Bear in mind that bullying can include a very wide range of behaviours, some direct as in physical hitting, some verbal as in name-calling and ridicule; some indirect as in deliberate and unfair exclusion and rumour spreading; some mild, some severe. The desire to dominate someone in one or other of these ways is deeply ingrained in many children. Not surprisingly, it is not easy to entirely stop bullying, however much we may insist on ‘zero tolerance’.
Early studies gave us grounds for optimism. Olweus reported in the 1980s that an intervention in Norway had reduced bullying by 50%. Subsequently it was found that the high success of his intervention method could not be replicated outside Norway. We have had to think again about how successful interventions can be. Currently the most comprehensive examination of this question has been provided by Smith, Pepler and Rigby (2004) Bullying in Schools: How successful can interventions be. It is clear that reducing bullying in schools is a difficult task. We need to learn to do better.