How arts and creativity can support research on and address online bullying in education

Artistic practices are a powerful tool to think with. They offer a unique way to engage with thoughts, ideas, and problems. The use of arts and creativity in the process of knowledge generation and knowledge translation in educational settings can have a significant impact on the knowledge produced, as well as on the school communities.

 

The value of art-based practices in qualitative research

“We must draw also on poetry, art and literature to open up our capacities to know and to be in different ways – to open up our capacity for sympathy and ‘response-ability’. Art produces sensations, affects, intensities as its mode of addressing problems” (Grosz, 2008)

Engaging with arts can enable participants and researcher to dig deeper into experiences and perspectives. When researching about online bullying, practices like drawings, theatre and storytelling used as methodology, could effectively involve research participants, especially young people, encourage them to think about personal struggles and express thoughts that could be difficult to articulate. Moreover, they can help unveil social and cultural dynamics contributing to the phenomenon.

Creativity and intervention strategies

In the context of the PARTICIPATE project, researchers engage in practice-oriented studies aimed at developing practical intervention strategies and policy recommendations to address online bullying.

The same creative practices used as research methodology, could also be employed as intervention tools. They could help school communities to untangle exclusions dynamics and build places where young people feel safe enough to share their stories collectively, even going beyond just verbal communication.

By providing expressive outlets, fostering dialogue, and promoting critical engagement, arts-based approaches could empower school communities to confront online bullying in meaningful ways. For example, through storytelling and creative writing exercises, or Boal´s Theatre of the Oppressed. Techniques like Forum theatre, Newspaper theatre and Image theatre exercises, could be very functional to explore the dynamics of online bullying in a school environment. By telling stories, creating and performing plays based on participants ‘inputs and real experiences, both performers and observers can be enabled to empathize with the situation portrayed and investigate the impact of online bullying, working together to address the issue.

Therefore, it would be strategic to integrate these creative strategies into our efforts to create safer, more supportive environments for all young people.