A Fall 2018 Case Study
The cycle of bullying is one of the hardest cycles to break. It starts with a bully teasing, demeaning, or abusing someone, while bystanders fail to get involved. The victim often becomes a bully, and more people stand by, doing nothing to stop it. They could speak up, but they typically don’t.
According to Carol Jago of Los Angeles Times, peer feedback is more effective in changing a student’s actions than adult feedback. This proves why it is so important for students to stand up for their peers... to be upstanders.
The Upstanding For Others (UFO) design team focused on the mental health of junior high students. For twelve weeks, the team empathized with multiple junior high students, a mental health counselor, and partnered with Brian Blee of Hey, You’re Amazing to address this complex and relevant challenge. The team defined the following research question, “How might we empower junior high bystanders to become upstanders?”
As their solution, the UFO team created an alien-themed role playing game that would give students perspective on the cycle of bullying and tools to become upstanders. The game was prototyped with a group of junior high students and the team then worked to make the game into a downloadable file for schools and clubs to host Upstanding For Others role playing events themselves.
Design Team: Clara S., Lucy S., Zoe H., and Greta B.
