Unfortunately we cannot deny the existence of bullying among children. According to the American Psychological Association, forty to eighty percent of school-age children experience bullying at some point during their school careers. Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance according to the Stopbullying Website, A federal government website managed by the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. Four different type of bullying are physical, verbal, covert, and cyberbullying.
Bullying leaves physical and psychological consequences on the victim, bully, and also other children involved. Different kinds of bullying have short term and long term consequences that temporarily and permanently affect the bully and the bullied. There are four basic forms of bullying among the children. The first and most typical kind of bullying is physical bullying; this kind of bullying includes any physical contact like punching, hitting, pushing, or any other forms of physical abuse.
Taking and destroying other children’s belongings by force is considered a kind of physical bullying. The second kind of bullying is verbal bullying, such as using humiliating names, joking about the person’s parents, religion, gender, or the way that they look. A good example of this kind of bullying is making fun of the way another kid walks, runs, or even talks. The third kind of bullying is covert bullying like spreading rumors or stories about someone else. For example a rumor like a boy in your class is a bed wetter or plays with dolls.
Also excluding someone from a group or team, and threatening to such level that the victim does whatever bully request other examples of covert are bullying. The most recent form of bullying is cyber bullying. Cyber Bullying is done by sending messages, pictures, emails, text or any information using electronic devices like computers or cell phones. As a result of short-term and long-term consequences of being bullied the victim will experience immediate physical or mental health issues and more serious problems in the future.
The bullying victims have more sleeping difficulty, dropping grades, sadness, low self esteem and headaches. In general, the victims have few or no friends due to their anxiety level and their feeling of isolation. Feeling lonely and sad can have an effect on the victim’s learning abilities as well as school success; the victim becomes afraid of going to school or work. Another result of bullying is that the victim might become violent towards him or her selves and other children, and it is a huge possibility that a lot of school shootings can be related to this issue.
In some cases bullying can go on for a long period of time and the victim can have thoughts of suicide and possibly commit a suicide. A recent incident of committing a suicide because of bullying was a thirteen year old girl, who was bullied by her girl friends in the school. According to New York Daily News, she committed suicide by jumping off a cement factory tower on September 10, 2013, in Florida. Long-term consequences can be almost as bad for the bully as for the bullied. Bullies are more prone to criminal behavior than others and are more likely to end up using alcohol or drugs in adolescence and as adults.
For example while they are kids they may commit shop lifting or drop out of school; also as a grownup they may using a gun to prove their domination on other people, getting involve in physical fights, or doing other violence activities. It is very hard for bullies to deal with other people who are physically stronger. The Bullies cannot accept to be a victim, so they try hard to overcome the stronger opponent and to ignore embarrassment in front of other children by even getting into a big trouble or committing a crime.
Also engaging in early sexual activity is another risky behavior of the bully children. The bully’s desire for power will affect their behavior with their wife and children in the future such as being abusive toward their romantic partners, spouses, or children as adults. However, some of the adult bullies will regret their behavior, and as a result of becoming depressed and weak, they will commit a suicide. Some people think that bullying is a part of childhood, and children will become stronger and learn to stand up for themselves.
However, a lot of research shows that bullying in fact can cause negative social, emotional, and academic consequences. The four basic kinds of bullying are physical, verbal, covert, and cyberbullying which all have a profound effect on children’s lives. Depression, anxiety, sadness, and loneliness are some of the negative effects of being bullied. In contrast, drugs and alcohol abuse, criminal convictions, and violent behaviors are some of the negative effects of bully children.
The best way to address bullying is to stop it before it starts. If bullying behaviors happen in the school, the bully and the victim’s parents and school officials must meet immediately. They should solve the matter through child adviser and find out the reasons behind the behavior. They are responsible to show the students how important this issue is and what are the consequences of the bullying behavior. Also all parents must educate themselves and their children about the bullying behavior, and even use professional help if it is needed.
