Bullycide

Imagine coming home from school and pouring out your emotions into a journal about events from the day as a high school teenager. What would it read? Would it read “I shall remember forever and never forget: Monday: my money was taken, Tuesday: Names called, Wednesday: my uniform torn, Thursday: my body pouring with blood, Friday: Its ended, Saturday: Freedom.” How devastating it must be for the parent(s) who read that entry from their child. That is what the final diary pages of thirteen year old Vijay Singh read. He was found hanging from the banister rail at home on Sunday. –Neil Marr and Tim Field, Bullycide, Death at Playtime: An Expose of Child Suicide Caused by Bullying (Coloroso, 2003).
Bullying is nothing new; yet, it has become a major part of our society with teen shootings on the raise from schools to malls. Although, researchers have found that bullying is not a cause of suicide there a correlation between bullying and suicide. (Baron & Branscombe, 2011). Over the last decade, studies demonstrate that a bully culture dominates our schools. The statistics are staggering but in order to be able find a way to prevent bullying: we must first look at the statistics, define what bullying is and the types there are, what are the warning signs of a child being bullied and understand what are the motives of a bully. Once we understand what bullying is then we can speak on prevention. According to the National Education Association, the numbers continue to rise every month. It is estimated that 160,000 children miss school every day due to fear of attack or intimidation by other students. American schools harbor approximately 2.1 million bullies and 2.7 million of their victims. 1 in 7 students in Grades K-12 is either a bully or a victim of bullying. 56 percent of students have personally witnessed some type of bullying at school. 15 percent of all school absenteeism is directly related to fears of being bullied at school. 71 percent of students report incidents of bullying as a problem at their school. 1 out of 20 students has seen a student with a gun at school. 282,000 students are physically attacked in secondary schools each month. Those in the lower grades reported being in twice as many fights as those in the higher grades; however, there is a lower rate of serious violent crimes in the elementary level than in the middle or high schools. 90 percent of fourth through eighth graders report being victims of bullying. (Olweus, 2013)
Among students, homicide perpetrators were more than twice as likely as homicide victims to have been bullied by peers. Bullying statistics say revenge is the strongest motivation for school shootings. 87 percent of students said shootings are motivated by a desire to "get back at those who have hurt them." 86 percent of students said, "Other kids picking on them, making fun of them or bullying them" causes teenagers to turn to lethal violence in the schools. 61 percent of students said students shoot others because they have been victims of physical abuse at home. 54 percent of students said witnessing physical abuse at home can lead to violence in school. According to bullying statistics, 1 out of every 10 students who drops out of school does so because of repeated bullying. Harassment and bullying have been linked to 75 percent of school-shooting incidents. (Olweus, 2013)
How can we define bullying? Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time. Both kids who are bullied and who bully others may have serious, lasting problems such as depression, high suicidal thoughts and attempts of suicide. In order to be considered bullying, the behavior must be aggressive and include: An Imbalance of Power: Kids who bully use their power—such as physical strength, access to embarrassing information, or popularity—to control or harm others. Power imbalances can change over time and in different situations, even if they involve the same people. (Edgerton, Health Resources & Services Administration, Limber & Clemson University, 2013)
There are three types of bullying: Verbal bullying is saying or writing mean things. Verbal bullying includes: Teasing, Name-calling, Inappropriate sexual comments, Taunting, Threatening to cause harm, social bullying, sometimes referred to as relational bullying, involves hurting someone’s reputation or relationships. Social bullying includes: Leaving someone out on purpose, Telling other children not to be friends with someone Spreading rumors about someone Embarrassing someone in public Physical bullying involves hurting a person’s body or possessions. Physical bullying includes: Hitting/kicking/pinching, Spitting Tripping/pushing, Taking or breaking someone’s things, Making mean or rude hand gestures. (Edgerton, Health Resources & Services Administration, Limber & Clemson University, 2013)
Although their ways and means of bullying may be different, bullies have many traits in common. They like to dominate other people, use people to get what they want, find it hard to see a situation from the other person’s vantage point, are concerned with their own wants and pleasures and not the needs, rights, and feelings for others. They tend to hurt other kids when parents or adults are not around, crave attention and view weaker siblings or peers as prey (bullying is also known as predatory aggression which actually defines the behavior), Bullies will also use blame, criticism, and false allegations to project their own inadequacies onto their target and refuse to accept responsibility for their actions because they lack foresight ( the ability to consider the short terms, long terms, and possible unintended consequences of their current behavior. (Coloroso, 2003)
Bullying can have a tremendous effect on the bullied. Many times when a child is being bullied they will show warning signs or clues. He or she will show abrupt lack of interest in school, take unusual route to school, suffer a drop in grades, withdraw from family and school activities, wanting to be left alone, is hungry after school, saying he lost his lunch money or wasn’t hungry at school, is taking parents money and making excuses of where it went. They will often make a beeline for the bathroom when he or she comes home, is sad, sullen, angry or scared after receiving a phone call or an email, does something out of character, and uses derogatory or demeaning language when talking about peers. They stop talking about peers and everyday activities, have disheveled, torn, or missing clothes, has physical injuries not consistent with explanation or has stomachaches, headaches, panic attacks, is unable to sleep, sleeps too much, is exhausted. (Klein, 2012) In order to prevent bullying a prevention plan need to be put in place. It is important for everyone in the community to work together to send a unified message against bullying. Launch an awareness campaign to make the objectives known to the school, parents, and community members. Establish a school safety committee or task force to plan, implement, and evaluate your school 's bullying prevention program. Create a mission statement, code of conduct, school-wide rules, and a bullying reporting system. These establish a climate in which bullying is not acceptable. Disseminate and communicate widely. Establish a school culture of acceptance, tolerance and respect. Use staff meetings, assemblies, class and parent meetings, newsletters to families, the school website, and the student handbook to establish a positive climate at school. Reinforce positive social interactions and inclusiveness. Build bullying prevention material into the curriculum and school activities. Train teachers and staff on the school’s rules and policies. Give them the skills to intervene consistently and appropriately. (Edgerton, Health Resources & Services Administration, Limber & Clemson University, 2013)

Works Cited
Baron, R. A., & Branscombe, N. R. (2011). Social psychology. (13 ed.). New Jersey: Pearson College Div.
Coloroso, B. (2003). The bully, the bullied, and the bystander, from preschool to high school: How parents and teachers can help break the cycle of violence. (1 ed.). New York: HarperResource
Edgerton, E., Health Resources & Services Administration, , Limber, S., & Clemson University, (2013, 02 13). [Web log message]. Retrieved from www.stopbullying.gov/blog/2013/02/27/research-brief-suicide-and-bullying
Klein, J. (2012). The bully society: School shootings and the crisis of bullying in America’s schools. New York: New York University Press.
Olweus, D. D. (2013). Olweus bullying prevention program (obpp). (Master 's thesis, Clemson University) Retrieved from www.olweus.org.

Bullying: Sticks and Stones May Break Your Bones and Word Hurt You

Cited: Baron, R. A., & Branscombe, N. R. (2011). Social psychology. (13 ed.). New Jersey: Pearson College Div. Coloroso, B. (2003). The bully, the bullied, and the bystander, from preschool to high school: How parents and teachers can help break the cycle of violence. (1 ed.). New York: HarperResource Edgerton, E., Health Resources & Services Administration, , Limber, S., & Clemson University, (2013, 02 13). [Web log message]. Retrieved from www.stopbullying.gov/blog/2013/02/27/research-brief-suicide-and-bullying Klein, J. (2012). The bully society: School shootings and the crisis of bullying in America’s schools. New York: New York University Press. Olweus, D. D. (2013). Olweus bullying prevention program (obpp). (Master 's thesis, Clemson University) Retrieved from www.olweus.org. Bullying: Sticks and Stones May Break Your Bones and Word Hurt You