Anti-Bully Legislation: Effects for Youth in United States Schools

Abstract This study explores the effects of state-level anti-bullying legislation on bullying outcomes for youth in United States schools. Bullying receives national level attention in the United States on an almost daily basis, spurred in part by the exponential increase in use of social media and the internet by youth, as well as several high-profile bullying suicide cases. Because of the multitude of concerns surrounding bullying for both victims and perpetrators, all fifty state legislatures in the U.S. have adopted policies and laws with the goal of decreasing bullying behaviors. This paper finds decreases in bullying outcomes for youth when legislation is in place, though the relationships are modest and not significant. Inquiries about the exact mechanisms by which bullying outcomes are reduced and potential research questions in the area of bullying as well as research and policy implications of the study are discussed.