The Effects of Bullying on a Child Essay

Bullying has become an issue that affects “school achievement, pro-social skills, and the psychological well-being of both bullies and their victims” (Uba, Yaacob, Juhari, & Talib, 2010). According to StopBullying.gov (n.d.), some of the warning signs are that your child is coming home with damaged or missing clothing, unexplained injuries, frequently complains of feeling sick, has trouble sleeping, or runs away from home (Recognizing the warning signs). In some cases, teens and preteens are taking their own life after being bullied, so the question some have now asked is, how serious is it? Should bullying be looked at more than just rivalry among peers?

Bullying can affect everyone. It can affect those who are bullied, those who are the ones bullying, and those who witness someone being bullied. Bullying is linked to many reasons for kids committing suicide, which is a major concern to me. Because this is a concern for me, I decided to do some heavy duty research. In my research, I found that the best way to get people aware of this problem is for them to understand the different ways a person can be bullied. When most people think of bullying, they think of boys punching and kicking each other. However, this is not the only type of bullying that kids can participate in.

Bullying is defined as unwanted aggressive behaviors by another youth or group of youth, who are not sibling or current dating partners, involving an observed or perceived power in balance and is repeated multiple times or highly likely to be repeated (CDC 2016). Bullying can result in physical injuries, social and emotional difficulties and academic problems. An estimate of 2.7 million youth are victims to bullying and estimated 160,000 children miss school every due to fear of attack or intimidation by other students (National school safety center, national educational association). Victims of bullying are more likely than who are not bullied to report feeling of low self- esteem and isolation, to form

Bullying is generating attention since today’s youths encounter difficulties that may lead to severe consequences. When some children are victims of bullying, they will take actions such as committing suicide or retaliating with violence where the results may be tragic. The effects of bullying will cause most children to act irrationally and not think about the repercussions of their actions. When children commit bullying, criminal and civil legal intervention programs can be implemented to prevent or punish bullies.

Bullying is an issue that has impacted many schools around the United States. It is a major problem for children and adolescents who have to face it constantly. It impacts their health and well-being. Bullying can harm the physical and emotional health of a child. The harm is so severe it effects short term and it is carried on later in life. Young children that are bullied develop social problems, emotional problems, both physical and mental, and even death. Those who are bullied are at increased risk for mental health problems like: headaches, stress, anxiety depression, and even problems adjusting to school.  A child’s self-esteem is damaged when bullied, which cause the child to have issues when they grow up. In addition, bullying has a long-lasting impact on its victim’s loved ones if the situation escalades to suicide. Seeing a child experience being bullied is very sad and complicated to encounter. Children and adolescences who experience bullying tend to commit horrific measures to end their involvement in the situation. The effects of bullying impacts children in many developmental areas and their overall health. Therefore, Americans should be aware of the data behind bullying, who is being victimized, and what are some preventative measure that should be implemented.

Research examining characteristics of youth involved in bullying has consistently found that both bullies and those bullied demonstrate poorer psychosocial functioning than their noninvolved peers. Youth who bully others tend to demonstrate higher levels of conduct problems and dislike of school, whereas youth who are bullied generally show higher levels of insecurity, anxiety, depression, loneliness, unhappiness, physical and mental symptoms, and low self-esteem.1-4,8,15-25 Males who are bullied also tend to be physically weaker

The article Bullying in School: The Traumatic Effects of Bullying on Children was written by Dr. Terry Ehiorobo. Dr. Ehiorobo has the following qualifications to address these issues, because he has worked as a school teacher and principal. Currently, Dr. Ehiorobo is employed as a school principal at an alternative school in Kenosha, WI. The main idea of the article is to focus on how these acts of bullying can cause long-lasting effects for the victims. Basically, bullying has a real emotional and psychological impact of children. Many adults do not take bullying seriously; therefore, many children have seek drastic measures which resulted in suicide and/or murder. The article states, “Even the president has taken a strong stance on the issue of bullying. He stated, “We’ve got to dispel this myth that bullying is just a normal rite of passage” (Anderson, 2010).

Victims become increasingly hesitant to engage in social activities, with some even refusing to attend school in order to protect themselves from bullying (Kaltiala-Heino, Rimpela, Rantanen, & Rimpela, 2000; Rigby, 2003). Pepler and Craig (2000) noted that frequently bullied children experienced a wide range of problems and need focused support to enable them to move on from these abusive interactions. Victims also reported feeling lonelier and less happy at school and having fewer good friends (Boulton & Underwood, 1992; Nansel et al., 2001, 2004). Not only does bullying harm all involved, it also affects the climate of the school, which indirectly affects the ability of all students to learn to the best of their abilities. Poor academic achievement is a likely consequence of victimization; if children are worried about being victimized, they are less focused on academic work (Card & Hodges, 2008). Children can only handle a certain amount of pressure before reaching their breaking point. As seen in certain extreme cases, children unable to take the pressure from this constant bullying, resort to suicide, or even mass killings of classmates and teachers.

Bullying is an extensive problem, especially in middle school. Junior high is the most common grade that bullying occurs in. This not only hurts children, but it also hurts the school system. Depression, anxiety, and long-term mental illnesses are all viable effects of being tormented. Suicidal tendencies and self mutilation are more common in students who are bullied, rather than students who are not. “28% of students in 6-12th grade have experienced bullying”1 that may not seem like a lot, but harassment isn’t a one time thing. Odds are that that 28% gets tormented fairly often. As previously stated, this issue does not only affect students. The school system may also get backlash from bullying. It is thought that about 160,000 children miss school fearing against harassment and torment from fellow students2. That is -to say the least- shocking. School districts lose about $29 a day for each student absent3. So, not only does bullying affect students, it affects the school as well.

People may be bruised, injured, or even killed. Kids under bad influence may turn very violent. Parents, relatives, friends, T.V., music and pictures may all influence people, especially when they are depressed or are in a lowered state of mind. Violence on T.V. is a very big influence, particularly the wrestling and fighting shows. Also, T.V. shows are quite readily available for anyone to watch. Kids may try “moves” on people at school because they believe it’s cool. As well, cooperation from children’s’ parents is important, some parents actually encourage their children to fight to look cool or don’t teach them properly. Kids must take their own initiative, as well, they must find out what’s wrong and what’s right for themselves sometimes. Many kids don’t take bullying seriously. However, when a real incident occurs, they are unprepared, shocked, regretful, or dead. Bullying must stop, for it is destroying the lives and futures of many innocents, perhaps not killing them, but ruining them. People may end up physically distorted, paralyzed, or dead because of bullying. Aside from physical harm, there is also mental harm. This is equally as destructive. Kids may become extremely depressed from being bullied. As a result, they may refuse to eat, become suicidal, or in return bully other kids to make themselves feel better. Although some of these examples of effects may not seem too serious, they really are. Commonly, there are

The impacts of bullying carry similar consequences as those who are victimized by corporal punishment. Victims of these acts are more likely to develop social, emotional, and even physical complications in their lifetimes. These acts can affect a child’s self esteem, social skills and their ability to interact with other children, their level of trust with others, and if the abuse is intense enough, the victim can not only have scratches and bruises, but broken bones as well. Not only are these victims directly influenced by these behaviors, but these violent acts may cause the victim to engage in similar ways towards another individual. This only further exacerbates the problem.

Bullying can affect everyone, from those who are bullied, those who bully, and those who witness bullying. Bullying is linked to many negative outcomes including impacts on mental health, drug use, and suicide. It is important to talk to kids to determine whether bullying, or something else, is a concern at their school, because children will not always speak up for themselves. Kids who are bullied can experience negative physical, school, and mental health issues. Kids who are bullied are most likely to experience depression and anxiety, increased feelings of sadness and loneliness, changes in sleep and eating patterns, and loss of interest in activities they used to enjoy. These issues may persist into

Often times, students who are involved in school violence have mental issues. One major issue is depression. Depression can arise from a combination of genetic vulnerability, suboptimal early developmental experiences, and exposure to stresses (Sokolova1). Depression occurs in many children around the world. Some children suffer from depression because of divorce or other problems in their childhood. How children respond to different stressors is different depending on the child’s personality and situation (Sokolova1). Lack of sleep could also be a problem in violence. Parents may be

According to Limber (2002), bullying and violence in schools has been a major social problem affecting Students, personal family and social well-being. In the educational system, the officials are disinclined in finding the etiology of bullying and its occurrences. From the physical actions of bullying; problems of low self- esteem, anxiety, rejection, loneliness, and paranoia are manifested as stated by Duncan (1999).

Bullying is becoming an increasingly important problem for parents, kids, school administrators and teachers, and it affects our society according to Cantone (2015). It is defined as the use of superior strength or influence to intimidate someone, usually to force him or her into doing what you want according to the Mariam-Webster (1828) dictionary. Its environment becomes repetitive over time and can last days, weeks, months, or even years. Bullying can take on several different forms ranging between verbal (mocking, insulting, or making racist remarks), physical (kicking, punching, slapping or damaging someone’s belongings), and indirect (spreading rumors or gossiping about another student) according to the (Bullying).