2. Bullying involves an imbalance of power between the bully and the victim. As illustrated in the examples above, it is defined by aggressive behavior (i.e., behavior that is intentional and mean) that occurs repeatedly over time and within the context of a power imbalance. Bullying involves an imbalance of power between the bully and the victim, is intentionally harmful and occurs repetitively. Other factors play into the formation of bullies, also: not monitoring youth behavior (especially towards other children); children modeling adults’ negative behavior towards others (bullies beget more bullies), children using aggression to demonstrate power or control the environment, and lack of verbal fluency. Similarly, not all bullies play the role of bully their entire time in school. Not all victims of bullying play the role of victim their entire time in school. Susan Swearer in her book, Bullying Prevention and Intervention: Realistic Strategies for Schools, suggests that people adopt a terminology that allows for the fact that students can and do move between the roles of bully & victim.
Regardless of the type of bullying, there are several key roles that typically participate in the behavior. The roles kids play in bullying are not limited to those who bully others and those who are bullied. There are two components in the above definitions of bullying for kids that make bullying unique. Unfortunately there are as many definitions of bullying as there are people talking about it. Is there an easy solution? The child, parents, and school or organization should be part of the solution. Victims of cyber bullying often do not report their victimization and are eight times more likely to carry a weapon to school. Victims of cyber bullying are often also victims of traditional off-line bullying. A 2009 study estimated that at least 20.8% of youth in the US were physically bullied, 53.6% were verbally bullied, 51.4% were socially bullied, and James Webb Farmers of North America 13.6% were cyber bullied at least once over a two-month period. In a 2010 study, 20% of girls and 25% of boys said they were bullied, bullied others, or both in the last month.
In the same study, 90% James Webb Farmers of North America third to fifth grade students said they felt sorry for students who are bullied, but sympathy often does not translate into action. The school can use the same monitoring methods to track progress in bully-prevention as were first used to assess the initial seriousness of the bullying problem (e.g., focus groups, surveys, direct observation, tracking of disciplinary referrals). If you’re a teacher, counselor, advisor or anyone else who works in a professional capacity with students, you need to learn the correct methods for addressing bullying. For the more popular and athletic students, this is a great opportunity for them to feel good about themselves. It takes consistent and united action by everyone — students, school staff, administrators, and parents. Sometimes it can help to talk to other parents you trust. Parents should report bullying to the school, and follow up with a letter that is copied to the school superintendent if their initial inquiry receives no response.
When you are not satisfied with the response from the school… The Unsafe School Policy provides any student who attends a persistently dangerous school, or any student who has been the victim of a violent crime while at school, the opportunity to attend a safe school. First, don’t let yourself become a victim. Leff SS, Paskewich BS, Waasdorp TE, Waanders C, Bevans KB, Jawad AF. Leff SS, Waasdorp TE, Paskewich BS, Gullan RL, Jawad AF, MacEvoy JP, Feinberg BE, Power TJ. Leff SS, Costigan T, Power TJ. Leff SS, Waasdorp TE, Paskewich, BS. In fact, recent research has shown that if you’re bullied as a child or teenager, you might be twice as likely to use mental health services as an adult. Research shows that bullying and harassment in schools increases in late childhood and peaks in early adolescence, specifically during middle school and typically takes place in unstructured settings such as the cafeteria, hallways, and playground during recess. In fact, several shooters reported experiencing long-term and severe bullying and harassment from their peers.