Latest Canadian Bullying Research Finds that 10 Percent of Kids Bully Persistently

The kids have been back in school for a few weeks now -- plenty of time for bullying to start rearing its ugly head once again.

Whether bullying gets expressed as a body slam in the hallways, a shove that ends a classmate tumbling off the balance beam during gym class, or a nasty rumor that gets started in math class and ends up all over Facebook by the end of the day, bullying can make life a misery for the child being bullied –- and the fallout can be experienced for a lifetime.

Bullying shouldn't be brushed off as a normal childhood rite of passage -- not when there's a huge and growing body of research to demonstrate that allowing kids to battle things out à la The Lord of The Flies can result in real-life tragedies. Parents, teachers, and other adults have an important role to play in teaching kids healthier ways to sort out conflicts and manage feelings of aggression at home, at school, and in the community.

The bullying problem is more widespread and the fallout of bullying is far more serious than most people realize. Consider the latest study conducted by a team of researchers at York University and Queen's University ("Developmental Trajectories of Bullying and Associated Factors" -- slated for publication in the March/April issue of Child Development). The lead author of this study is Debra Pepler, a Distinguished Research Professor of Psychology at York University and Senior Associate Scientist at The Hospital for Sick Children. Queen’s University Professor Wendy Craig, York University Professor Jennifer Connolly, and statistician Dr. Depeng Jiang coauthored the study.

The researchers studied 871 Canadian children, ages 10 through 18. They found that about 10 percent of children bully other children on an persistent basis.

Treating this type of persistent bullying requires a two-pronged approach, the researchers concluded:

(1) interventions that focus on the child’s behaviour and problem-solving skills; and
(2) interventions that focus on the child's relationships with parents and peers.

Ultimately, the researchers would like to find a way of identifying those kids who are at high risk of developing bullying behaviors so that they can break the bullying cycle before it becomes well established. That would mean providing the potential bully with intensive support before the child at risk of bullying embarks on what Pepler refers to as a "career path" of bullying – a path that can lead to a series of serious relationship problems throughout life. (In addition to being aggressive, children who bully are morally disengaged: they lack compassion for those whom they victimize or guilt for their actions.)

The researchers recommend that future research in this area examine the links between bullying and other forms of relationship aggression such as dating aggression and sexual harassment.

Related:
Rick Mercer's Rant on Bullying

Now over to you:
What do you think of the results of this latest study? Has bullying been an issue for you or other members of your family? Is your child's school involved in anti-bullying initiatives? Have you witnessed bullying in other areas of your life? What seems to be most effective, based on your own experience, in dealing with bullying?

Comments

[Ernesta]

Parents and educators need to get involved in bullying because often the victim suffers in silence. Not sure if there really is any one most effective way of dealing with bullying -- some kids are meaner than others. If the study shows that "children who bully are morally disengaged" then the earlier the intervention the better.

[Ann Douglas]

I totally agree. My youngest son is particularly vulnerable to bullying (he has Aspergers syndrome) so I had a conversation with a lot of the parents on the street). That helped a lot. They talked to their kids about the situation and they also look out for him. (Having extra sets of eyes/ears really helps.) Not all parents are fully up to speed about bullying being everybody's problem -- not something the kids should be left to sort out on their own -- but the message is getting out there.

As an aside: Political bullying (example: political attack ads) really needs to stop. It's a terrible example to our kids.

[Wassa bread]

My kids’ school (TDSB) has 3 people supervising during the lunch period. That's ratio of one adult to 50 children. How can the Toronto District School Board claim to be serious about bullying when there is inadequate supervision at lunch. It doesn't help much if a young child approaches a teacher after the fact. The child would have to know the name and class of the other child and this is hard for young children.

Also, 2 of 3 of the lunch time supervisors at our school are grouchy and unapproachable. The kids are scared of them. It's a pathetic set up. There are strict guidelines for ratios of teachers to students during class time, yet it's a free for all at lunch when they are out in an open, spread out area.

[Ann Douglas]

My youngest used to attend a school where there were 2 teachers to 200 kids at recess and at lunch. The schoolyard was huge and it was impossible for 2 teachers to supervise that many kids over such a large area. Bullying was a huge problem. Geography and adult:child ratio can make a huge difference, to say nothing about approachability.

You really hit the nail on the head when you said:
"There are strict guidelines for ratios of teachers to students during class time, yet it's a free for all at lunch when they are out in an open, spread out area."

Have you talked to other parents at your school? Do you think this is something you could raise as a group at School Council?

[Deborah Ellis]

Have folks come across any anti-bullying initiatives that have actually worked?

[Ann Douglas]

I'm really interested to hear what people have to say in response to Deborah's question. I'll chime in with my own perspective, based on what I've seen at one of my kids' schools, but I'd rather hear from other people first. (You hear from me often enough.) :-)