1. School Violence Awareness What is Bullying?

2. Bullying §The victim is being bullied when exposed, repeatedly and over time, to negative actions on the part of one or more other students §Negative actions include intentionally inflicting, or attempting to inflict, injury or discomfort upon another

3. Bullying §Can be: l Physical e.g., hitting, kicking, pushing, choking l Verbal e.g., by calling names, threatening, taunting, malicious teasing, spreading nasty rumors l Other ways e.g., making faces, obscene gestures, intentional exclusion from a group

4. Bullying §Indirect bullying is very subtle §Direct bullying is verbal or physical §In order to be considered bullying, there should also be an imbalance in power or strength

5. Bullying §Students who are exposed to the negative actions generally have difficulty in defending themselves and are somewhat helpless against the bullies §Not bullying: two students of similar physical or psychological power in conflict §Not bullying: friendly or playful teasing

6. Bullying §Bullying: repeated and continuous degrading and malicious teasing despite clear signs of distress and opposition on the part of the target §The victim is usually a single student, who is generally harassed by a group of two or three students, often with a negative leader

7. Three Criteria 1.Aggressive behavior or intentional “harm- doing 2.Carried out repeatedly and over time 3.Occurs within an interpersonal relationship characterized by an imbalance of power (Bullying behavior often occurs without apparent provocation)

8. Three Criteria §Bullying is considered a form of peer abuse §What sets it apart from other forms of abuse such as child or domestic abuse: l The context in which it occurs l The relationship of the interacting parties

9. False Beliefs About Bullying §Being bullied builds character §Bullying is part of growing up §Boys will be boys §Sticks and stones may break your bones, but names can never hurt you §You do something to him/her that would make him/her treat you that way

10. False Beliefs About Bullying §You have to learn to stand up for yourself §Hit him back and he won’t bother you again §I was bullied in school and I turned out fine §No kids are bullied in this school §Only children who are different get bullied §Only children in large school/classes get bullied

11. Three People Involved in Bullying 1.The Victim 2.The Bully 3.The Bystander

12. The Victim: Passive/Submissive §Signal to others through attitudes and behaviors that they are insecure individuals who will not retaliate if victimized §Physically weaker than their peers (particularly boys) §Display “body anxiety”, are afraid of being hurt, have poor physical coordination, and are ineffective in physical play or sports

13. The Victim: Passive/Submissive §Poor social skills and have difficulty making friends §Cautious, sensitive, quiet, withdrawn and shy §Cry or become upset easy §Anxious, insecure, and have poor self-esteem §Have difficulty standing up for or defending themselves in peer groups §Relate better to adults than peers

14. The Victim: Provocative §Anxious and aggressive patterns and are generally boys §Exhibit some or all of the characteristics of passive or submissive victims §Hot tempered and attempt to fight back when victimized, usually not very effectively

15. The Victim: Provocative §Hyperactive, restless, have difficulty concentrating, and create tension §Clumsy, immature, and exhibit irritating habits §Disliked by adults, including teachers §Often try to bully students weaker than themselves

16. Children Who Are Bullied May §Be withdrawn §Have a drop in grades §Show a loss of appetite §Have sleeping problems §Be hesitant to go to school §Rarely bring classmates home after school or seldom spend time in their homes §Seem isolated from peers and may not have one good friend to share time with §Often feel sick in the morning §Become visibly stressed before getting on the school bus (some of the most severe bullying takes place on the school bus)

17. Children Who Are Bullied May §Come home with torn clothes or unexplained bruises §Needs extra school supplies or often needs extra lunch money: a bully may be extorting things your child “loses” §Your child may choose an “illogical” route to and from school §Appear anxious §Distressed §Unhappy §Depressed or tearful when he or she comes home from school §Show unexpected mood shifts, irritability, or sudden outbursts of temper §Talks or attempts of suicide

18. The Bully §Bullies have an increased risk for engaging in other forms of antisocial behavior l Juvenile Delinquency l Criminality l Substance Abuse §Boys are more likely to be physical bullies §Girls are more likely to engage in “sneakier” forms of harassment

19. The Bully §Physical attacks: hitting, pushing, kicking, and choking §Verbal attacks or harassment: name calling, threatening, taunting, malicious teasing, rumor spreading, slandering §Social isolation, intentional exclusion, making faces, obscene gestures, manipulating friendship relationships

20. The Bully §Physically bigger and stronger than their victims §Strong need to dominate and control their peers §Hot-tempered, easily angered, impulsive, and have a low frustration tolerance §Difficulty conforming to rules §Defiant and aggressive toward adults (authority figures-adults may be frightened of the bully)

21. The Bully §Good at talking themselves out of situations §Tend to have a relatively positive view of themselves (average or better than average self esteem) §More likely than their peers to engage in antisocial behaviors §More likely to be less popular

22. The Bully §Children who bully others: l Can turn into antisocial adults l Are far more likely than others to commit crimes l Likely to batter their spouses and abuse their children l May produce another generation of children who bully §Bullies identified after the age of seven: l By age 24, are 6 times more likely than non-bullies to be convicted of a crime l By age 30, are 4 times more likely to have accrued three criminal convictions

23. The Bystander §Bullying is often a group phenomenon that can influence other students in various directions §Some group mechanisms that, individually or in combination may assumed to be active when several students participate in bullying §Social contagion §Weakening of the normal inhibitions against aggressive tendencies §A decreased sense of individual responsibility §Gradual changes in the perception of the victim

24. The Bystander §Doing nothing implies that bullying is acceptable behavior

25. Conclusion/Summary §http://agpcabinc.webs.com/whatisbullying.h tm §http://sei-bu- kan.co.uk/html/bullying_what.htm