The Bengali version of the modified ‘Life at School Survey’ (Ahmed, 1996) was administered in nine schools in Bangladesh to children in grades seven to ten. As in the Australian study, parents participated along with children. Participants were recruited from nine co-educational schools, both public and private, located in three school regions. These regions were targeted on the basis of their representativeness of the socio-economic diversity of urban and suburban communities.

The demographic information collected from students’ parents indicated diversity in socio-economic backgrounds. Of the entire sample of parents (n = 1362), approximately 26% belonged to the high socio-economic group (eg, employees who hold supervisory and professional positions), 60% to the middle socio-economic group (eg, school teachers, public servants who do not hold supervisory roles, support staff), and 12% to the lower socio-economic group (eg, garment employees, clerical employees). The people of Bangladesh are ethnically and culturally homogeneous (98% of the population are Bengali and 83% are Muslims), and hence, information was not sought on either ethnic or religious affiliation. The average monthly salary of parents was 40,000 taka (US$ 688.00) ranging from 1,000 taka (US$ 17.00) to 380,000 taka (US$ 6535.00).

The purpose of the study was to gain a better understanding of factors that facilitate and impede bullying in schools, workplaces and families, with a particular focus on how poor shame and pride management can exacerbate these problems. In dealing with resolution of conflicts in all three settings, the work has explored the importance of forgiveness and reconciliation and their role in promoting healthier forms of shame and pride management.