In Australia, Friday 19th March 2021 is National Day of Action against Bullying and Violence, inviting people all over the country to join the conversation to help address the problem of bullying.
Bullying is NEVER ok! The NDA have this year shared some super-informative resources to help students and their families understand what exactly bullying is, how to recognise it, where to get help, and how to report it. You can watch the Bullying is Never OK! video here. You can also download their handy student engagement activity here.
Types of Bullying
Bullying isn’t just violence, it can encompass a variety of behaviours which can make it tricky to identify. It is also often labelled by where it occurs, or by the harm that is done which can add to the confusion. It’s important to remember that while violence is one form of bullying to be on the lookout for, there is also verbal, social, and physical bullying to be aware of.
Types of Behaviour
There are 3 types of bullying behaviour:
- Verbal bullying – including name calling and insults regarding physical appearance such as weight or height, or other attributes like race, sexuality, culture, or religion
- Physical bullying – this includes hitting or otherwise physically hurting someone, pushing and/or shoving, intimidation, or damage to personal property
- Social bullying – is a more undercover form of bullying, this includes excluding another personal regularly, gossiping, sharing information or images that could harm the other person.
If behaviours like are isolated (happening only once), or are part of a conflict between equals (even if it’s inappropriate) this is not bullying.
All of these bullying behaviours can happen both in person, and online (often known as cyber-bullying), directly or indirectly, overtly or covertly. Verbal and social bullying can happen online, in the form of threats of physical bullying.
Cyberbullying is concerning because it creates additional concerns for students, parents and careers, and teachers. Eg. cyberbullying can mean there is an enormous audience. Research has shown that children who are bullied online are also often bullied in person. This is why it’s so important to look at all potential bullying situations, rather than just focusing on one
The Means and Visibility of Bullying
Direct bullying – occurs between the people involved only
Indirect bullying – inflicts harm by damaging someone’s social reputation, friendships, and self-esteem. Indirect actions involve others, eg. gossiping, passing insults, and spreading rumours.
Bullying may not always be easy to spot. When it is it’s called ‘Overt Bullying’, there is also ‘Covert Bullying’ which festers undercover and can be impossible to detect
Overt bullying – a common depiction of bullying involving actions such as physical violence and observable verbal actions like name-calling and insulting.
Covert bullying – difficult for those outside to identify, covert bullying can include repeatedly using hand gestures and ‘dirty’ or threatening looks, whispering, excluding or restricting a person. It can be subtle and is often denied by the perpetrator or dismissed as just a joke.
Covert, indirect bulling is most often hidden intentionally so that it’s hard to detect. It mostly inflicts harm on the target’s social standing, friendships, and self-esteem, through psychological harm rather than physical harm.
The Harm Caused
While not all unwanted actions will cause harm there is a huge potential for it. The physical harm caused by some types of bullying is well known, eg. bullying can cause short and long-term psychological harm, this includes the effects on the victims social standing, or their unwillingness to socialise for fear of further bullying (this is particularly true for victims of covert bullying).
Just the fear of being bullied can create distress and/or harm. The ongoing nature of this behaviour can lead to feelings of powerlessness in victims and an inability to stop it from happening. The effects of bullying, particularly on the mental health and wellbeing of those involved, including bystanders, can continue even after the situation is resolved.
Bullying can happen anywhere, not just at school.
Signs of Bullying
Everyone will react to bullying in different ways and a child’s behaviours and moods can change for a variety of reasons, however here are some signs to keep an eye out for include:
Signs a teacher may see:
- becomes aggressive and unreasonable
- starts getting into fights
- refuses to talk about what’s wrong
- grades begin to suffer
Less obvious signs:
- student is often alone or left out
- student is a frequent target of teasing or ridicule
- there’s a change in the student’s willingness to speak up in class
- student appears frightened or insecure
Signs a parent might see:
- doesn’t want to go to school
- changes their route to school
- change in sleeping patterns
- change in eating patterns
- frequent tears, anger, and mood swings
- unexplained injuries
- missing or damaged belongings
- arriving home hungry
A student who bullies may:
- repeatedly tease, imitate, or make fun of targets
- feel a need to dominate or control others
- show no compassion for someone who is experiencing bullying
- repeatedly exclude or ignore the same target
- whisper behind their backs regularly
What to do
Teachers, parents and carers all have a crucial role in preventing and responding to bullying.
The first step is learning what bullying is, and what it isn’t. ‘Bullying’ is often used to describe other behaviours, and while they may also be serious , the required responses are different.
Schools are very effective at responding to bullying, and even more so when parents report it and are supportive of their efforts in dealing with it.
If your child reports that bullying is happening at school you should let the school know the situation. If you are a teacher you can check out the amazing resources on Bullying. No Way! website here.
