B is for Bullying: Exploring the Bully, the

Bullied 
& the Bystander

Steven C. Atkins, Psy.D.

SCA Psychological Services, PLLC

SCA@Dartmouth.edu

www.drstevenatkins.com

 BULLYING:
STATISTICS

•  Everyone knows who is rejected

•  Most parents do not like to believe their kids reject/ridicule

•  Universal phenomenon: Every kids recognizes bullying

•  40-80% of children report having been bullied

•  14-19% of children face CHRONIC victimization & rejection

•  Causes serious emotional problems

•  Vulnerable to membership in deviant groups

What Behaviors Constitute Bullying?

 How Prevalent is Bullying?

•  1 in 3 youth are involved in bullying in some
capacity.

•  Among 6th-10th grade students across the country:

* 13% had bullied others.

* 11% had been bullied.

* 6% had both bullied others and been bullied.

Nansel et al., 2001

Youth Characteristics

Effects of Bullying Involvement

Psychological & Educational Effects of Bullying

•  Poor academic performance

•  Depression

•  Psychological distress

•  In rare cases, suicide

•  Low school commitment

•  Problematic behaviors such as alcohol use
& smoking

 Psychological & Educational
Effects of Bullying
•  30% of adolescents indicated incidents were
“very or extremely upsetting”

•  24% reported they were “very or extremely
frightening,”

•  22% said they were “very or extremely
embarrassing,”

•  34% reported one or more symptom of stress
(Wolak et al., 2006).

 BULLYING:
STATISTICS

Bullies are:

•  Physically large, verbally adept, uninhibited with

respect to aggression

•  Boys do not have good relationships with parents

•  Boys bullies have poorer mental health than victims

•  Girl bullies have better mental health than victims

•  Girl bullies are not physically aggressive

•  Girls are VERBAL and SECRETIVE

 The Typical Classroom

•  Very popular



15%

•  Accepted




45%

•  Average of Unclassifiable

20%






------------------------







80%

These groups experience “normal social pain” and are not at risk

 The Typical Classroom

•  Neglected




4%

•  Controversial



4%

•  Rejected



10-12%






------------------------







20%

These groups are at risk. Above normal social pain.

 The Typical Classroom

•  Very popular

15%

•  Accepted



45%

•  Average of Unclassifiable

20%

•  Neglected



4%

•  Controversial


4%

•  Rejected


10-12%






------------------------






100%

•  Some kids have admirable traits and some have despised traits

•  However, if a kid crosses over from any of the top groups and becomes
aggressive, becomes a bully, at risk for controversial status and lonely.

 “Be My Friend”
What is a friend?

•  Around age 12, social skills change to “talking”

•  No longer activity based play

•  Conversation begins to rule

•  Shift from hiding emotion and looking “cool”

•  Friendship vs. Popularity

•  Friends are people you trust, with whom you have a bond, INTIMATE

•  Popularity is hard to define but you know who is popular

-Group agreement that you have an attractive trait



-Social Power begins early and is glaring by middle school

 Rank Order for popularity

•  For Girls:



Looks



Clothes



Social Charisma

•  For Boys:



Size



Athletic ability



Humor

•  Studies show that the average number of friends from elementary school
on is FIVE FRIENDS with a range from ONE TO TEN

 THE UNSEEN PROBLEM:
The Bystander

Children:

•  Who just watch, the audience 54%

•  Initiate bullying, join in 21%

---------

•  Children (the great middle) 75%

who do not stop bullies

 THE UNSEEN PROBLEM:
The Bystander

Children:

Only 25% either intervene or walk away

and most are girls.

SILENCE of any Majority licensed

bullying.

 Key to decreasing bullies is the
Bystander’s role

•  Learn to identify and label bullying

•  Give words and teach kids how to respond

•  Move from the ME to WE approach

•  All have right to be safe

•  Teachers are also bystanders at times

•  Starts with role modeling

“The real voyage of discovery consists not
in seeking new landscapes but in
having news eyes.”
--Marcel Proust
 Prevention & Intervention for Bullying

! Ideally, all efforts should include youth, parents, schools, and the
community.

! A widely used and empirically validated program for bullying is
the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program.

! Comprehensive school-wide approach.

! Involves increasing awareness, monitoring, and supervision;
developing clear rules against bullying and consistently
implementing consequences; positive adult role models.

! As part of this program, when schools develop their anti
-bullying policy they are encouraged to include statements
related to cyber bullying, such as that students may not use
the Internet or cell phones to bully others, and that there will
be consequences for cyber bullying.

The Lebanon Junior High Student
Assistance Program Model New Hampshire USA

LJHS

GUIDANCE

STAFF &

SST

CLINICAL

STAFF
SCHOOL

SPEECH
SUBSTANCE
(Psychologist
PSYCH.
POLICE 
&
ABUSE

&
(Evaluations)
OFFICER

LANGUAGE
COUNSELOR

Social

Worker)

 Edu-co-therapy

Represents an attempt to incorporate key
factors associated with successful
interventions, and provides a cost
-effective and hopeful solution to school
-based inoculation programs.

 Educotherapy

§  Born out of the SAP role and initially implemented with most disruptive students, their
parents and LJHS staff

§  Addresses health and education issues for all involved

§  Fits seamlessly into ongoing school routines (H. Walker, 2006)

§  Provides training for staff

on confidentiality and role clarification


as well as attachment work and staff burn out

§  Wrap-around approach with a twist;

everyone at the meeting


discusses his/her emotional connectedness

§  Staff regularly discuss own emotional experiences in relation to the “problem” which is
identified in relational terms and not targeted at student/family

 Educotherapy Impact

§  Less teacher burn-out reported; often consult with staff regarding


own emotional experiences in relation to identified student(s)

§  Reported increase of connectedness to the staff and connectedness to

student/family

§  A decrease in student’s disruptive behaviors (e.g. trips to the office)

§  Decreased out-of-district placements

§  Increased student productivity and parental involvement

 In Summary

We are here to increase our understanding of various issues which

impede the learning process for our students and/or clients. Given

the increased demands upon educational systems to meet

students’ needs, the tools and ideas shared here today will hopefully

excite and enhance the interventions your school is implementing

already.

Our Students Need You!

The End