Moderating Factors in the Effectiveness of Anti-bullying Programs: A Comparative Analysis of Social and Environmental Influences

The present review aims to identify the moderating factors of the effectiveness of anti-bullying programs, in particular No Trap! and KiVa, through a critical review of the literature. With regard to the first program, it can be concluded that, in order for it to be effective, it is necessary not only to focus on cyberbullying but also on traditional bullying; that peer educators should receive greater support from teachers and base their work on the cooperative method; that voluntary recruitment of peer educators should be preferred; that a type of recruitment of peer educators with a migrant background in the field of ethnic bullying is preferable; and that it is important to strengthen adaptive coping strategies. The analysis of the variables influencing the effectiveness of the KiVa program, on the other hand, shows the need to ensure greater fidelity, to implement the program at lower school levels, and to focus on indirect forms of bullying. It has also been found that the program can be implemented in different countries, provided that only surface-level structural adaptations are made. Furthermore, it has been observed that individuals with low environmental sensitivity require more targeted interventions. As for temperament, individuals with low effortful control require greater attention within the indicated interventions, while individuals with high negative emotionality control and low positive emotionality require more specific interventions.