The first part of these notes highlights the relative
frequency of episodes of bullying among children and young people (with
reference to one recent survey indicating that exposure to bullying is
particularly common among children with special educational needs towards the severe end of the
The first part of these notes highlights the relative
frequency of episodes of bullying among children and young people (with
reference to one recent survey indicating that exposure to bullying is
particularly common among children with special educational needs towards the severe end of the
Typical coping strategies are described, along with the significance of whole school approaches to intervention or prevention (which includes the involvement of peers in the planning and implementation of actions).
There follows a description of a study exploring the stability and instability of friendship patterns among girls and the possible association with involvement in bullying either as perpetrator or victim; and the final section also concerns the significance of social identity, and interactions within and between groups, for the emergence of bullying behaviour.
M.J.Connor July 2007
Nature and Incidence
To begin, it is logical to clarify terms and the following are two definitions of bullying which appear representative of the many definitions that have been produced.
According to Olweus (1993), bullying is the repeated and ongoing negative action towards one or more students.
These actions can be direct, as in verbal an physical assaults or in the use of facial or other gestures; and they can also be indirect as in exclusion from a group or refusal to comply with the individual’s wishes.
Meanwhile, Rigby (2002) describes bullying as occurring when the victim, typically viewed as having little power and of a non-retaliatory type, is sought out by another who is physically powerful and dominant.
In other words, bullying may be perceived as a series of acts of aggression towards by one individual towards another, and between whom there is a marked imbalance of power. As set out by Espelage and Swearer (2003), it is difficult to generate a single and comprehensive definition for bullying and victimisation, but there is a general agreement that bullying includes ongoing physical and/or verbal aggression by one or more individuals who hope to attain dominance, status, or others’ possessions.
As will be discussed in the following summaries, the implication that may be drawn from this kind of definition is that bullying among children and young people is largely a matter of a negative interaction usually involving two persons, the victim and the bully, albeit with other people in the role of onlookers and as implicit accomplices in allowing the actions to continue (as a preferred alternative to becoming victims themselves?).
However, converging evidence indicates that bullying, especially among girls, can more frequently have its source in group behaviours and interactions; and the relational as opposed to physical form of bullying seen more commonly among girls reflects the instability of friendships and the anxiety and/or jealous