Bullying Defined:

Bullying is characterized by repeated, unprovoked harassment of another individual in which that individual has difficulty defending him/herself. 

Examples of Bullying include:

•      Punching, shoving and other acts that cause  physical harm
•      Spreading rumors (including cyber-bullying)
•      Excluding people from a "group"
•      Teasing in a mean way
•      Getting certain people to "gang up" on others

Bullying involves more than a "bully" and a "victim":

• Bullying is broken down into 5 categories along a continuum of involvement: bullies, victims, bully-victims, bystanders, and not involved with bullying

Bullying is a pervasive problem facing schools today.

•  8.4% to 20% of children report being bullied multiple times per week.  (Nansel et al., 2001; Limber & Small, 2000)
• As many as 44.6% of children report being bullied at least once per year (Haynie et al., 2001).
• 9% to 13% of children report bullying others    several times per week (Nansel et al., 2001; Limber & Small, 2000)
• 24% to 25% of children admit to bullying others at least once per year (Nansel et al., 2001; Haynie et al., 2001)

Bullying is an ecological phenomenon, which adversely affects many aspects of one's life.

As a result, those involved in bullying may experience:

• Poor academic performance and school failure
• Poor mental and psychological health (e.g. depression, anxiety, & behavioral problems)
• Delinquency
• Poor peer relationships
• Suicide risk