Kevin Runions
Honorary Research Associate
BSc (Hons) BEd MA PhD
kevin.runions@thekids.org.au
Dr Runions (PhD, Human Development & Education, UToronto) studies children’s social and emotional wellbeing, the things that happen in children’s social lives that impact on wellbeing like bullying and how schools can work better to improve children’s lives, for example by prevention efforts focusing on social-emotional learning. He has been project director on two large school trials of the Friendly School program, and is internationally recognised for his work on motives for bullying and moral processing in aggression.
He has led research examining how the online medium affects cyberbullying, on the school social experiences of children with chronic health conditions, and developing methods to improve school staff mental health literacy. He has published over 50 peer reviewed articles including a seminal meta-analysis of bullying and cyberbullying prevalence. He is also a research coordinator with WA Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services and has led work on biopsychosocial processes, borderline personality disorder and deliberate self-harm.
His research with The Kids Research Institute Australia and with the Australian Life Course Centre aims to understand how schools and families can work together to better help students from disadvantaged backgrounds and neurodiverse children and adolescents to improve outcomes overall and to reduce inequities in developmental and occupational life outcomes.
Projects
Empowering school communities to Support Student Mental health and Wellbeing: Development and Testing of the Online Assessment, Support and Implementation System (OASIS)
Social Ventures Australia Evidence Summaries
Published research
Pathways of Socioeconomic Disadvantage and Peer Bullying in Children and Youth: A Scoping Review
Growing up in socioeconomic disadvantage increases risk of peer bullying at school. Both socioeconomic status and involvement in bullying are predictive of a range of adverse developmental outcomes. However, neither (a) the mechanisms whereby disadvantage increases bullying risk nor (b) the developmental outcomes for which bullying may mediate disadvantage are clear.
The effectiveness of a day hospital mentalization-based therapy programme for adolescents with borderline personality traits: Findings from Touchstone—Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service
Individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD) are at a substantial risk of harm to themselves and others, experience high levels of functional impairment and typically are high users of tertiary healthcare to address their mental health concerns. As indicators for BPD typically emerge in adolescence, a day therapy service in Bentley, Western Australia, Touchstone Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS), was developed as an intensive intervention for adolescents with indicators for BPD and its associated symptomology.
How does the school built environment impact students’ bullying behaviour? A scoping review
School bullying is a public health concern affecting the physical and mental health of children and young people. While school-based interventions to prevent bullying have been developed internationally, the effectiveness of many interventions has been mixed and modest.
Supporting the Social-Emotional Well-Being of Elementary School Students Who Are Deaf and Hard of Hearing: A Pilot Study
Children who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing, their parents, Teachers of the Deaf, and other community stakeholders were involved in co-designing a web-based resource to support students' social-emotional well-being.
‘It’s All About Context’: Building School Capacity to Implement a Whole-School Approach to Bullying
Student bullying behaviours are a significant social issue in schools worldwide. Whilst school staff have access to quality bullying prevention interventions, schools can face significant challenges implementing the whole-school approach required to address the complexity of these behaviours.
Overarching Evaluation of the National Support for Child and Youth Mental Health Program- Final Report
The National Support for Child and Youth Mental Health Program (the Program) aims to improve mental health outcomes for children and young people, commencing with the early years and going through to adolescence, by providing targeted grants for workforce and education activities that will build capabilities aligned to the Program objectives.
Strengthening student social and emotional wellbeing and preventing bullying behaviours: Insights from 20 years of Friendly Schools research in Australian schools.
Strong evidence supports our current understandings of student bullying behaviours and ways schools can prevent and respond effectively to bullying behaviour. In the late 1990’s, however, little was understood about the most effective ways to reduce bullying in Australian schools. In response to schools’ need for evidence-informed action, a pipeline of research called Friendly Schools was initiated in 1999 which for the past twenty years, has provided robust whole-school evidence-based knowledge and skills to support policy makers, school staff and other practitioners working in schools and families across Australia.
Leading excellence through equity: Social emotional learning for a Fair Go
Australia likes to call itself the land of the "Fair Go". But what does a Fair Go mean for students from backgrounds of deep disadvantage? The UN Sustainable Development Goals for 2030 aim to ensure "inclusive and equitable quality education and [to promote] lifelong learning opportunities for all" (United Nations, 2015).
Friendly schools’ bullying prevention research: Implications for school counsellors
Bullying varies in frequency, intensity, duration and hence severity, and contributes uniquely and directly to mental health problems, with severe and long-lasting consequences. Almost a half of school-age students report being bullied in the past year.
School-based bullying intervention programs in Australia and New Zealand
Western Australian adolescent emotional wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020
The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have been vast and are not limited to physical health. Many adolescents have experienced disruptions to daily life, including changes in their school routine and family’s financial or emotional security, potentially impacting their emotional wellbeing.
Why did you do that? Differential types of aggression in offline and in cyberbullying
Traditional conceptualizations of aggression distinguish between reactive (e.g., rage) and proactive (e.g., reward) functions of aggression. However, critiques of this dichotomy have pointed out these models conflate motivational valence and self-control.
Parents' experiences of children with a rare disease attending a mainstream school: Australia
To explore the perceptions of parents who had a child or adolescent (6-18 years) diagnosed with a rare disease who attended a mainstream school in Western Australia. Design and methods: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted with 41 parents of children with a rare disease.
Bullying and psychosocial adjustment among children with and without asthma
Children with asthma face serious mental health risk, but the pathways remain unclear. This study aimed to examine bullying victimisation and perpetration in children with asthma and a comparison sample without a chronic health condition, and the role of bullying in moderating psychosocial adjustment outcomes for those with asthma. A sample of children with and without asthma, and their parents, were recruited from hospital clinics.
Why do Victims become Perpetrators of Peer Bullying? Moral Disengagement in the Cycle of Violence
Previous studies have shown that there is overlap between victimization and the perpetration of bullying, and social and motivational variables are known to mediate this relationship. However, the effects of different moral disengagement strategies have not been studied, despite the fact that they exert a major influence on aggressive behavior.
Borderline Personality Disorder and Peers: A Scoping Review of Friendship, Victimization and Aggression Studies
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is characterized by instability in interpersonal relationships. To date no reviews have scoped the extant research on peer relationship functioning for young people diagnosed with BPD or showing borderline personality features. The current review provides this scoping of studies on all facets of peer relationships, including friendship quality, peer victimization and bullying and peer aggression, and relevant studies of social–cognitive processes with relevance to peer relationships. From 282 studies identified up to August 2019, 39 studies were included for review.
Acute Tryptophan Depletion Moja-De: A Method to Study Central Nervous Serotonin Function in Children and Adolescents
Serotonin (5-HT) is widely implicated as a key neurotransmitter relevant to a range of psychiatric disorders and psychological processes. The role of central nervous 5-HT function underlying these processes can be examined through serotonergic challenge methodologies.
Chronic health conditions, mental health and the school: A narrative review
School-based social risk processes in the lives of young people with chronic health conditions are likely to contribute to risk of psychological problems
Facilitators and barriers to the implementation of motivational interviewing for bullying perpetration in school settings
Results indicated a number factors which influenced the uptake of Motivational Interviewing in schools
Moral Disengagement of Pure Bullies and Bully/Victims: Shared and Distinct Mechanisms
This study advances bullying research by extending the role of moral disengagement in bullying episodes beyond pure bullies to victims, both pure victims and bully/victims
Telling an Adult at School about Bullying: Subsequent Victimization and Internalizing Problems
To prevent persistent victimization, schools and teachers need to be better equipped to respond effectively when a student first becomes a target of bullying
No detectable effects of acute tryptophan depletion on short-term immune system cytokine levels in healthy adults
The acute tryptophan depletion condition did not result in significant changes to cytokine concentrations for the entire study sample
Concurrent developmental course of sleep problems and emotional/behavioral problems in childhood and adolescence as reflected by the dysregulation profile
Findings provide evidence for a strong association in the development of sleep problems and difficulties of dysregulation with emotion, cognition, and aggression
Functional connectivity of the vigilant-attention network in children and adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
ADHD patients showed substantially diminished intrinsic coupling for 7 connections and increased coupling for 4 connections
Serotonin and aggressive behaviour in children and adolescents: a systematic review
Findings were mixed, with support both for negative and for positive associations of central nervous 5-HT function with aggression in children and adolescents
Friendly Schools Universal Bullying Prevention Intervention: Effectiveness with Secondary School Students
This study demonstrates the importance of considering the effectiveness of secondary school bullying prevention interventions and real-world implementation support
Impact of the Friendly Schools whole-school intervention on transition to secondary school and adolescent bullying behaviour
These findings demonstrate the immediate value of whole-school interventions to reduce bullying behaviour and associated harms among students
Beyond the reactive-proactive dichotomy: Rage, revenge, reward, and recreational aggression predict early high school bully and bully/victim status
We discuss the implications of addressing Revenge and Recreation, as well as Reward and Rage aggression motives, for bullying prevention and intervention strategies
Using acute tryptophan depletion to investigate predictors of treatment response in adolescents with major depressive disorder
The major hypothesis of this study is that acute tryptophan depletion will be negatively associated with mood and cognitive functioning
The school experiences of children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes in Western Australia
Elevated levels of emotional difficulties among school students with T1D and variable levels of support from school staff to assist these students to manage their diabetes at school
Does the Risk Outweigh the Benefits? Adolescent Responses to Completing Health Surveys
Self-reported experiences of adolescents in population-based samples when completing health-related surveys on topics with varying potential for evoking distres
Effects of Dietary Acute Tryptophan Depletion (ATD) on NPY Serum Levels in Healthy Adult Humans Whilst Controlling for Methionine Supply-A Pilot Study
Acute tryptophan depletion, and therefore, diminished substrate availability for brain 5-HT synthesis did not lead to significant changes in serum neuropeptide Y concentrations over time
Motivational interviewing as a positive response to high-school bullying
We provide a narrative review of Motivational Interviewing and map its core features onto the extant literature on self‐reported motivations for bullying
Dietary patterns, body mass index and inflammation: Pathways to depression and mental health problems in adolescents
We aimed to elucidate the longitudinal relationship between dietary patterns, adiposity, inflammation and mental health in a population of adolescents.
Bullying and mental health amongst Australian children and young people with cystic fibrosis
This study describes the peer bullying experiences of young people with CF, and examines associations between school bullying and the psychological well-being of these young people
Differences in serum zinc levels in acutely ill and remitted adolescents and young adults with bulimia nervosa in comparison with healthy controls – a cross-sectional pilot study
Research has implicated that changes in Zn metabolism may be associated with the biological underpinnings of eating disorders, in particular anorexia nervosa.
Properties of the DASS-21 in an Australian Community Adolescent Population
This study evaluated for a multifactor structure in the DASS-21 teenagers and the specifics of the 3 subscales for teenagers in general at different stages.
Mental health problems among 4–17-year-olds with hearing problems: results from a nationally representative study
Clinicians caring for children and young people with hearing problems should be alert for heightened risk of specific mental health problems based on age and the nature of hearing problems.
Reactive aggression in young patients with ADHD—a critical role for small provocations
ADHD is one of the most commonly diagnosed disorders in child and adolescent psychiatry and is characterized by attentional deficits, hyperactivity, and impulsivity
Bipolar disorder in children and adolescents: diagnostic inpatient rates from 2000 to 2013 in Germany
The rate of Bipolar Disorder as a discharge diagnosis in German minors has increased significantly, consistently exceeding the general trend for a rise in rates for mental disorders
Developmental trajectories of sleep problems from childhood to adolescence both predict and are predicted by emotional and behavioral problems
Findings from this study provide empirical evidence for the heterogeneity of sleep problems and their development
Cyber Agression
Information and communication technology has allowed individuals to engage in aggressive behavior on multiple distinct platforms with different capabilities
May 2016
Disruptive mood dysregulation disorder
The new diagnostic category of disruptive mood dysregulation disorder (DMDD) was introduced in DSM-5
Disruptive mood dysregulation disorder in ICD-11: a new disorder or ODD with a specifier for chronic irritability
This letter congratulates Mulraney et al. regarding their paper on disruptive mood dysregulation disorder in children with ADHD.
Online Moral Disengagement, Cyberbullying, and Cyber-Aggression. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking
The study of moral disengagement has greatly informed research on aggression and bullying.
Reactive aggression and peer victimization from pre-kindergarten to first grade: accounting for hyperactivity and teacher-child conflict
Teacher-child conflict in kindergarten predicted subsequent increases in victimization, reactive aggression, and hyperactivity
Bullying Prevalence Across Contexts: A Meta-analysis Measuring Cyber and Traditional Bullying
Bullying involvement in any form can have lasting physical and emotional consequences for adolescents.
Does Gender Moderate the Association Between Children's Behaviour and Teacher-Child Relationship in the Early Years?
The purpose of this study was to examine whether teachers’ reports of relationship quality were associated with children's behaviour and gender.
Teacher–Child Relationship, Parenting, and Growth in Likelihood and Severity of Physical Aggression in the Early School Years
This study investigated the likelihood of children showing problems with parent-rated physical aggression, and on the severity of problems, for 374 children.
External Publications
- Runions, K.C., Cross, D.S., Vithiatharan, R., Everard, M., Hall, G. (2021). Bullying and psychosocial adjustment among children with and without asthma. Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools, 31(1), 36-45. https://doi.org/10.1017/jgc.2020.32
- Macoun, S.J., Bedir, B., Runions, K., Evancio Barker, L., Halliday, D., Lewis, J. (2021). Information & communication technologies use by children and youth with autism spectrum disorder: Promise and perils. Journal of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, 4(1), 1047.
- Adama, E., Arabiat, D., Foster M., Afrifa-Yamoah, E., Runions, K., Vithiatharan, R.., Lin, A. (2021). The psychosocial impact of rare diseases among children and adolescents attending mainstream schools in Western Australia. International Journal of Inclusive Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2021.1888323
- Romera, E.M., Ortega-Ruiz, R., Runions, K. & Falla, D. (2020). Moral disengagement strategies in online and offline bullying. Psychosocial Intervention, 30 (2), 85-93. https://doi.org/10.5093/pi2020a21
- Campbell M, Hand K, Shaw T, Runions K, Burns S, Lester L, & Cross D. (2020). Adolescent proactive bystanding versus passive bystanding responses to school bullying: The role of peer and moral predictors. International Journal of Bullying Prevention. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42380-020-00075-2.
- Runions K, Rao P, Wong J, & Zepf FD. (2017). Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and the encoding of emotional information. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 135 (6), 503-505. DOI: 10.1186/s13063-017-2342-4
- Runions K, Bak M, & Shaw T. (2017). Disentangling functions of online aggression: The Cyber Aggression Typology Questionnaire (CATQ). Aggressive Behavior, 43 (1), 74-84. DOI.10.1002/ab.21663
- Stewart RM, Wong JWY, Runions KC, Rao P, Moore JK … Zepf FD. (2017). Nitrous Oxide (N2O) and subsequent open-label SSRI treatment of adolescents with depression (NOTAD): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial. Trials, 18, 617. DOI: 10.1186/s13063-017-2342-4
- Runions KC. (2014). Reactive aggression and peer victimization from prekindergarten to first grade: Accounting for hyperactivity and teacher-child conflict. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 84 (4), 537-555. DOI:10.1111/bjep.12037
- Runions KC., & Shaw, T. (2013). Teacher-child relationship, child withdrawal and aggression in the development of peer victimization. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 34, 319-327.
- Runions KC. (2013). Toward a conceptual model of motive and self-control in cyber-aggression: Rage, revenge, reward, and recreation. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 42, 751-771. (Top 5% most cited works; Scopus, Jan 2019)
- Runions K., Shapka, J.D., Dooley, J., & Modecki, K. (2013). Cyber-aggression and -victimization and social information processing: Integrating the medium and the message. Psychology of Violence, 3, 9-26. (Top 10% most cited works; Scopus, Jan 2019)
- Orobio de Castro BO, Verhulp EE, & Runions KC (2012). Rage and revenge: Highly aggressive boys’ explanations for their responses to ambiguous provocation. European Journal of Developmental Psychology, 9, 331-350.
- Runions KC, Priest N, & Dandy J. (2011). Discrimination and psychological adjustment amongst Australian children from Middle-Eastern and Asian backgrounds. Australian Community Psychologist, 23, 23-33.
- Runions KC & Keating DP. (2010). Anger and inhibitory control as moderators of children’s hostile attributions and aggression. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 31, 370–378.
- Waters S, Cross D & Runions K. (2009). Social and ecological structures supporting adolescent connectedness to school: A theoretical model. Journal of School Health, 79, 516-524. (Top 5% most cited works; Scopus, Jan 2019)
- Runions K. (2008). A multi-systemic school-based approach for addressing childhood aggression. Australian Journal of Guidance and Counselling, 18, 106-127.
- Runions, K. & Keating, D. P. (2007). Family antecedents and behavioral correlates of young children’s social information processing. Developmental Psychology,43, 838-849. (Top 20% most cited works; Scopus, Jan 2019)
Education and Qualifications
PhD in Human Development and Education, University of Toronto, 2004
MA in Human Development and Education, University of Toronto, 2001
Bachelor of Education, Queens University, Kingston, Ontario, 1996
Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Psychology, Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario, 1993
Active Collaborations
- Collaborating with Eva Romera (University of Cordoba, Spain), Rosaria Ortega-Ruiz (University of Cordoba, Spain), Dorothy Espelage (University of North Carolina, USA) and others on Decision-making and moral sensitivity in the framework of peer networks and the phenomenon of bullying: A longitudinal study. Spanish National Research Agency, Ministry of Science and Innovation. (2020-2022)
- Collaborating on research with Daniel Graf and Christiane Spiel (University of Vienna, Austria) examining how diverse motives for aggression (rage, revenge, reward, and recreation) are involved in online and offline aggression and bullying.
- Collaborating with Robert Thornberg and colleagues at Linkoping University (Sweden) on research examining moral disengagement as a contributor to bullying and aggression.
- Working with Dr Melissa Black and Prof Sonja Girdler at Curtin University examining how schools can work with neurodiverse young people to improve school connectedness, social inclusion and developmental outcomes.
Awards and Honours
2017-2018
Friends of the Institute Mini-Sabbatical Award, The Kids Research Institute Australia
2015-2017
Cockell Collaboration Award, Raine Medical Research Foundation
2015-2016
Emerging Leaders Program, The Kids Research Institute Australia
2013
BRNet (Bullying Research Network), Invited member.
2011
PREVnet (Promoting Relationship and Eliminating Violence), invited member.
2010
Curtin Student Guild Excellence in Teaching Award (Nominated), Curtin University
2009
Excellence in Teaching Award (Individual Teacher), High Commendation, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University
2009
Lecturer of the Year (2009), national finalist. Lecturer of the Year competition,
unijobs.com.au
2008-2009
Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth New Investigators Network, Member