for close home-school co-operation in preventing bullying.