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BULLYING, NOT JUST KID’S PLAY
Recent research in the United States is showing that bullying is a common and potentially damaging form of violence among children. Not only does bullying harm both its intended victims and the perpetrators, it also may affect the climate of schools and, indirectly, the ability of all students to learn to the best of their abilities. Moreover, the link between bullying and later delinquent and criminal behavior cannot be ignored. Adopting a comprehensive approach to reduce bullying at school can change students' behaviors and attitudes reduce other antisocial behaviors, and increase teachers' willingness to intervene is necessary to reduce bullying incidents in our school. Its high prevalence among children has harmful and frequently enduring effects on victims, and its chilling effects on school climate are significant reasons for prevention and early intervention efforts in schools and communities.
The phenomenon of bullying deserves special attention by educators, parents, law enforcement and children concerned with violence prevention for two significant reasons. First, the prevalence of bullying and the harm that it causes are seriously underestimated by many children and adults. It is critical that any violence prevention strategy work to raise the awareness of children, school staff, and parents regarding the link between bullying and other violent behaviors. Second, the nature of bullying does not necessarily lend itself to the same interventions that may effectively reduce other types of conflict among children. Because it involves harassment by powerful children against children with less power (rather than a conflict between peers of relatively equal status), common conflict resolution strategies such as mediation may not be effective.
What is bullying?
Bullying among children is understood as repeated, negative acts committed by one or more children against another. These negative acts may be physical or verbal in nature -- for example, hitting or kicking, teasing or taunting -- or they may involve indirect actions such as manipulating friendships or purposely excluding other children from activities.
Bullying in the U.S.
Although there have been few studies of the prevalence of bullying among American schoolchildren, available data suggest that bullying is quite common in U.S. schools. In a study of 207 junior high and high school students from small Midwestern towns, 88 percent reported having observed bullying, and 77 percent indicated that they had been victims of bullying during their school careers.1 A study of 6,500 students in fourth to sixth grades in the rural South indicated that 1 in 4 students had been bullied with some regularity within the past 3 months and that 1 in 10 had been bullied at least once a week. Approximately one in five children admitted that they had bullied another child with some regularity in the previous 3 months.2 These figures are consistent with estimates of several other researchers. Furthermore, contrary to popular belief, bullying occurs more frequently on school grounds than on the way to and from school.3
Consequences of Bullying
Studies of bullying suggest that there are short- and long-term consequences for both the perpetrators and victims of bullying. Students who are chronic victims of bullying experience more physical and psychological problems than their peers who are not harassed by other children and they tend not to grow out of the role of victim. Studies also suggest that chronically victimized students may as adults are at an increased risk for depression, poor self-esteem, and other mental health problems, including schizophrenia.
It is not only victims who are at risk for short- and long-term problems; bullies also are at increased risk for negative outcomes. One researcher found that those elementary students who were bullies attended school less frequently and were more likely to drop out than other students. Several studies suggest that bullying in early childhood may be a critical risk factor for the development of future problems with violence and delinquency. For example, research found that in addition to threatening other children, bullies were several times more likely than their non-bullying peers to commit antisocial acts, including vandalism, fighting, theft, drunkenness, and truancy, and to have an arrest by young adulthood.
Bullying is an issued that must be addressed by the entire community. Its reach is far beyond the child and their bully and what has in the past been perceived as “kids playing around”. The consequences can be severe, even leading to fatal circumstances. Educate yourselves and communicate with your children on the dangers of bullying.
Web articles on bullying:
http://www.rrstar.com/homepage/x1048106168
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/MindMoodNews/story?id=7228335&page=1
http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/04/mom_says_springfield_boy_11_wh.html?category=Deaths+category=Education+category=Springfield
(http://ojjdp.ncjrs.org//jjbulletin/9804/bullying2.html)
1. J.H. Hoover, R. Oliver, and R.J. Hazler, "Bullying: Perceptions of adolescent victims in Midwestern USA," School Psychology International 13:5-16,1992.
2. S.P. Limber, P. Cunningham, V. Florx, J. Ivey, M. Nation, S. Chai, and G. Melton, "Bullying among school children: Preliminary findings from a school-based intervention program," paper presented at the Fifth International Family Violence Research Conference, Durham, NH, June/July 1997.
3. S.P. Limber et al., June/July 1997; D. Olweus, "Victimization by peers: Antecedents and long-term outcomes," in Social Withdrawal, Inhibitions, and Shyness, edited by K.H. Rubin and J.B. Asendorf, Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum, 1993, pp. 315-341; I. Rivers and P.K. Smith, "Types of bullying behavior and their correlates," Aggressive Behavior 20:259-368, 1994; I. Whitney and P.K. Smith, "A survey of the nature and extent of bullying in junior/middle and secondary schools," Educational Research 35:3-25, 1993.
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