Bullying Behaviour

12 Key excerpts on "Bullying Behaviour"

• 

  eBook - PDF

  Bullying

  Implications for the Classroom

  • Gary D. Phye(Author)
  • 2004(Publication Date)
  • Academic Press

    (Publisher)

  They claim that bullying is ‘‘a systematic abuse of power’’ (p. 2). This defi-nition incorporates the repetitive nature or bullying similar to Olweus’s (1993) explanation. In addition, it implies an imbalance of power within the interaction. That is, the victim cannot defend him or herself easily for various reasons such as being outnumbered or being physically inferior. This definition also implies that others are obligated to intervene if the rights of the victim are taken into consideration (Smith & Brain, 2000). According to Crick and Dodge (1999), this definition is too vague and is vulnerable to encompassing too many interactions that should not necessarily fall into the bullying category. Most definitions of bullying categorize it as a subset of aggressive behav-ior that involves an intention to hurt another person (Camodeca et al . 2003; Olweus, 1978; Rivers & Smith, 1994; Smith & Thompson, 1991). This negative intentional behavior can be manifested in a variety of ways. Not only can it be displayed physically, but it also can be subtle and elusive. As indicated by Rivers and Smith (1994), verbally aggressive notes can be passed in the classroom without teachers even being aware that bullying is taking place. Most recently, bullying has been labeled as a form of terrorism in that it involves an ‘‘unprovoked attack’’ with the intention to cause harm on the victim (Ross, 2002). One narrow definition of bullying involves physical harassment (Ma, 2001). This is the most common view of bullying. McCudden (2001) notes that many children believe that if they have not physically touched another person, they have not bullied that person. Even some educators have indi-cated that various verbal harassment should not be considered bullying. Many adults (including educators) consider most verbal bullying as ‘‘normal’’ and ‘‘harmless’’ (Hazler, 1992).

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book
• 

  eBook - PDF

  Emotional Health and Well-Being

  A Practical Guide for Schools

  • Helen Cowie, Chrissy Boardman, Judith Dawkins, Dawn Jennifer(Authors)
  • 2004(Publication Date)
  • SAGE Publications Ltd

    (Publisher)

  2.4 Bullying Behaviours ‘I pound the pillow at night because I have no-one to talk to.’ (Laura, a 12-year-old bullied pupil) ‘Most people don’t tell anyone when they are being bullied. They try to keep quiet. It’s their reputation’. (James, a 13-year-old bystander) ‘They (the bullies) say, “If you tell, you’re going to get twice the beating’’ … ’ (Ben, a 13-year-old bullied pupil) WHAT BEHAVIOURS ARE WE TALKING ABOUT? A substantial proportion of school pupils are involved in bully–victim rela-tionships; in these, one or more bullies deliberately hurt another peer, the victim, over a period of time, and the victim is not able to defend him- or her-self. Olweus (1999, p. 12) views bullying as a subcategory of aggression or aggressive behaviour with ‘certain special characteristics such as repetitiveness and an asymmetric power relationship’ (meaning that the victim is unable to defend him- or herself). Bullying is particularly unpleasant since it is directed at vulnerable people who are usually unable to defend themselves. Bullied children may be outnumbered, or be younger, weaker or simply less confident. Some bullying is carried out by physical means, for example, hitting, kicking and pushing; but a great deal is expressed without violence, for example, bul-lying with words and gestures, and through deliberate social exclusion. The commonest type of bullying (Table 2.4.1) is name-calling, followed by being hit, threatened or having rumours spread about one. Bullying starts young, with around 27 per cent of primary school children and 10 per cent of secondary school pupils reporting that they are being bullied ‘sometimes or more frequently’ at any given time. So far as reporting taking part in bullying 92 CHAPTER 2.4 others is concerned, around 12 per cent of primary school pupils and 6 per cent of secondary pupils admit to bullying others ‘sometimes or more fre-quently’ (Smith, 1999).

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book
• 

  eBook - PDF

  Rethinking School Bullying

  Towards an Integrated Model

  • Roz Dixon, Peter K. Smith(Authors)
  • 2011(Publication Date)
  • Cambridge University Press

    (Publisher)

  22 1 Bullying in schools: the research background Peter K. Smith Bullying in school has become a topic of international concern over the last 10–20 years. Starting with research in Scandinavia, Japan and the UK, there is now active research in most European countries, in Australia and New Zealand, Canada and the USA, and Japan and South Korea (Jimerson et al., 2010; Smith et al., 1999). This chapter discusses what we mean by ‘bullying’; summarises some recent research findings on the nature of bullying; discusses the results of large-scale, school- based interventions; and raises issues for future research and practice. Definitions of bullying What do we mean by bullying? Although there is no universally agreed definition, there is an emerging consensus in the western research tradi- tion that bullying refers to repeated aggressive acts against someone who cannot easily defend themselves (see Olweus, 1999; Ross, 2002). A simi- lar definition, though perhaps with broader connotations, is that bullying is a ‘systematic abuse of power’ (Rigby, 2002; Smith and Sharp, 1994). Although the two criteria of repetition, and power imbalance, are not universally accepted, they are now widely used. Bullying, by its nature, is likely to have particular characteristics (such as fear of telling by the victim), and particular outcomes (such as development of low self-esteem, and depression, in the victim). The relative defencelessness of the victim implies an obligation on others to intervene, if we take the democratic rights of the victim seriously. Olweus (1993) has argued that it is a ‘fundamental democratic right’ not to be bullied. The increase in international concern about school bullying, which has expanded rapidly over the last 25 years, appears to reflect an increase in concern for rights issues throughout the twentieth century, which is continuing (Greene, 2006).

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book
• 

  eBook - PDF

  Helping Your Socially Vulnerable Child

  • Engler, Linda B., Eisen, Andrew R.(Authors)
  • 2007(Publication Date)
  • New Harbinger Publications

    (Publisher)

  These statistics are indeed alarming considering that bully- ing behaviors have both short- and long-term consequences for all involved parties. For example, victims of persistent bullying are more likely to experience a wide range of social, emotional, and academic difficulties, including the following: Anxiety, worry, and somatic complaints Sadness, social withdrawal, depression, suicidal thoughts or attempts Concentration difficulties, academic failure, or school refusal Anger, resentment, or explosive outbursts Physical injuries Confusion, insecurity, and low self-esteem Long-term studies suggest that many of these problems persist into young adulthood, especially anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem (Olweus 1993). Understanding Bullying Behavior 71 Bullies have been found to have their share of later problems as well. For example, when bullies are allowed to engage in aggressive behaviors without interventions from adults, vandalism, shoplifting, truancy, and substance abuse become all the more likely when they are older. In fact, one long-term study showed that 40 percent of school-age bullies were convicted of three or more criminal offenses by age twenty-four (Olweus 1995). Bullying is not something that should be taken lightly. It can start early and, if allowed to continue, can have devastating effects on young people. Many of us have been bullied at one time or another. And of course, bullying is not limited to the school grounds, nor does it necessarily cease with adulthood. Bullying occurs in work and family settings as well, and it can take the form of subtle nega- tive comments or actions. Bullying behaviors diminish our self-worth, and they can create discomfort or dread whenever we think about or interact with the bullying individual. The problem, however, is that most people have their own (often inaccurate) idea of what constitutes bullying behavior.

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book
• 

  eBook - PDF

  Bully Blocking

  Six Secrets to Help Children Deal with Teasing and Bullying

  • Evelyn M. Field(Author)
  • 2007(Publication Date)
  • Jessica Kingsley Publishers

    (Publisher)

  But even if a child is friendly and real, some others may still bully him or her. The result is that many children will arrive at school each day feeling scared, frustrated and powerless. And sadly, the impact of bullying boomerangs back on the bully, who also suffers. Bullying in school has always existed, and many regard it as a ‘part of life’. But our community has received a wake-up call in the form of the number of suicides, violent attacks and murders that bullying creates. Bullying is a symptom of a dysfunctional social system. While the focus of this book is students bullying students, bullying also occurs between students, teachers, parents and the school community, creating combinations such as parents bullying teachers, teachers bullying students, and so on. Here are a few facts about bullying: · Bullying involves psychological, emotional, social or physical abuse. · The crucial feature is perception: the target feels powerless. · The critical issue is the extent of the damage done to the target. · About one in five students is bullied regularly, and around one in five bully regularly. · A bully may or may not intend to hurt. Where does bullying occur? · In any school, poor or wealthy, private or state, co-educational or single-sex, small or large, religious or non-religious, conservative, traditional or progressive, day or boarding schools. · At school: in the classroom, the playground, canteen, toilets, lockers, sporting facilities, change rooms, isolated corridors, school camp. · Outside school: travelling to and from school, at after-school care programmes, playgrounds, shopping centres, discos. 16 / BULLY BLOCKING · In cyberspace: text messages, emails, Internet chat rooms and websites, bulletin boards, digital photographs. Types of bullying There are four main types of bullying: teasing, exclusion, physical bullying and harassment. 1. Teasing Teasing is verbal violence. It is the most dangerous and long-lasting form of bullying.

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book
• 

  eBook - PDF

  International Perspectives on Cyberbullying

  • Marko Nikolic(Author)
  • 2019(Publication Date)
  • Society Publishing

    (Publisher)

  Despite the limitations and challenges International Perspectives on Cyberbullying 32 to impose traditional bullying criteria in a cyber setting, efforts to define cyberbullying to date have largely centred on this approach. Finally, the way in which we label and define problematic cyber-based behaviour has real implications for protecting mental health. Due to the fact that there is potential for wide public access to online content, a single cyberbullying incident could have a serious and lasting harmful effect on the victimised person. Therefore, refining the definition and conceptualisation of cyber-based aggression could have serious implications for protecting mental health, as no longer would a young person have to endure multiple episodes of victimization before the behaviour could be recognised as cyberbullying. By removing the component of repetition from the conceptualisation of cyber aggression, we would be recognising the potential for one single act to cause psychological harm to a targeted person. HOW WE HAVE DEFINED CYBERBULLYING THUS FAR? Offering one of the earliest definitions, Belsey [21] defined cyberbullying as “…the use of information and communication technologies to support deliberate, repeated, and hostile behaviour by an individual or group, that is intended to harm others”. Applying the existing criteria regarding traditional bullying, and alluding to the potential power imbalance, Smith and colleagues [22] later defined cyberbullying as an “…aggressive intentional act carried out by a group or individual, using electronic forms of contact, repeatedly and over time against a victim who cannot easily defend him or herself” (p. 376).

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book
• 

  No longer available |Learn more

  Health and Wellbeing in Childhood

  • Susanne Garvis, Donna Pendergast(Authors)
  • 2014(Publication Date)
  • Cambridge University Press

    (Publisher)

  287 Bullying and socio- emotional wellbeing Cathrine Neilsen-Hewett and Kay Bussey Chapter 20 Applications 288 Introduction Research within Australia and around the world underscores the short- and long- term negative effects of bullying on children’s socio-emotional health and wellbeing. While there has been a significant increase in the number of studies conducted with upper primary and secondary students, comparatively fewer studies have focused on the prior-to-school and early-school contexts. The few studies that have examined the impact of bullying in the early years underscore its negative effects, with victims and bullies exhibiting psycho-social maladjustment and psycho-somatic problems simi- lar to outcomes reported with older samples (see Neilsen-Hewett & Bussey, 2012). Bullying poses a significant risk to children’s socio-emotional wellbeing and mental health. A growing awareness of how bullying manifests itself in early peer contexts is therefore critical for the development of effective preventative anti-bullying initia- tives. The goal of this chapter is to provide a synthesis of this research, including an overview of the causes and correlates of bullying and its effects on children’s socio- emotional wellbeing in the early years. Bullying typically refers to physical or psychological aggressive behaviours that intentionally cause hurt or harm to another child, are repeated over time, evolve from a position of power and frequently are used to establish dominance within the peer group (Olweus, 1993). Direct bullying involves face-to-face encounters between the bully and the victim. This includes physical aggression such as punching, shoving or breaking of belongings where a physically larger and stronger child perpetrates the behaviour over a less physically powerful peer. Direct bullying also includes direct verbal aggression such as name-calling.

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book
• 

  eBook - ePub

  Bullying

  Effective Strategies for Long-term Change

  • Tiny Arora, Sonia Sharp, David Thompson(Authors)
  • 2005(Publication Date)
  • Routledge

    (Publisher)

  The behaviours associated with bullying can be seen from a very early age. However, these can be termed bullying only when children have reached a certain level of awareness and understanding. Many of the ways of reducing bullying depend on the children being aware that what they are doing is called bullying, and that it is not an acceptable way to behave because of its consequences for the victims and the other children in the group. Some researchers suggest that bullying can be conceptualised as ‘a special form of aggression, which is social in its nature’ (Bjørkqvist, Ekman and Lagerspetz 1982: 23). This means that the relationship between bullying and aggression needs to be examined. Bullying is mostly a proactive form of aggressive behaviour, with concepts such as intention, motivation, punishment and reward all relevant factors in this complex process. It not only hurts the victim, but also restricts the development and life-chances of the bully by providing a simple and often effective way of attaining a limited social status in a dependent group of classmates (Arsenio and Lemerise 2001). The study of dominance provides us with further clues about the motivation and rewards which are associated with bullying. Finally, research into how children learn prosocial and moral behaviour is a pertinent one for considering how to avoid creating situations in which bullying is rife. This is exemplified by the research of Warden and Christie (1997) and Christie and Warden (1997).

  The early emergence of Bullying Behaviours

  Imagine two young babies sitting next to each other, a girl and a boy. The boy has a rattle and is shaking it vigorously, with obvious delight. The girl watches him intently for a few seconds, then snatches the rattle from her companion, who starts to whimper. The perpetrator smiles, waves the rattle and hits the unfortunate victim, who by now is crying piteously. An adult intervenes and says to the girl: ‘you bully!’. It will not surprise the audience to see that she looks unconcerned and continues to shriek with pleasure.

  Not many people would agree that bullying had taken place on this occasion – yet someone forcefully took a possession, hurt another child, showed pleasure at the child’s reaction and unconcern when told off. In older children, all of these behaviours would be typical of a bullying situation. People would argue though that in this case, the baby did not know that she should not take the rattle, did not realise that her actions were the cause of distress, had no intention to hurt and was not aware of the other’s feelings. So the emergence of bullying is related to the way children learn to express themselves and learn to empathise with each other as members of the same social group. The above behaviour could be called bullying only if there is an intention to hurt or upset, if the perpetrator has an awareness of cause and effect, an understanding of social norms and rules and an ability to empathise with others’ feelings. In short, a certain level of development of thought, as well as social and emotional development, is required to bully. These developments happen quite early in life for most children. By the time they have reached the age of 4 (i.e. the age at which they normally enter school in the UK), they show some of the behaviours commonly associated with bullying, as well as the awareness specified above. Hatch (1987) found that children aged 4 to 6 achieved social power in three main ways: self-promotion, putdowns and dominating others through ordering, threats and physical intimidation. It is not certain to what extent the children understood any hurt they caused, but at this age they were aware of the rules of ‘no aggression’, and the effects of put-downs, threats and violence. The possible lack of awareness of hurt caused to others could be a vital factor in the understanding of bullying and in interventions to reduce bullying (Pikas 1989; Sullivan 2000).

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book
• 

  eBook - PDF

  Managing Workplace Bullying

  How to Identify, Respond to and Manage Bullying Behaviour in the Workplace

  • A. Oade(Author)
  • 2009(Publication Date)
  • Palgrave Macmillan

    (Publisher)

  BEHAVIORS FREQUENTLY USED BY BULLIES So far we have been examining what workplace bullying is and describing the underlying intent and motivation of the workplace bully. Let’s now look at the range of behaviors that workplace bullies employ. There are many, many behaviors which, given the definition of workplace bullying presented above, fit the bill. Remember that the measure of whether a particular behavior does or does not consti- tute an example of workplace bullying lies with the motivation of the bully in employing that behavior. It is important here to make a dis- tinction between isolated instances – justifiable or unjustifiable – of one colleague being angry with another colleague and the systematic, ongoing, personalized assault that is workplace bullying. Consider the following categories of behavioral tactics often employed by people using bullying behavior at work, some of which are adapted from work done by the University of Ballarat, Australia: Verbal Bullying Tactics Repeatedly calling a colleague by an insulting name – or repeatedly using a nickname they find offensive or dislike – to refer to them either behind their back, to their face or both. Talking about a colleague’s performance, character or conduct behind their back for the purpose of discrediting them in the eyes of their colleagues. Making verbally abusive comments or remarks about a colleague either in their earshot or behind their back. Repeatedly using verbal aggression, shouting or swearing when speaking with a colleague. Identifying a colleague’s mistake, discussing it in public and over- stating their error for the purpose of discrediting them. Deliberately choosing to reprimand, put down or insult a colleague in front of their coworkers. Nonverbal Bullying Tactics Using nonverbal signals that denote disapproval or contempt either for a colleague’s presence or for their verbal input, such as rolling

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book
• 

  eBook - PDF

  Managing with Mindfulness

  Connecting with Students in the 21st Century

  • Tony Yeigh(Author)
  • 2020(Publication Date)
  • Cambridge University Press

    (Publisher)

  Figure 7.1 Bullying in Australian schools Source: Fell, 2019, used by permission Types of bullying and how they impact on learning Teachers and school leaders need to recognise that bullying is not a one-dimensional phenomenon. Rather, it has many faces that sometimes overlap and at other times appear distinct. Response Ability (2017) describes the essence of bullying as a power imbalance, where one person (the bully) has greater power of some sort than the person being bullied, and the bully uses this power to repeatedly dominate and victimise the other person. Schools need to control bullying because the purpose and intention of bullying is to undermine and further disempower the person being bullied, which causes distress, fear, anxiety and even anger in the victim, and often produces a sense of helplessness in them that interferes with their ability to connect with their peers, their school and their learning. In this regard, bullying is a fundamental duty-of-care issue, because it affects the most basic ability of students to engage meaningfully with their education. This, in turn, can impact negatively on their ability to experience lifelong learning. Longitudinal studies support this perspective. The Australian Temperament Project (ATP, see Vassallo, Sanson, & Olsson, 2014) has shown that people who were bullied in early adolescence suffer depression significantly more in early adulthood, while people who were bullies during early adolescence engage more in criminal activities in early adulthood. In both cases, the ability to experience lifelong learning, at least in terms of positive civic engagement, is undermined. Importantly, the strongest mitigating factor in relation to these outcomes is the development of positive social skills, as explored in Chapters 2, 5 and 6.

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book
• 

  eBook - PDF

  Bullied Teacher: Bullied Student

  How to recognize the bullying culture in your school and what to do about it

  • Les Parsons(Author)
  • 2014(Publication Date)
  • Pembroke

    (Publisher)

  1 The Student: Bullied and Bullying Many people operate under the mistaken assumption that anti-bullying pro-grams in schools are designed solely to save targets from the attentions of bullies. But these programs are also meant to save student bullies from themselves, to keep them from developing the bigoted personalities and aggression that may lead to personal unhappiness and even criminal behavior. We also want to attend to the corrosive effects of student–student bullying on witnesses to the behavior. Unless they have help understanding and dealing with the sense of impotence they feel in the presence of disabling threat, the nagging guilt and shame that their inaction breeds, and the vicarious thrill some experience as they overtly or covertly support the bully, witnesses to bullying will have difficulty growing into confident, positive, independent, and prosocial individuals. Bullying also strikes at the heart of education. Learning and positive self-esteem go hand in hand: cognitive and affective behaviors are two sides to the same coin. If stu-dents are insecure, fearful, or uncertain, those feelings interfere with their learning. Bullying Profiles What kinds of students bully other students? The intense scrutiny afforded bully-ing over the past decade is filling in a complex, perplexing, and often surprising picture of the student bullying dynamic. Students are compelled to bully for a number of reasons. Control Disorder Although most bullying is a learned behavior, some students are born with or develop a behavioral control disorder. These children feel at odds with a hostile world: they are emotional raw nerves, misreading and misunderstanding any kind of interaction with others and unable to control their own often violent impulses. Since they are reacting to perceived threats and provocation, they feel entirely justified in their behavior. Children suffering from a control disorder will appear tough and hostile.

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book
• 

  eBook - PDF

  Cyber Bullying

  Protecting Kids and Adults from Online Bullies

  • Samuel C. McQuade III, James P. Colt, Nancy Meyer(Authors)
  • 2009(Publication Date)
  • Praeger

    (Publisher)

  Myth #9: Bullying and conflict mean the same thing. Truth: Bullying involves a perpetrator holding power over and dominating a victim in some way usually over an extended period of time. Conflict however, involves mutual disagreements. Whereas two or more parties involved in conflicts may perceive themselves as being “the victim” who needs to stand up for their rights, bullies originate and perpetuate one-way aggression directed toward the victim(s). 36 Cyber Bullying A female from western New York described how her “high school was a hell because of cyber bullying.” She explained that another student in her class began repeatedly picking on her in chat rooms for no apparent reason. She and her parents complained to the school, and also went to the police but nothing was done about it. She was told to ignore it. However, the damage had been done. No one seemed to like her anymore, and everyone seemed to be talking behind her back. Her hopes for the future were dashed and she no longer desires to attend college despite having good grades. In this case, the victim was not “fighting” with the other student or having a disagreement over something. The cyber bully was deliberately, repeatedly, and publicly exercising power over the victim. The sense of power was heightened and shared as other students piled on in the public shaming. Myth #10: Bullying affects only a small number of students. Truth: Bullying affects a large number of students as victims or witnesses in direct or indirect ways. Spin-off effects of bullying can disrupt families, school environments, neighborhoods, and even entire communities. A teenager from St. Petersburg, Florida defined cyber bullying as “terror- izing kids in his class.” Specifically, a 15-year-old boy made serious threats online to kill other students and teachers.

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book