Bullying

Here's a early college paper I wrote for General Psychology on bullying.


“Between 15-25% of U.S. students are bullied with some frequency ("sometimes or more often") while 15-20% report that they bully others with some frequency.(stopbullingnow)” Student are bullied everyday no matter where they are. It is something that today’s children cannot escape even in the comfort of their own homes. In this paper I will cover what is bullying, why do children bully, effects of bullying psychology and how we can prevent or help a child that is being or has been bullied.

Therefore, what is bullying? The definition is "Bullying is when a person or group repeatedly tries to harm someone. Sometimes it involves direct attacks such as hitting, name calling, teasing, or taunting. Sometimes it is indirect, such as spreading rumors or trying to make others reject someone.( Young, A., Hardy, V., Hamilton, C., Biernesser, K., Sun, L., & Niebergall, S. 2009)” Bullying is simply the act of someone who is repeatedly teased or abused over time by someone. Bulling itself comes in various forms such as “physical, verbal, nonverbal or emotional, cyber, rumors, sexual, racial, and threats. (Stop bullying now)(Olweus)”

Even though these are various types of bullying, what are the definitions for these types of bullying? Physical bullying is kicking, punching, or getting beat up. Verbal bullying would be name calling, or degrading statements, such as you’re stupid, retarded, ugly and nerd. Nonverbal or emotional bullying is “intimidating someone through gestures or social exclusion (Stop bulling now)” Cyber bullying is when a student texts or through internet degrades the student publicly on their Face book, Twitter page or sends threatening texts. Rumor bullying mostly is when a student spreads a untrue story about the person they are bullying.
Sexual bullying is referred to as “using sexual words to put someone down (like Slut), words referring to ones sexuality(such as calling someone gay), threats or jokes about rape, touching in away to make one feel uncomfortable, and forcing someone to act in a sexual way. (Womankind worldwide)” Racial bullying would be when you’re making degrading words (such as the “N” word) or statements about ones race. Threat bullying is when one threatens a student’s reputation or life.

Even though these are the types of bullying, what would lead a child to bully another student? “Children and adolescents who bully thrive on controlling or dominating others. They have often been the victims of physical abuse or bullying themselves. Bullies may also be depressed, angry or upset about events at school or at home. Children targeted by bullies also tend to fit a particular profile. Bullies often choose children who are passive, easily intimidated, or have few friends. Victims may also be smaller or younger, and have a harder time defending themselves. (AACAP)”

Likewise there have been cases, “where the parent rewards the student for the act, because the parent does not like either the student or the parents of the student. (Olweus)” As most children in that situation would typically go after the student to get the toy or money that they wanted. So it’s not always the child just doing it to do it. It’s them listening to their parents, because they were told a good and bad consequence by the parent.

As a result of bullying, there are psychological effects on the child being bullied and the bully. The student who is bullied is more likely to experience depression, low-self esteem, thoughts of suicide, health problems from the stress of being bullied, thoughts of killing the bully and or harming others in the process, and anxiety issues form. “In a longitudinal study, children who had been physically abused were more likely than children who had not been abused to have more significant impairments in functioning at ages 15 and 21, including depression and other psychiatric disorders, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts (Silverman, Reinherz, & Giaconia,1996).(Nickerson 2009)”


In a study about victimization and suicidal behavior it was found that “within a 12-month period, 20.5% to 29% of adolescents report having considered suicide (Brener, Krug, & Simon, 2000; Kandel, Raveis, & Davies, 1991), 15.7% to 19% have made a plan, and 7.7% to 8.7% have attempted suicide(Brener et al., 2000)(Nickerson 2009).” This just comes from a student who has been bullied so much to where it makes there life look worthless to them. Also the victimization in this part of the study was only verbal abuse. No physical abuse was taken by any child.

Now what are the psychological effects on the bully? The bully usually is the one who is “impulsive, has anger issues, view violence as a positive thing, and usually have been bullied and sees it as ok(Stop Bullying Now)”. Probably the best example of this would be the shooting of Columbine High School. Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold both had been reported by students that they were picked on. They were not only picked on but the bullies themselves when it happened. Eric Harris had one incident of bullying “There was one incident in Eric’s senior year in which he was pushed into lockers(psychology today)”

A student named Brooks Brown said "Every time someone slammed them against a locker and threw a bottle at them, I think they'd go back to Eric or Dylan's house and plot a little more--at first as a goof, but more and more seriously over time. (Time magazine)” They may have been bullied but these students also bullied other kids. They “bragged in diaries about picking on freshmen and "fags."(USA Today)” They also in many TV reports said they hated people, and thought of themselves as gods.

As they took their revenge on the school, they who once were the bullied now became the bully. Killing and wounding students and faculty who did nothing to them and not just "These are not ordinary kids who played too many video games. These are not ordinary kids who just wanted to be famous. These are simply not ordinary kids. These are kids with serious psychological problems. (USA Today)"
Even though these are the biggest examples and the grimmest, it’s the worst that bullying can send a student to do these actions. There are many signs that a child is getting bullied, “You might notice your child acting differently or seeming anxious, or not eating, sleeping well, or doing the things that he or she usually enjoys. When kids seem moodier or more easily upset than usual, or when they start avoiding certain situations, like taking the bus to school, it may be because of a bully. (Kids Health)”

As well as these signs there other indicators of being bullied. The child can have unexplained bruises or cuts. They suddenly do not like school, start skipping, or even getting random illness so they don’t have to go. Also there will be a drop in the student’s grades that is being bullied because of absence or they just will not do the work to make a point.

One way of prevention for bullying is looking for these signs but also talking with the child or student who is bullied. “If you suspect that a child may be the victim of bullying ask him or her to tell you what's going on. You can help by providing lots of opportunities to talk with you in an open and honest way. It's also important to respond in a positive and accepting manner. Let the child know it's not his or her fault, and that he or she did the right thing by telling you.
Other specific suggestions include the following: Ask your child what he or she thinks should be done. What's already been tried? What worked and what didn't? Seek help from your child's teacher or the school guidance counselor. Most bullying occurs on playgrounds, in lunchrooms, and bathrooms, on school buses or in unsupervised halls. Ask the school administrators to find out about programs other schools and communities have used to help combat bullying, such as peer mediation, conflict resolution, and anger management training, and increased adult supervision.

Also, don't encourage your child to fight back. Instead, suggest that he or she try walking away to avoid the bully, or that they seek help from a teacher, coach, or other adult. Help your child practice what to say to the bully so he or she will be prepared the next time. Help your child practice being assertive. The simple act of insisting that the bully leave him alone may have a surprising effect. Explain to your child that the bully's true goal is to get a response.

As well as, encourage your child to be with friends when traveling back and forth from school, during shopping trips, or on other outings. Bullies are less likely to pick on a child in a group. (AACAP)” Also make sure that you make yourself available and caring for the student who comes and talks to you about the bully problem. Don’t take it lightly the child will just see it as another person who does not care about there being and can lead to more personal and permanent options.

Also, if you as a student feel as if you are being bullied, do take the following actions. Tell your parents or other trusted adults. They can help stop the bullying. If you are bullied at school, tell your teacher, school counselor, or principal. Don't fight back. Don't try to bully those who bully you. Try not to show anger or fear to them it will only feed their fire.

In addition, “Calmly tell the student to stop or say nothing and then walk away. Use humor, if this is easy for you to do. For example, if a student makes fun of our clothing, laugh and say, “Yeah, I think this shirt is kind of funny-looking, too.” Try to avoid situations in which bullying is likely to happen. You might want to avoid areas of the school where there are not many students or teachers around. Make sure you aren't alone in the bathroom or locker room. Sit near the front of the bus. Don't bring expensive things or lots of money to school. Sit with a group of friends at lunch. Take a different route through hallways or walk with friends or a teacher to your classes.(Stop Bullying Now)”

Though, if you suspect that a child is bullying, it is important that they seek or get help as soon as possible. “Without intervention, bullying can lead to serious academic, social, emotional and legal difficulties. Talk to your child's pediatrician, teacher, principal, school counselor, or family physician. If the bullying continues, a comprehensive evaluation by a child and adolescent psychiatrist or other mental health professional should be arranged. The evaluation can help you and your child understand what is causing the bullying, and help you develop a plan to stop the destructive behavior. (AACAP)”

Finally, bullying is something that every kid goes through, but they don’t have too. If we watch for the signs and teach our children not to bully many kids will be happy and many rates will be lowered. It’s something that we all have to work together on in home and in school settings. Kids don’t have to put up with the psychological part of bullying if we just take action and stop it in its early stages instead of the stage where suicide and school shootings happen.

I hoped you enjoy I am sorry for it all being spaced out it was all one huge blob and it just was no readable. :D Here are my sources if you would like more information on bullying.

1. American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Bullying. (2008). Bullyingv, 80. Retrieved from http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/bullying
2. Langman, P. (2009, MAY 20). Columbine, bullying, and the mind of eric harris. Retrieved from http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/keeping-kids-safe/200905/columbine-bullying-and-the-mind-eric-harris
3. NEW, M. (2007, June). Helping kids deal with bullies. Retrieved from http://kidshealth.org/parent/emotions/behavior/bullies.html#
4. Nickerson, A., & Slater, E. (2009). School and Community Violence and Victimization as Predictors of Adolescent Suicidal Behavior. The School Psychology Review, 38(2), 218-32. Retrieved April 14, 2010, from Education Full Text database.
5. Olswus, D. (2001). What is Bullying? . Retrieved from http://www.olweus.org/public/bullying.page
6. Pooly, E, Could, J, Woodbury, R, Denver, R, & Harrington, M. (1999). Eric harris and dylan klebold: portrait of a deadly bond. Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold: Portrait Of A Deadly Bond , Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,990917,00.html#ixzz0lgD8pHEp
7. Pytel, B. (2006, Augest 17). Long-term effects of bullying. Retrieved from http://educationalissues.suite101.com/article.cfm/long_term_effects_of_bullying
8. All about Bullying. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/adults/tip-sheets/tip-sheet-08.aspx
9. Toppo, G. (2009, April 14). 10 years later, the real story behind columbine. Retrieved from http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-04-13-columbine-myths_N.htm
10. Women kindworld wide, Initials. (2010). Definition of sexual bullying. Retrieved from http://www.womankind.org.uk/sexual-bullying-definition.html
11. Young, A., Hardy, V., Hamilton, C., Biernesser, K., Sun, L., & Niebergall, S. (2009). Empowering Students Using Data to Transform a Bullying Prevention and Intervention Program. Professional School Counseling, 12(6), 413-20. Retrieved April 14, 2010, from Education Full Text database.