WHY YOU SHOULD WORRY ABOUT THE IMPACT OF BULLYING ON STUDENTS

Photo by Mikhail Nilov: https://www.pexels.com/photo/children-finger-pointing-at-a-boy-sitting-on-a-wooden-floor-7929446/

Bullying has recently become a hot topic, running the world for many years. Bullying is when someone or a group of people is frequently and purposefully targeted with words or acts to upset them or put their well-being at risk. People who wish to make someone else feel weaker or more powerless and have more sway over them tend to engage in these behaviors.

Bullying is not the same as interpersonal disagreement (such as a quarrel) or hating another person, even if these factors may lead to bullying between individuals. Bullies come in different sizes and are not necessarily more problematic than their victims. 

Bullying is of Four types;

1. Physical
2. verbal
3. Relational bullying
4. Cyberbullying                                                                                                                                                  (Jing Wang, Ronald J Iannotti, Jeremy W Luk).

 Physical bullying is an act of overt physical harm towards another person, verbal bullying is a direct verbal attack, and relationship bullying is a subtle attack that results in the ostracism of one or more people. Cyberbullying is Sharing private or sensitive information about another individual that can result in shame or humiliation. Some cyberbullying goes too far and becomes illegal or criminal behavior. 

Technology is responsible for increasing cyberbullying and sexual bullying as it is harder to control and identify. (Romeo Vitelli Ph.D. April 6, 2016).

Bullying can hurt the physical, social, and emotional well-being of a person. It affects both the bully and the victim directly, but it can also affect bystanders who witness the incident.

Several factors can cause a bully to harm an individual, such as race, socioeconomic status, and physical or emotional characteristics. It is needed to stop bullying. 

Harassment takes different forms. Men and women can be perpetrators. Men are more likely to use physical forms of bullying, while women use verbal and relational forms ( Molly Edmonds).

Bullying behavior has correlated with conflict theory. According to German philosopher Karl Marx, conflict theory argues that society comprises groups that compete for power. Bullying is a power imbalance where individuals get threatened, ridiculed, or hurt. In the case of bullying, there are two groups, the victim and the bully. 

Bullies prey on the weak. Bullies come in many forms, some big and some small, but they have physical and social power. They use this power to victimize others. They exploit their victims and degrade and repress them to maintain their superiority. 

Bullying affects everyone. Bullying can affect the bully, the target, bystanders, school personnel, teachers, and the parents indirectly or directly. Bullying can physically, emotionally, and mentally harm victims. Victims of bullying are more likely to perform poorly in school, which can lead to school dropouts, and others choose suicide to escape the taunts of bullying. Bullying can also hurt the bully. It can lead to dissonance in school, poor academic performance, increased drinking and smoking risks, and increased chances that criminals will become criminals as adults (Carolyn Crist, Reuters Health, FEBRUARY 2, 2017).

 “A promising conclusion was that the academic performance of children improved when their victimization levels decreased over time”.  (Jonathan Nakamoto, an education researcher at nonprofit agency WestEd in Los Alamitos, California). 

“It shows that a variety of anti-bullying strategies may enhance academic performance while also reducing bullying.”  (Reuters Health).