Mobbing i barnehagen: En studie av mobbing som strategisk maktutøvelse blant førskolebarn.

The objective of this study is to examine how bullying is constituted and how it becomes visible through the dominating discourses at a daycare centre. The study focuses on play situations in order to illustrate what dominating discourses arise and constitute a practice in which bullying can take place. The study seeks to answer the question: How does exercising power in play lead to bullying and what are the consequences for those involved? The theoretical foundation for the study is Foucault’s discourse theory and Criozer’s theory of strategy analysis.

The study shows that one characteristic of play is that children are constantly negotiating the content and rules of their play. Children negotiate through making and accepting suggestions for the content of their play. The study shows that girls’ play lacks this characteristic. For one of the girls, part of her desire to play is determined by her wish to control, and this gives rise to critical situations and uncertainty in the play activity. The other girls choose various strategies in order to participate in the game. Adults typically only intervene in a game after problems have arisen. The study shows that the combination of offensive and defensive tactics can be an appropriate strategy to avoid being bullied. Moreover, the results show that adult participation is important for whether the girls acquire the skills to help them master play situations rather than allowing their options to become restricted. The researcher points out that the absence of adults increases the risk of "game situations" where relationships and positions are brought into play, and demonstrates that children who bully, possess certain social skills which enable them to turn power relationsships and rules in their own favour. Therefore, adult participation is especially important for socially marginalised children and it is important that child carers become more aware of how power is exercised in the group of children.

Data collection comprises observation of play situations. 19 children aged between three and six years, a pedagogical leader and two childcare assistants took part in the play situations.  The researcher decided to focus on four girls aged four to five years in particular, and to analyse their play, as their play situations were regarded as more hidden and complicated than boys’.

Helgesen, M. B. (2006). Mobbing i barnehagen: En studie av mobbing som strategisk maktutøvelse blant førskolebarn. Finnmark: Høgskolen i Finnmark, Avdeling for pedagogiske og humanistiske fag.