The Role of Social Inequality and Identity at Teacher and School Level for Teachers’ Responses to Identity-Based Bullying

Teachers play a key role in preventing and responding to school bullying. Identity-based social exclusion, where children are excluded by peers due to their stigmatised identities, is a distinct form of bullying that can be particularly challenging for teachers to address. This study investigates teachers’ responses to identity-based peer exclusion accounting for social identity, inequality, and diversity at teacher and school levels. Using an online survey design, educators from UK primary and secondary schools (N=422) were randomly allocated to an identity-based social exclusion vignette targeting different identities (i.e., ethnicity, appearance, disability, gender expression/sexuality) and asked about their responses (i.e., victim-blaming, perceived seriousness, empathy, self-efficacy, responsibility, intervention likelihood). Characteristics of teachers’ (gender, LGBTQ+, ethnical/cultural minority, ethnic/cultural similarity to students) and their schools (diversity, socioeconomic status, teacher training and school support) were also assessed. Regression analyses showed significant effects of teacher and school characteristics on teachers’ responses to the vignettes, and ANOVAs revealed some differences in teachers’ responses by type of school and targeted identity. The findings highlight some of the teacher and school level characteristics that contribute to how teachers respond to different types of identitybased bullying amongst students. Practical implications for teacher training and school-level conditions will be discussed.