In our ongoing goal to help people recuperate from trauma, there are recurring themes and issues we must address. One of the most challenging social problems that remains prevalent today is Bullying. For many generations, experts have been trying to decipher human behavior in order to address this issue that not only affects one person but the society as a whole.
Bullying is a deliberate and destructive act that is repeatedly and overtly manifested by a bully against another person with the intent to cause psychological, social and physical harm. It affects the person’s mental health, breaks his self-esteem and destroys his social relationships.
The gravity of the repercussions can be even more detrimental, traumatic and unconscionable should the person continue to be a bully and a victim.
Although society views the bully as the main predator that should need reform, it is not always the case. Most often, the bully and the victim are at some point sufferers of an erstwhile trauma that could have triggered a drastic change in their behavior—one being aggressive while the other submissive. Both are victims. Both can suffer long-term consequences.
What is Bullying?
To define, Bullying is a deliberate and destructive act that is repeatedly and overtly manifested by a bully against another person with the intent to cause psychological, social, and physical harm.
It affects the person’s mental health, breaks his self-esteem and confidence, and can destroy his social relationships. The gravity of the repercussions can be even more detrimental, traumatic, and unconscionable should the person continue to be a bully and a victim.
For these reasons, it is deeply important that we should be able to recognize the warning signs and take action against bullying.
Although society views the bully as the main predator that should need reform, it is not always the case. Most often, the bully and the victim are at some point sufferers of an erstwhile trauma that could have triggered a drastic change in their behavior—one being aggressive while the other submissive.
Both are victims. Both can suffer long-term consequences.
Examples of Bullying
Bullying can take many forms, some of which are clear and evident, but other which are more subtle and not always easy to identify by people outside of the immediate relationship:
1. Teasing
2. Ostracization
3. Making a person an object of ridicule
4. Physical Harm
5. Power Tripping
Symptoms of Bullying
Based on these actions, the victim can manifest his or her own set of all-encompassing symptoms:
- Social Reluctance
- Lack of confidence and self-esteem
- Trouble sleeping
- Intense emotional reactions
- Lack of social interaction
- Bodily injuries
Bullying can be an extremely broad issue. Many kids bully because they want to appear superior. They pick on kids who are weaker or less likely to protect themselves. Kids who bully frequently feel more pompous against those kids who are of “fun-size” or unpopular.
Not all bullying is physical. Words can be harmful as well.
Verbal bullying is harder for parents or guardians to handle since words can simply be twisted and misinterpreted. Most often, opinions coming from others are unsolicited, spontaneous and insensitive, hence, could be taken differently by the person subject of such opinion.
What should be done if your teen bullies others?
As a parent or guardian, it is our responsibility to guide our children to be more sensitive and accepting about a person’s indifference.
-Impartially assess your teen’s behavior; do not surge to legitimize it.
-Teach your youngster to recognize and express feelings non-violently.
-Teach conflict-management and conflict-resolution skills.
-Emphasize talking out the issue instead of hitting.
-Promote compassion by indicating out the results for others of verbal and physical actions.
-Executing social-emotional learning activities.
-Rewarding positive, accommodating, comprehensive behavior.
Is tolerance a solution for bullying?
Developing tolerance for bullying is not the solution we all want, as it will not mitigate the growing societal issues everyone is facing.
Worse, it can only aggravate the situation. It may otherwise foster a culture where bullying becomes a norm and everyone would be powerless to stop it.
As early as now, we may resort to a few strategies that could help us end this challenge:
- Create a network of trust.
- Allow open conversation with both the victim and the bully without judgment.
- Resolve conflict in a diplomatic way
- Nurture an environment that is inclusive, understanding, and secure.