Bullying
Bullying is any unwanted, aggressive behavior including actions such as making threats, spreading rumors, attacking someone physically or verbally, and excluding someone from a group on purpose.
Why Do People Bully?
Many people who bully others are looking to gain a feeling of power, purpose or control…but why? There are several reasons why people bully others such as:
Stress and Trauma
Bullies are more likely to have experiences a stressful/traumatic situation in the past 5 years like parents splitting up or death of a relative
Low Self-Esteem
Some bullies mask how they actually feel about themselves by focusing their attention on someone else
They’ve Been Bullied
Research shows that those who have experienced bullying are twice as likely to go on and bully others
Difficult Home Life
1 in 3 bullies feel like their parents/guardians don’t have enough time to spend with them
Relationships
Bullies are more likely to feel like their friendships and family relationships aren’t very secure
Did You Know?
The most current data from the 2017 Youth Risk Behavioral Surveillance System reports…
- 13.9% of NC high school students were electronically bullied (bullied through texting or social media)
- 18.7% of NC high school students were bullied on school property
- 1 in 5 US students ages 12-18 have been bullied during the school year
- 30% of young people admit to bullying others
- 70.6% of young people say the have seen bullying in their schools
- When bystanders intervene, bullying stops within 10 seconds 57% of the time
- 14.9% of all high school students were electronically bullied
- Only 20-30% of students who are bullied notify adults about the bullying
- Roughly 160,000 teens have skipped school because of bullying
- Verbal bullying is the most common type of bullying
- 6th grade students experience the most bullying
- The most common reasons why someone is bullied is due to their physical appearance (30%), race (10%), gender (8%), disability (7%), ethnicity (7%), religion (5%), and sexual orientation (4%)
Resources for Bullying
1. The STOMP Out Bullying HelpChat Line: free and confidential online chat that helps youth ages 13-24 with issues around bullying and cyber-bullying
2. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
Sources:
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Ditch the Label Anti-Bullying Charity
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention