9781422270141

BULLYING

ANGER BULLYING CHRONIC ILLNESS DIVORCE FOOD INSECURITY GRIEF IMMIGRATION SEXUAL ABUSE SOCIAL ISOLATION TEEN PREGNANCY

BULLYING

Hannah L'Etoile

MASON CREST M I A M I

Mason Crest PO Box 221876, Hollywood, FL 33022 (866) MCP-BOOK (toll-free) • www.masoncrest.com

Copyright © 2024 by Mason Crest, an imprint of National Highlights, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the publisher.

First printing 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

ISBN (hardback) 978-1-4222-4797-6 ISBN (series) 978-1-4222-4796-9 ISBN (ebook) 978-1-4222-7014-1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: L'Etoile, Hannah, author. Title: Bullying / Hannah L'Etoile. Description: Hollywood, FL : Mason Crest, 2024. | Series: You are not alone Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2023021051 | ISBN 9781422247976 (hardback) | ISBN 9781422270141 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Bullying--Juvenile literature. Classification: LCC BF637.B85 L47 2024 | DDC 302.34/3--dc23/eng/20230609 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2023021051

Developed and Produced by National Highlights, Inc. Editor: Andrew Luke Production: Crafted Content, LLC (www.craftedcontentllc.com)

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Chapter 1: Bullying Today...................................07 Chapter 2: Is This Bullying?..................................21 Chapter 3: The Effects of Bullying . ....................... 33 Chapter 4: Bullying At Home................................47 Chapter 5: I’m Being Bullied . . . What Can I Do?.....61 Chapter Notes....................................................72 Further Reading.................................................75 Internet Resources . ............................................ 76 Credits & Educational Video Links ........................ 77 Index................................................................. 79 Author Biography...............................................80 KEY ICONS TO LOOK FOR: CONTENTS Words to Understand: These words with their easy-to understand definitions will increase the reader’s understanding of the text while building vocabulary skills. Sidebars: This boxed material within the main text allows readers to build knowledge, gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their perspectives by weaving together additional information to provide realistic and holistic perspectives. Testimonial Videos: Readers can view videos by scanning our QR codes, providing them with personal stories from peers that supplement the text. Text-Dependent Questions: These questions send the reader back to the text for more careful attention to the evidence presented there. Research Projects: Readers are pointed toward areas of further inquiry connected to each chapter. Suggestions are provided for projects that encourage deeper research and analysis.

WORDS TO UNDERSTAND

adolescent: a young person between the ages of 13 and 17 in the process of developing from a child into an adult perpetrator: a person who carries out a harmful, illegal, or immoral act; the bully prevalence: the condition of being widespread in a particular area or at a particular time

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CHAPTER

BULLYING TODAY

What is Bullying? Bullying is currently defined as aggressive, unwanted behavior toward someone that is repeated multiple times 1 . It excludes romantic partners and parental abuse. There is usually also a perceived or observed power imbalance between the perpetrator and the victim for behavior to be seen as bullying. This experience can cause harm to the victim, which may be physical, psychological, social, or educational. There are multiple kinds of bullying to be differentiated. Table 1. Modes of Bullying

Mode

Definition

Example

Face-to-face or firsthand communication between perpetrator and victim Communication through peers or posts on the Internet

At lunchtime, Derek made fun of Jack’s appearance and embarrassed him.

Direct

Derek posted an embarrassing picture of Jack on Instagram.

Indirect

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Table 2. Types of Bullying

Type

Definition

Example

Samantha was walking in the hallway when Bethany tripped her on purpose. Samantha called Bethany names to make fun of her appearance. Samantha spread rumors around school that Bethany was flirting with her boyfriend. Samantha took Bethany’s phone and threw it across the classroom.

Using physical force to antagonize another person

Physical

Using words to hurt another person

Verbal

Attempting to damage another person’s reputation or relationships

Relational

Causing damage to someone else’s personal belongings

Damage to Property

Currently, there are two modes of bullying as well as four types of bullying. The modes include direct and indirect bullying. In direct bullying, the perpetrator and victim communicate directly to each other, such as in face-to-face (FTF) bullying. In indirect bullying, the bully does not directly speak to the victim and may involve third-party peers, such as spreading rumors 1,3 . The current types of bullying are physical, verbal, relational, and damage to property 1,3 . Physical bullying occurs when the perpetrator uses physical force to attack the victim 1 , which can include hitting, tripping, or pushing the victim. Verbal bullying occurs when the perpetrator uses their words to attack

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You Are Not Alone: Bullying

the victim 1,4 . This type often includes calling someone names, threatening harm, and degrading the victim. This can also involve biased language and sexual harassment between two children or adolescents . Relational bullying occurs when the perpetrator intends to damage the reputation or relationships of the victim 1 . Spreading rumors about another person is a common relational example of indirect bullying. Most often verbal, this behavior can also be done by publicly posting negative comments about another person on the Internet or posting a person’s private information or photos without permission from that individual. This action attempts to isolate the victim from their friends and prevent their interaction. The fourth type of bullying is

School is the most common place for kids to face bullying.

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Chapter 1: Bullying Today

damage to property 1 . This could look like the perpetrator taking the belongings of the victim and not returning them, such as a backpack or cell phone. It could go even further, where the perpetrator damages or destroys the victim’s items. Where Does Bullying Happen? Bullying can occur in a variety of contexts 1,3 . One of the most common places is at school. School bullying can include bullying in the hallways and classrooms, but also on buses or other transportation and during after-school educational programs. Often, bullying in school involves multiple students at once, which could mean groups of people bullying one student or groups bullying other groups 3 . Bullying in school has a particularly profound negative effect on all the students and bystanders that are involved in or witness the bullying taking place.

The incidence of cyberbullying has increased dramatically during this century.

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You Are Not Alone: Bullying

While school is one of the most frequent settings for bullying, it can occur in many other situations. Other contexts include the child’s neighborhood, texting, phone calls, and on the Internet by using social media. Bullying that occurs through cell phones and social media is called cyberbullying 3 , which has had a rampant rise over the last two decades. Cyberbullying includes verbal bullying and relational bullying, but does not include physical bullying because of its distant and detached, possibly even anonymous, nature. If bullying can occur in such a wide variety of contexts, we need to discuss when bullying starts to affect these children. When Does Bullying Begin? Research has shown that bullying is far more likely to occur between adolescents in middle school than in high school 5 . This has been seen in research regarding both cyberbullying and FTF bullying and is true for both boys and girls. Younger adolescents

DON’T SUFFER ALONE

In a nationwide survey conducted in 2021, 19% of high school students reported having been bullied in the last year. Of students between the ages of 12 and 18, only 46% reported getting bullied to an adult. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Please report any bullying you experience or observe to a trusted adult.

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Chapter 1: Bullying Today

are most often the ones experiencing bullying and perhaps more preventative efforts should be put forth for this age group. In the United States, 22.7% of children and adolescents between the ages of 6 and 17 reported being bullied, while 6.4% reported having bullied others 6 . Similar to what was discussed above, there was a higher percentage of those who were bullied between the ages of 6 and 11 (24.1%) compared to those who were between 12 and 17 years old (21.1%). As for the perpetrators, between 6 and 11 years old, 7.2% admitted to bullying, which falls to 5.6% for kids between 12 and 17 years old. This evidence shows that bullying is clearly a bigger issue among middle schoolers than among high schoolers, though it is significant for both groups. It can also indicate that those who bully may have multiple targets. So, where does it begin? It’s important to look at why these There are four main types of factors that can make a child more likely to bully another person than others: peer, family, emotional, and school factors 7 . Let’s begin with how peers and one’s status can influence someone to bully another person. Peer factors include the desire to have a higher social status, which means to be more popular 7 . Bullies may believe that if they pick on someone, they will feel like they are better than them. This can also happen between social groups. For example, one group of students may believe that their status as student-athletes makes them superior to those who are not, so they bully others to establish themselves as the dominant social group. Similarly, a child may want to feel more powerful at school when their family hurts them at home. Family factors include how the bullies are treated at home 7 . They may be experiencing abuse or violence from their parents or other family members or may not receive any emotional support from their perpetrators start bullying in the first place. Why Does Bullying Happen?

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You Are Not Alone: Bullying

family. They may use their anger or pain from the treatment they receive at home and take it out on others. Their distress may be one of their main motivating factors for bullying their peers. Emotional factors come from the bully’s own insecure feelings and possibly from having been bullied in the past 7 . Among children, the prevalence of exhibiting bullying behavior toward others was six times higher among perpetrators that had been bullied before and eight times higher among adolescents 6 . Bullies also may not have the skills to understand other people’s emotions, their own emotions, or how to respond in a healthy manner in social situations 7 .

Peer factors such as conflict with a dominant social group can lead to bullying.

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Chapter 1: Bullying Today

One social situation includes school, which encompasses other factors as well. School components include the response of school administrators and faculty to bullying or the behavior of bullies 7 . If the school does not actively try to extinguish these behaviors, they may continue to happen. Other than these specific factors, there may be more parts that are still being theorized.

If schools do not act to stop the behavior, bullying is likely to continue.

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You Are Not Alone: Bullying

Researchers have a few additional ideas to explain the occurrence of bullying. Even with extensive efforts to increase awareness of bullying to prevent it from happening, verbal bullying seems to be the most resistant to these efforts 4 . Researchers theorize that some forms of verbal bullying, such as teasing, are not considered to be bullying by some people, so they don’t find an issue with teasing others. However, the targets of this type of bullying sometimes take it more seriously and feel the negative effects. One explanation is that TV shows and other media have normalized teasing as a friendly interaction, so many children don’t perceive this as out of the ordinary. In addition, the prevalence of bullying between genders has reversed. One recent change is the increase in bullying among young girls 5 . While school is one of the most frequent settings of bullying, it can occur in many other situations. Girls have been increasing levels of achievement in recent decades, such as graduating from both high school and college at higher rates than boys. As girls continue to do so, the expectations accompanying their achievements also increase. This can lead to stress that may give way to taking it out on other girls who may be seen as competition. As the opportunities for achievement continue to balance out between boys and girls, more girls may be targeted for taking those opportunities. As mentioned earlier in the chapter, behavior and conduct problems are common among bullies 6 . The incidence of children with behavior problems being bullies is five times higher than those who don’t have behavior problems. Similarly, the prevalence of adolescents with behavior problems being bullies is four times higher than those without. Not only is the prevalence of perpetrating bullying higher in those with behavior problems, but they also have a low prevalence of being the victims of bullying. Encouragingly, improvements have been made in school systems to decrease the rate of bullying. After

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Chapter 1: Bullying Today

introducing bullying prevention programs into schools, one study found a significant reduction in physical and relational bullying 4 . These results were particularly encouraging because the programs were able to prevent multiple kinds of bullying. The study also found a reduction in verbal bullying, but it wasn’t as pronounced as the decreases in physical and relational bullying. Due to increased efforts around awareness and education about bullying and the serious long-term effects it can have, one study found that face-to-face verbal and physical bullying has had a drastic decline in recent years because of the direct relation to overt bullying 5 . Relational bullying has not had a similar trend, but it is encouraging to see improvements in multiple areas. Hopefully, these programs can be tailored or modified to tackle one of the newest issues in bullying: cyberbullying. How Have the Internet and Social Media Impacted Bullying? The rate of cyberbullying in 2000 was at 10%, and then rose significantly to 16% in 2017 5 . Meanwhile, the rate of other forms of bullying has decreased. For example, FTF bullying was at 20% in 1998 and dropped to 10% in 2017. Within that decrease, verbal bullying was at 23% in 2005 and 9% in 2017, and physical bullying was at 29% in 2005 and 8% in 2017. While it is encouraging to see decreases in these rates, the increase in cyberbullying is still discouraging. However, as technology advances and social media grows, the time spent on these apps increases as well. The new generation of youth has spent significantly higher amounts of time online than previous generations, which may include video games, social media, or any other form of entertainment 5 . This increases their chances of experiencing

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You Are Not Alone: Bullying