AUTISM AND BULLYING

The experiences of learning,

friendship and bullying of boys
with autism in mainstream and
special settings: a qualitative
study
Anna Cook, Jane Ogden and Naomi Winstone

This study aimed to explore experiences of learning, friendships and

bullying of boys with autism attending specialist and mainstream
schools, and those of their parents. Semi-structured interviews were
conducted with 11 boys with autism, aged 11 to 17 years, and nine of
their mothers. Thematic analysis identified four key themes relating to
experiences of friendships and bullying, risk factors, protective factors
and outcomes. Overall, the findings indicated that five of the 11 partici-
pants had been subjected to bullying, particularly those in mainstream
schools (four out of six). Further, if risk factors relating to autism or the
school culture were not mediated by protective factors such as self-
esteem or supportive friends, various negative outcomes were identified
as more likely, including mental health issues and effects on learning
and relationships. Therefore, although not inevitable, mainstream set-
tings may increase the likelihood of negative experiences, as they have
fewer resources to protect children against the risk of bullying.

Key words: autism, bullying, learning, friendships, inclusion, special

educational needs

2016 NASEN
DOI: 10.1111/1467-8578.12143
Introduction
Debates surrounding inclusion for people with special educational needs are
ongoing and, although they have generated a vast literature, remain unresolved.
Recommendations emerging in the 1970s (for example, Warnock, 1978;
UNESCO, 1994) initiated a move to enroll all children in mainstream schools
wherever possible. While this did not necessarily lead to inclusive education,
three key acts the Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001, the Dis-
ability Discrimination Act 2005, and the Equality Act 2010 were introduced,
which required teachers to make reasonable adjustments to their lessons to ena-
ble children with special educational needs and disability to learn and be included
in school life. While many schools are generally more aware of their responsibil-
ities, these goals to make education more responsive to the needs of all students
remain unmet (Barnard et al., 2000; Batten et al., 2006; Humphrey & Lewis,
2008a). This is worrying for families of children with autism, given that 70% of
children with autism are educated in mainstream schools (DfE, 2014) and since
the experiences of children with autism can be considerably affected by a lack of
practical commitment by schools to inclusion (not just integration) (NAS, 2003,
2006; Humphrey & Lewis, 2008a,b). The present study focuses on the experien-
ces of boys with autism in both mainstream and specialist settings. Research into
the areas of social relationships and bullying will be explored below in the light
of these issues of inclusion.

Research addressing social relationships indicates that pupils with autism experi-
ence fractious peer relationships and have limited social networks (Chamberlain
et al., 2007; Humphrey & Lewis, 2008b). In particular, those in mainstream
schools may experience loneliness, and poor friendship quality and social net-
work status (Kasari et al., 2011; Locke et al., 2010). Conflicting research show-
ing that the social competence of children with special educational needs
progresses more in mainstream settings than in specialist settings (Cole & Meyer,
1991) may reflect a selection issue, rather than an increase in social skills being
caused by the setting. Further, sociometric data show that the large percentage of
pupils with special educational needs in mainstream settings are classified as
rejected, while the large proportion of neuro-typical pupils are classified as
popular (Frederickson & Furnham, 2001).

These findings may also have implications for bullying. Chatzitheochari et al.
(2014) concluded that children with special educational needs are significantly
more likely to be the victim of frequent threats, acts of physical violence or theft,
and are more likely to be called names. Research focusing specifically on autism
also indicates high levels of bullying, particularly during adolescence (NAS,

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2003, 2006). Likewise, the Department for Education (DfE, 2014) reported that
40% of children with autism have been bullied at school. When compared with
the bullying experienced by children with different kinds of special educational
needs (such as dyslexia), pupils with autism still had higher levels of rejection
and bullying and lower levels of acceptance and peer support (Symes & Hum-
phrey, 2010), demonstrating that it is not having a special need per se that
increases the risk of rejection, but the specific characteristics associated with
autism, for example, social communication, social interaction and social imagina-
tion known as the Triad of Impairments (Wing & Gould, 1979). Rogers
(1959) theories of self-concept and self-worth are relevant here. Rogers stated
that in order for individuals to become fully functioning, they must be psycho-
logically healthy, open to new experiences and aware of their own feelings and
those of others. For people with autism, however, the psychological concept of
self is impaired (Neisser, 1988) and this could be the cause of their social and
communication impairments.

Reduced social competence has been identified as the prime causative factor of
bullying for children with autism (Bejerot & Mortberg, 2009). Bullying is a seri-
ous problem, since it can have a major impact on self-esteem, and can result in
emotional problems, school absenteeism (Boivin et al., 1995) and problems in
later life such as anxiety, relationship problems and even employment status
(Takizawa et al., 2014).

In terms of the impact of school placement on bullying, the results are mixed.
While some research has shown no effect of school setting type (McLaughlin
et al., 2010), other research reports that children with special educational needs
are bullied more often in mainstream settings (Zablotsky et al., 2014).

In summary, while some research has attempted to describe the experiences of

pupils with autism, comparisons between those in mainstream and those in spe-
cial settings remain scarce. Furthermore, previous research has tended to group
those with special educational needs together, rather than addressing the specific
experiences of those children with a specific set of needs. In line with this, the
present study utilised qualitative methods to explore the experiences of those
with autism with a focus on learning, social relationships and bullying; specifi-
cally secondary-school-age boys. This is of particular importance given the recent
emphasis on engaging the autism community in research and giving those with
autism a voice (Hebron & Humphrey, 2013; Pellicano et al., 2014; Reid & Bat-
ten, 2006; Wright et al., 2014). The study also included interviews with their
mothers to explore their own beliefs and to provide some context for their sons

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experiences. Finally, it focused on boys from both mainstream and special
schools as a means to gain insights into the impact of setting type.

Method
Design
The design was qualitative, using semi-structured interviews. Thematic analysis
was used to generate codes and define themes from the data.

Participants
Participants were recruited from schools in south-east England. Inclusion criteria
comprised males aged 11 to 17 years, with autism, who would be willing and
able to engage with the questions in the interview and communicate their experi-
ences, and one of their parents. Girls were excluded, as research indicates sub-
stantial neural differences between girls and boys with autism and that these
might relate to differences in emotional processing and cognitive processes (Nor-
dahl et al., 2015). However, a parallel study has also been conducted exploring
the experiences of girls with autism (Cook et al., in preparation). The recruitment
process resulted in 20 interviews: eight motherson dyads (four from mainstream
settings and four from special schools); one individual son (mainstream setting);
and one mother with two sons (special school). Mainstream schools are defined
as those run by the local council that principally meet the needs of pupils who do
not have special educational needs. Special schools are defined as those whose
main purpose is to provide education for pupils with special educational needs.
While inclusion criteria allowed either parent to be interviewed, only mothers
responded in this study. The sons ranged in age from 11 to 17 years and all had
a diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder. Mothers were aged 401 and repre-
sented a range of professions. Participant demographics are shown in Table 1 (all
names are pseudonyms).

Procedure
A semi-structured interview was devised to explore the experiences of the moth-
ers and sons within their particular school setting, and consisted of broad, open-
ended questions. The boys interview covered (i) experience of learning (for
example, Tell me about the lessons you like/dont like); (ii) experience of friend-
ships (for example, How do you feel you get on with people at school?); and
(iii) experience of bullying (for example, Have any pupils at school ever done
or said anything that you didnt like? If so, please can you tell me a bit about
what happened?). The mothers interview covered (i) their views on their sons
learning in school; (ii) their views on their sons friendships; (iii) their views on
their sons experience of bullying; and (iv) their beliefs about different school

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Table 1: Socio-demographic description of the participants

Son Mother
School Ethnic Education Age range Ethnic Highest level of
Name year origin setting type Name (years) origin Occupation education
Oliver 10 WB Mainstream Lisa 4050 WB Church administrator C&G community
Co-ed secondary care
Jack 10 WB Mainstream Not interviewed
Co-ed secondary
Charlie 12 WB Mainstream boys Jen 4050 WB Podiatrist Degree
grammar
Jacob 7 WB Mainstream Laura 4050 WB Clinical planner Degree
Co-ed secondary
Alfie 9 W Mainstream Christine 501 WB Cover teacher A level
Co-ed secondary
Noah 9 WB Special boys secondary Wendy 4050 WB Mental health Degree
support worker
James 11 WB Special boys secondary Wendy 4050 WB Mental health Degree
support worker
Oscar 11 WB Special boys secondary Becky 4050 WB Nurse Degree
Ryan 12 Asian Special Zara 4050 Asian Financial analyst A level
Co-ed secondary
Daniel 12 WO Special Co-ed junior/ Michelle 501 WO Project manager Degree
secondary

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Adam 9 WB Special Lisa 4050 W EAL teacher Degree
Co-ed secondary

Notes: WB; white British. WO; white other. W: white. EAL; English as an additional language.

2016 NASEN
 Table 2: Codes derived from thematic analysis

Theme Category Sub-theme Code

1. Experiences of Friendships  Understanding autism
friendships and  Joint interests
bullying  Matched level
 Befriending others with autism
 No friends
 No friends outside school
 Mothers facilitating
Bullying  Physical
 Verbal
 Low-level harassments
 Damage/theft of property
 Eliciting upset through sensory
provocations
 Blocked memories
2. Risk factors Internal Social difficulties  Misunderstanding sarcasm and
humour
Processing difficulties  Problems planning/organising/
sequencing
 Learning difficulties
 Sense that lessons are a waste
of time
Sensory difficulties  Anxiety
 Proximity
 Irritating noises
External School culture: lack  Teachers lack understanding
of understanding of needs
 Lesson delivery
 Late diagnosis
 No facilitation of friendships
 Unstructured times playground,
corridors, lunch breaks
School culture:  Class size
staffing and  Changes/misuse of TAs
resources  Teacher training
 Allowing pupil to fall under radar
School culture:  No trust in teachers to resolve
failure to handle  Inadequate reprimands
bullying  Vulnerable to bullying
3. Protective Internal Self-esteem  Low self-esteem
factors  High self-esteem from increased
responsibilities
Resilience  Strategies for dealing with bullies
Disregarding bullies  Ignoring bullies

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 Table 2: Continued

Theme Category Sub-theme Code

Avoiding bullies  Avoiding places where
bullies will be
External Supportive friends  Understanding friends
School achievements  Sport
 Arts
 Academic achievements
Outside interests  Hobbies/interests
Talents  Art, music, drama
 Sports
4. Outcomes Mental health issues  Due to bullying
 Due to autism
 Due to school neglect
 Stress
 Distress
 Suicidal thoughts
 Low self-esteem
 Depression
 Mistrust
Learning  Due to school neglect
 Due to bullying
 Due to processing difficulties
Relationships  Due to bullying
 Due to school practices
 Due to autism

settings in relation to bullying. (The full interview schedule is available from the
authors on request.) The semi-structured interview guide was supported using
flexible strategies, such as probes, when necessary. All interviews took place in
participants homes, with the exception of one that took place at school and two
that were conducted in a cafe. With the participants permission, the interviews
were recorded and transcribed.

Data analysis
Thematic analysis was used to identify patterns in the data and capture common-
alities of experience and understanding, while at the same time enabling partici-
pants to be located within contrasting school contexts. The method is inductive:
themes are strongly linked to the data, rather than being fitted to analytic precon-
ceptions. For the analysis, transcripts were read and re-read, coded and discussed
between the researchers. Codes relating to each theme are shown in Table 2.

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Interpretations were checked against participants stories to ensure they covered
all parts of the data.

Ethical consideration
Ethical approval was granted by the University Ethics Committee. The informa-
tion sheet stated that participation was voluntary and that participants were able
to withdraw from the study at any time without any explanation. To ensure ano-
nymity, the names of participants have been altered in the study. All recorded
and transcribed interviews were stored in password-protected files. If participants
became stressed or emotional, the strategy was to discontinue the interview and
ask school staff members/parents to support the participant if needed.

Results
Participants experiences were interpreted as reflecting four main themes: (1) expe-
rience of friendships and bullying; (2) risk factors; (3) protective factors; and (4)
outcomes. Each theme was subdivided into a number of sub-themes, as illustrated
in Figure 1. While boys responses tended to be factual, the mothers were more
reflective. Nevertheless, mothers and boys opinions and experiences generally
concurred. Overall, the results indicated that many boys (five out of 11) had experi-
enced bullying, and that four of these attended mainstream schools. Further, the
results showed that this may be exacerbated by risk factors relating to characteris-
tics both of autism and the school but could be ameliorated through internal or
external protective factors, such as resilience and self-esteem or having outside
interests. This dynamic then related to key outcomes such as mental health issues
and learning. This process will now be described in depth with exemplar quotes.

Theme 1: Experience of friendships and bullying

The boys accounts provided valuable insights into their involvement with friend-
ships and the different forms of bullying they experienced at school.

Boys ranged from having no friends at all to having many. Lisa described how
her son has many friends and how this improved substantially when he trans-
ferred from a mainstream primary to a specialist secondary school:

He is really connected with the other boys and girls. . .I mean they just
gel. And its just, its brilliant to see him in a friendship group he just
didnt have that at Juniors. There was a lot of him being in the
playground and you know, kind of just on his own.
(Lisa, mother special school)

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Figure 1: An overview of themes and sub-themes

Positive friendships, however, were by no means guaranteed and some partici-

pants reported having no friends at all:

I usually just have friends in my head . . . It gets useful at lunchtime . . .

there is this girl that claimed to be my friend, I just, I didnt know what
she was talking about.
(Alfie, son mainstream school)

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His mother implied that this may have affected her more than Alfie:

That is something he has never had, hes not had one friend . . . Im not
getting upset anymore now, but hes not had one friend, in all the time,
even at [current school name].
(Christine, mother mainstream school)

In general, there was a tendency for participants to befriend others with autism,
those who respected and accepted them and those of a matched level or with sim-
ilar interests. However, no patterns emerged differentiating school types with
respect to friendships.

Many participants (five out of 11) reported incidents of bullying including verbal
bullying, physical bullying, theft, vandalism and frequent goading. The most
obvious disparity identified between mainstream and special schools within this
study was the degree of bullying. Many accounts of bullying came from the
mothers, as some of the sons seemed to have blocked out the memories, or were
confused about the details. Olivers mother conveyed how he suffers continual
bullying:

Hes constantly being picked on, verbally, all the time . . . I know if he
comes out ten minutes later than the other children, then theres an issue.
(Lisa, mother mainstream school)

The most prevalent forms of bullying reported were constant harassments such as
stealing, damaging possessions and shoving. All but one boy from a mainstream
setting suffered these frequent provocations. While James was at his mainstream
secondary school, he had stationery taken, his tie put in the toilet and his weekly
planner put in the shower. His mother felt that it was because he was an easy tar-
get, as he would get easily upset as a result of these triggers.

At times the bullying was more subtle and seemed to reflect an understanding by
peers of specific actions that would upset someone with autism. Alfies mother,
Christine, described how his peers constantly tried to annoy him to the point that
he was too distracted to learn anything: So it would be things like, things stuck
on his back, itll be tapping, itll be looks, it would be scraping (Christine,
mother mainstream school).

The only reports of any bullying within special schools came from Daniel and
Adam. Sadly, Daniel suffered extreme levels of bullying throughout his entire

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secondary education. For example, just before his Physics GCSE, he discovered
that his locker had been emptied, and the contents scattered around the school.
He described how he felt when he discovered his possessions were gone: [I
was] in a complete and utter stress because you know, its my stuff, I dont like
people touching my stuff without me knowing (Daniel, son special school).

Adams report of bullying, however, was negated by his mother, who explained
how Adam often misinterprets comments and, despite everything being effec-
tively dealt with after one particular incident, he continued to hold a grudge.

Theme 2: Risk factors

The experiences described by participants indicated that certain factors might be
identified as risks due both to internal factors specific to autism, and to external
factors associated with the school culture.

People with autism experience difficulties with social communication and social
interaction. Lisa described how this can affect Adam:

He doesnt get sarcastic humour. You know he doesnt get teasing . . .

you could be making a joke and just having a little tease, to him that
would be major.
(Lisa, mother special school)

In addition to the social difficulties, the processing of sensory information can

also be challenging. Many people with autism have sensory difficulties, which
make them likely to become stressed or anxious (Green et al., 2012). For exam-
ple, Noah experiences extreme anxiety when his personal space is violated. Simi-
larly, Christine conveyed the discomfort Alfie feels from something as apparently
harmless as tapping:

They sometimes dont understand how little things, like tapping . . . its
like me scraping my finger down a blackboard, see how you feel about
that, because thats how he feels about that tapping. So turning round to
a child and saying just stop the tapping, or just forget about it, its
only tapping its not just tapping!
(Christine, mother mainstream school)

Risk might also be attributable to external factors, including the ways in which
their school managed the learning and social needs of pupils with autism.
Regardless of setting type, some schools were described as neglecting to address

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these needs. Mainstream schools, however, were less likely to have the under-
standing necessary to meet their needs or provide sufficient resources, including
teaching assistants (TAs). Jacob explained the frequent changes in TA in one of
his lessons:

I dont know what really happened, because one came, and then he
went, then another one came, and then they left and now theres none in
there which is a bit weird. There is meant to be one in there but there
isnt.
(Jacob, son mainstream school)

His mother was particularly concerned that this would exacerbate his processing
disability and problems with following instructions. Christine also complained
about the way Alfies TAs were shared with other pupils, even though they were
specifically allocated to him.

Both the boys and their mothers also described the schools failure to handle bul-
lying. For example, James described how, when he was at his mainstream sec-
ondary, he was unlikely to report incidences of bullying, since he knew they
would not be dealt with appropriately the bullies would continue their bullying
due to inadequate reprimands:

It just didnt happen. They said oh well sort it out. They didnt . . . it
was probably the equivalent of just giving them a slap on the wrist and
thats about it. It was just like, its not helpful, they keep doing it.
(James, son special school)

In contrast, most of the boys from special settings (five out of the six) liked their
schools and their teachers, and benefited from the small class sizes. While still
affected by anxiety and attention problems, there were sufficient numbers of
trained staff and TAs to provide the learning support needed, to take effective
action against bullying and to help facilitate friendships. With the exception of
Daniels story (see earlier), special schools ensured that bullying was not toler-
ated and dealt with such incidences quickly and effectively.

When comparing school settings in relation to risks, internal risks were identified
across both setting types. In contrast, there was a general tendency for those from
mainstream settings to report greater external risks than participants from special
settings.

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Theme 3: Protective factors
Many positive accounts of the boys experiences were attributed to protective
factors. These enabled them to cope or deal with potential bullying and also
had a positive impact on their learning and overall experience at school. Protec-
tive factors came from both within the child and from their external
environment.

Self-esteem was identified by a number of mothers as critical to their sons pro-

gress, and in many incidences was reported as being very low. However, one or
two boys benefited from having built their self-esteem through their achievements
and responsibilities. Oscar, for example, participates in a number of activities,
such as the Duke of Edinburgh Award programme and after-school clubs. He
talked about how he thinks others look up to him:

Im usually the person that people go to if theres a problem, so I

think, Id say that people are quite confident in my ability to solve
problems. And Im actually a House Captain of my team so Id say
people you know have faith in my leadership skills as well, which Im
happy with.
(Oscar, son special school)

Similarly, resilience to cope with or adapt to occurrences of bullying was

reported by some participants, enabling them to balance negative emotions in the
face of confrontation. James described how he made the decision not to let insult-
ing comments bother him:

Its not really anything that really bothers me because, if hes making
me feel rubbish I just think well hes not exactly a great human being
so Im not taking it personally well Im taking it personally but Im not
letting it bother me.
(James, son special school)

Some also protected themselves from bullying by disregarding the bullies. For
example, Alfie explained how he pretends not to hear them:

If someone insults me I just tell them that they were talking to

themselves. Its more funny to just say theres nothing wrong really. I can
pretend that I cant hear them.
(Alfie, son mainstream school)

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Others preferred to avoid the bullies completely. Daniels mother explained how
he could no longer go to certain cafes and shops for fear of bumping into peers
from his old school.

A number of external factors might also be instrumental in enabling more posi-

tive experiences at school. One significant factor was the presence of supportive
friends. Jacob has a friend who is a great support, particularly at times when he
needs help with organising his things, such as in PE lessons, as described by his
mother:

He loses his kit and he puts the wrong kit on, so his friends help him
and [Carlys] boy is a complete support in that. If he didnt have [Lucas]
in there I dont know what we would have done!
(Laura, mother mainstream school)

School achievements in a range of subjects were reported as having beneficial

effects and were mainly portrayed by the mothers. After the terrible experiences
endured in his secondary school, Daniel was finally able to build his self-esteem
through his college achievements, as expressed by his mother:

He had the most amazing placement with this educational software

company up in London, and the work that he was doing for them there,
they said hes an absolute natural at graphic design.
(Michelle, mother special school)

All the boys had outside interests that they were passionate about, which gave
them a sense of identity. These included football, Comicon, trading cards, sailing,
canoeing and climbing, among many others. Alfie described his passion for
animals:

Im quite passionate about a few stuff, e.g. wildlife . . . we have fish over
there . . . Yeah were thinking about getting turtles. . . I like going to zoos
and sea life.
(Alfie, son mainstream school)

Finally, having a special talent was particularly beneficial as a protective factor.

Talents ranged from art, music and drama to sports and having a good imagina-
tion. Charlie stated that when his peers liked to put him down, he would point
out that everyone is good at something, and would tell them he is a good
swimmer and is actually better than them. Jacob has perfect pitch and his mother

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described how she turned his attitude towards Aspergers syndrome into a posi-
tive one, by attributing many of his talents to his Aspergers syndrome.

Theme 4: Outcomes
As a consequence of the various experiences, a number of outcomes were identi-
fied as common and/or significant.

Some participants suffered mental health problems, including stress, mistrust, low
self-esteem, depression and suicidal thoughts. Wendy described how, at the time
her son was getting bullied at his mainstream school, he swallowed magnets:

He was seriously ill in hospital for two weeks. And had to have a couple
of operations because he had a perforated bowel. He was very, very
poorly. And it was around the same sort of time when hed started to get
really stressed at school, so I dont know if it was deliberate or not. He
wont say and I dont think well ever know.
(Wendy, mother special school)

Jack, who requested not to be recorded, reported that peers used to tell him that
he should die, but that since then most of his peers had matured. He reported
being suicidal in Year 9 and received counselling from the Child and Adolescent
Mental Health Services.

Participants also described how learning was affected. At times this was by the
school environment itself. For example, Julie explained how Adam requires very
different kinds of teaching that only specialists can deliver and how mainstream
settings fail to differentiate the diverse needs of the children:

I have been in schools where this lower table has a child with Downs
syndrome, a child who is profoundly deaf, a child with autism and
perhaps two or three children who have English as an additional
language all different, separate needs. And how can you have one,
bless her heart, teaching assistant on that table trying to accommodate
all of those children? It doesnt work.
(Lisa, mother special school)

Learning was also influenced by bullying, which proved to have a dramatic impact.

Lastly, the analysis identified the effects of bullying and school practices on rela-
tionships. The impact of Olivers experience of bullying had clearly influenced

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his ability to form friendships. His mother thought this could affect him in the
long term:

I think it will because hes now got to the point that he doesnt trust
anyone. So he wont open up to anybody except me.
(Lisa, mother mainstream school)

There was a contrast between mainstream and special schools with respect to
how well their school practices influenced opportunities to form friendships. For
example, Oscars special school helpfully facilitated friendships, through careful
grouping in dorm rooms and provision of activities. In contrast, one parent with
a son in a mainstream setting had to urge teaching staff to provide opportunities
for interaction with peers:

Ive had to actually go in and say look youve got to physically tell
[Alfie], take him to the pottery class . . . he will not try anything new.
Hes already formed his opinion, hes not going to like it so youve got
to take him, and youve got to make him do it. And then it becomes a
routine, and then he finds that he does like it, but he doesnt want to
admit that he likes it.
(Christine, mother mainstream school)

Bullying and school practices were therefore seen to have had an impact on the
boys mental health, learning and friendships.

Discussion
The present qualitative study aimed to explore how boys with autism experience
learning, friendships and bullying, and whether this reflects their placement
within a mainstream or specialist school.

The results primarily provide valuable insights into the experiences of boys with
autism, which reflects the call to give the autism community a voice and the
need to hear their experiences (Pellicano et al., 2014; Wright et al., 2014). From
this, it was clear that although many reported having a supportive group of
friends, they had also experienced bullying, including verbal and physical bully-
ing, and, most predominantly, continual goading, which were more apparent in
the accounts of those from mainstream schools. This is in line with the findings
reported by Zablotsky et al. (2014).

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The results also indicated that various influences might place them at greater risk
of bullying, including both internal and external factors. Mothers gave accounts
of social difficulties such as being unable to understand sarcastic humour and
inappropriate responses to peers, which may place them at greater risk of bully-
ing, a finding which reflects previous research (Bejerot & Mortberg, 2009; Hum-
phrey & Lewis, 2008a,b). The present study also highlighted a role for sensory
difficulties as a possible trigger for bullying behavior, with neuro-typical children
being able to identify and use specific sensory issues as a means to cause upset.
External factors relating to the school culture might also place children at greater
risk. These included lack of awareness and understanding about autism, inad-
equate resources or use of teaching assistants and failure to deal appropriately
with bullying. This supports previous research highlighting schools lack of
understanding about how to facilitate the learning and participation of children
with autism (Barnard et al., 2000; Batten et al., 2006; Humphrey & Lewis,
2008a,b; Humphrey & Parkinson, 2006). While these internal factors could be
generalised across participants from different settings, it was clear that those in
mainstream settings were more likely to be exposed to the external risk factors
from the school.

Bullying may not be inevitable, and the findings showed that these internal and
external risks might be filtered through specific protective factors. In particular,
both internal factors such as self-esteem, resilience and disregarding or avoiding
bullies and external factors such as having supportive friends, school achieve-
ments, outside interests and talents offered protection to the child and seemed
to ameliorate the impact of risk. Of these, it appeared that supportive friends
could be highly influential and act as a powerful buffer, reflecting research high-
lighting peer acceptance and secure friendships as protective against bullying
(Hebron & Humphrey, 2013).

The boys therefore described some accounts of bullying which could be exacer-
bated by risk factors and buffered by protective factors. When there were insuffi-
cient protective factors to mediate the risks, a number of outcomes were
identified, including mental health issues, effects on learning and effects on rela-
tionships. Mental health issues included stress, mistrust, low self-esteem and
depression, and were mainly attributed to continual bullying. Effects on learning
included poor concentration in lessons, poor performance/exam results and lack
of motivation due to processing difficulties and the influence of school neglect.
Effects on relationships were mainly due to communication difficulties, but also
the failure of the school to provide opportunities to enable social interactions, and
to deal properly with bullying.

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There are limitations of the present study to be considered. First, participants
came from a limited geographic area (south-east England). Hence, the findings
can only be interpreted as representing a subset of the British population. In addi-
tion, all participants were white, except for one motherson dyad. Second, the
study was interview-based and thus required a degree of communication, which,
due to the communication difficulties associated with autism, may have limited
the quality of the data. The interviews, however, were in fact extremely rich, and
participants offered full and detailed accounts of their experiences. This may
have been due, in part, to the expertise of the researcher, who was also able to
draw upon a range of prompts and skills to adapt the interview situation to each
participants abilities in order to elicit responses. Further research might benefit
from using participatory research models (for example, MacLeod et al., 2013) or
activity-oriented interview methods as a means to encourage openness in children
less able to respond in an interview setting (for example, Winstone et al., 2014).

These findings have implications both for inclusion and for the development of
strategies and interventions to reduce the risk of bullying across all school
settings.

In terms of inclusion, many of the experiences, risks and protective factors were
common to both settings. For bullying and the risk factors offered by the school
culture, however, setting was found to influence experience. In particular,
whereas most participants from mainstream schools (four out of six) conveyed
many accounts of bullying, all but one participant who had attended special
school settings did not. Furthermore, the school culture with regard to pupils
with autism differed substantially between setting types, with special schools
providing small class sizes, specialist teaching staff, and trained TAs, facilitating
social interactions, and handling incidences of bullying appropriately. This
contrasted with reports from most mainstream participants, whose schools
neglected to address their needs, both academic and social. Accordingly, while
placement into mainstream schools does not consistently define all aspects of a
childs experience, it may be linked to higher levels of bullying due, in part, to
the culture of the school.

These findings also have implications for the development of interventions to

reduce bullying across a range of school settings. In particular, while it may not
be possible to intervene with the internal factors, much more could be done to
minimise the external factors, particularly aspects of the school culture. Many
aspects of mainstream schools such as class size, higher studentteacher ratios,
and pressure to raise standards may be beyond the individual schools ability to

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control (Norwich, 2014). The results from the present study, however, showed a
clear role for factors such as a lack of understanding, staffing and resources and a
failure to handle bullying factors which may be more open to intervention. In
particular, greater training of school staff concerning the specific social and aca-
demic needs of those with autism, a focus on inclusion (rather than integration),
better resources, consistency of TAs and a determination to handle bullying more
effectively when first it arises could make inclusion more effective for those with
autism. Likewise, a number of protective factors may also offer an opportunity
for intervention. For example, children with autism could be encouraged to take
part in out-of-school activities and develop their interests, and taught strategies to
manage bullies and maximise their self-esteem through focusing on their skills
and talents rather than their deficits. Such an approach offers a way forward to
maximise the benefits of a childs school experience while maintaining a policy
of inclusion.

In conclusion, bullying may not be inevitable, but may rather be a product of risk
factors, which may or may not be buffered through protective factors. If these
risk factors are minimised and the protective factors are effective, then children
with autism may be able to develop friendships and learn effectively, regardless
of the type of school in which they are placed. If, however, the risks are allowed
to predominate, bullying may well occur, resulting in a range of negative experi-
ences that may have both immediate and longer-term effects on the child. Inter-
ventions should therefore be developed, both to promote a better school culture
and to increase childrens resilience so that they can flourish.

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Address for correspondence:

Anna Cook
School of Psychology
University of Surrey
Guildford
Surrey GU2 7XH
UK
Email: a.h.cook@surrey.ac.uk

Article submitted: November 2015

Accepted for publication: July 2016

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