Essay Grade

Bullying
Bullying
Program Transcript
LINDA: Amy, can you talk to me? You’re safe here.
AMY: I’m not safe anywhere.
LINDA: Tell me what’s going on? How are things at home?
AMY: My dad’s sick. He had a stroke a few weeks ago. Everything’s so messed up
there. But I’m sure you already heard that from my mom. You’re her social worker, too,
right?
LINDA: Yes.
AMY: What else did she tell you? I bet she told you I won’t talk to her about what’s going
on. I can’t talk to her. She’s so upset about everything that’s going on with my dad. The
last thing she needs to hear is my problems.
I thought about talking to my guidance counselor at school, but I can’t do that either.
They’ll only see me, and it will get worse. That’s why my mom brought me to you,
thinking you can help me, where they can’t see.
LINDA: Tell me a little bit more about school. What do you mean by if they see you it will
get worse?
AMY: Some girls, they’ve been picking on me– calling me names– fat pig, ugly. They
make fun of my clothes. Yesterday, two of them are waiting by my locker. They pushed
me down, rubbed food in my hair. There were others in the hall, but they just stood
there and laughed.
LINDA: How did that make you feel?
AMY: How do you think? It hurts. They make me feel like a freak. I’m scared what
they’re going to do next. I hate school.
LINDA: I understand.
AMY: But that’s not the worst. They text me late at night, waking me up, saying they’re
going to beat me up. They say, I deserve it for being so ugly. I’m starting to think they’re
right.
LINDA: Have you told anybody about these threats?
AMY: They’ll get me worse if I snitch. Besides, nobody will understand.
© 2018 Laureate Education, Inc.
1
Bullying
LINDA: What do you mean by nobody will understand?
AMY: Because they won’t. Nobody understands what it feels like. Not unless they go
through it.
[TEXT MESSAGE]
LINDA: How do you feel right now?
AMY: Read for yourself. How would you feel?
© 2018 Laureate Education, Inc.
2
Working together
www.asistentasociala.ro
Revista de cercetare [i interven]ie social
Review of research and social intervention
ISSN: 1583-3410 (print), ISSN: 1584-5397 (electronic)
Selected by coverage in Social Sciences Citation Index, ISI databases
School bullying: definition, characteristics,
and intervention strategies
Mihai Curelaru, Ioan Iacob, Beatrice Abla[ei
Revista de cercetare [i interven]ie social, 2009, vol. 26, pp. 7-29
The online version of this article can be found at:
www.ceeol.com
www.asistentasociala.ro
www.expertprojects.ro
Published by:
Lumen Publishing House
On behalf of:
„Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University,
Department of Sociology and Social Work
and
Holt Romania Foundation
Additional services and information about Social Work in Romania
can be found at:
Virtual Ressources Center in Social Work
www.asistentasociala.ro
3
Working together
www.asistentasociala.ro
School bullying: definition, characteristics, and
intervention strategies
Mihai CURELARU1, Ioan IACOB2, Beatrice AB|LA{EI3
Abstract
The bullying is one of the most frequent forms of school violence which affects
about one third of the students’ population. Within the present paper, we wanted
to present a short synthesis regarding the stage of the researches from the area by
first analyzing the prevalence of the school violence and the existing differences
according to variables like age and sex. Then, we proposed a conceptual clarification starting from the most well-known definitions and we described the
main forms of bullying: physical, verbal and relational. Also, we presented the
psychological profile of the bully and of the victim, the way in which they are
perceived by their mates and the main consequences of victimization. Within the
last part, we described the most frequently used actions for the diminution of the
school violence, based on the suggestions made by different authors and that can
be found in the majority of the mainly used intervention programs. In the end, we
presented the situation in Romania regarding the main scientific researches made
until now, as well as the strategy elaborated by the Romanian officials for the
combating and prevention of the school violence.
Keywords: bullying, violence, aggression, prevention, school
Today, all over the world, from 15 to 30% of the students are affected by the
bullying phenomenon, as most of the studies made in schools on this theme show
(see for details Piskin, 2002, p. 557). This phenomenon refers to multiple forms
1
Associate professor, PhD, Psychology Department, Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences, „Al. I. Cuza” University, Str. T. Cozma, nr.3, 700544, Iasi-Romania, phone: 0232.
201292, e-mail: mihai.curelaru@uaic.ro.
2
Professor, PhD, Faculty of Physical Education and Sport, „Al. I. Cuza” University, Str. T.
Cozma, nr.3, 700544, Iasi-Romania, phone: 0232.201026, e-mail: admefs@uaic.ro.
3
Associate professor, PhD, Faculty of Physical Education and Sport, „Al. I. Cuza” University, Str. T.
Cozma, nr.3, 700544, Iasi-Romania, phone: 0232.201027, e-mail: beatrice.abalasei@uaic. ro.
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REVISTA DE CERCETARE {I INTERVEN}IE SOCIAL| – VOLUMUL 26/2009
of physical and/or psychological aggression over other students, repeatedly, in a
certain period of time (Batsche and Knoff, 1994).
Many social factors that are involved are interested in the exploration of the
manifestations and the causes of the school violence and among these, the most
preoccupied are the managerial teams of the schools, the teachers, the school
psychologists, the police authorities, as well as the students. Thus, the results of a
survey realized in 1984 by National Association of Secondary School Principals,
showed that over 25% of the students consider that one of the most important
worries regarding the school refers to “the fear of the bullies” (Batsche and Knoff,
1994).
Regarding the study of the consequences, in the older approaches of the school
violence, the stress was put on the victims and on the school environment exclusively. But the more recent researches show that the school violence has unfavorable psychological consequences both over the victims and over the bullies
(Hazler, 1994). Moreover, certain studies over the bullying and sexual harassment
from the working place show that these behaviors are originated from practices
from the school period (Rayner, 1997; O’Moore, Seigne, McGuire, and Smith,
1998).
Through this synthetic study, we proposed ourselves to explore the complex
phenomenon of the school bullying, delimitating its conceptual area, showing the
main characteristics, expansion and manifestation forms. There will also be described the psychological profiles of the main involved actors (victims and bullies),
and some of the most well-known strategies of social intervention. We will
conclude by presenting the situation in our country both at the level of the research
and of the national strategy of combating this phenomenon.
The Extent of the Phenomenon
The researches regarding the school violence began in the 8th decade of the
past century, through the inquests made by the Norwegian researcher Dan Olweus.
The publishing of his first important paper on this theme, Aggression in the
Schools: Bullies and Whipping Boys (1978), draws the attention of the scientific
community over this relatively neglected behavior until that period. But it is in
1982 when this phenomenon sensitizes the authorities after the suicide of three
students who were exasperated by the harassment they have been submitted to by
their mates. After this event, Olweus leads a major survey on a population of
130,000 students, coming from 715 schools from Norway (Olweus, 1991a, 1993,
1994). The data obtained from this study show that about 15% of the Norwegian
students between 7-16 years old were involved in bullying issues (either as
aggressors, as victims, or both). From the total of the investigated sample, about
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REALITATEA PE MASA DE DISEC}IE
9% were victims, 7% aggressors and 1.6% both victims and aggressors (17% of
the total of the victims). Also, 5% of them have been involved in more serious
bullying issues, meaning that they have been aggressed once a week or even more
frequently (Olweus, 1994).
During the next period, the researches over this phenomenon expanded to
other countries as well, like England and Wales (Stephenson and Smith, 1987;
Lane, 1989; Smith, 1991; Boulton and Underwood, 1992; Whitney and Smith,
1993), Ireland (O’Moore, Kirkham, and Smith, 1997), Finland (Lagerspetz, Björkqvist, Berts, and King, 1982), Norway (Roland and Idsøe, 2001), the Netherlands
(Junger-Tas, 1999), United States (Perry, Kusel, and Perry, 1988; Nansel, Overpeck, Pilla, Ruan, Simons-Morton, and Scheidt, 2001), Japan (Murakami, 1985;
Morita, Soeda, Soeda, and Taki, 1999), Canada (Charach, Pepler, and Ziegler,
1995), and Australia (Rigby and Slee, 1991; Slee, 1994; Rigby and Slee, 1999).
Regarding the percentage of the directly involved persons (bullies and victims),
the results oscillate between 15% and 30% from the population of students,
depending on country, age, sex etc. For example, in a survey made in England,
Stephenson and Smith (1987) showed that, from the total of the students who
participated to the study, 10% have been identified as bullies, 7% declared themselves to be victims of the bullying and 6% obtained characteristics of both
victims and bullies. In the same country, a few years later, Smith (1991), found
20% of the students to be victims of the bullying and 10% to be aggressors. More
recently, in the U.S.A., through a national survey whose data were published in
2001, it was discovered that 29.9% of the students who participated to the study
were involved either as perpetrator (13%), victim (10.6%) or bully-victim (6%),
in bullying issues (Nansel et. al, 2001).
Definition and Characteristics
The school bullying is one of the school violence forms, the most frequent
form. Generally speaking, in the specialty literature, the bullying is defined as a
repeated violent act that takes place between persons who generally have an equal
status, for example school mates or work colleagues. But, even from the last
decade, within this research area, there have been taken into account various
forms of aggressions caused by the students over the teachers or by the teachers
over the students (Smith, 2004). For example, the results of a survey realized by
Johnston, O’Malley and Bencham (1993), quoted by Batsche and Knoff (1994),
showed that in the U.S.A. 28% of the teachers from the public schools have been
verbally aggressed, 15% were threatened under different forms and 3% were
physically aggressed. But these last reports of bullying (student-teacher or teacherstudent) are rarely taken into consideration by the researchers when defining the
concept. Therefore, within the following considerations, we will admit that,
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REVISTA DE CERCETARE {I INTERVEN}IE SOCIAL| – VOLUMUL 26/2009
generally speaking, the term of bullying is resumed to the student-student relation
and it represents only a part of the larger research area of school violence. The
latter would also comprise the other forms of school violence, like the teacher –
student violence, the student – teacher violence, the perturbation of the classes
(the absence, the silence perturbation etc.) and the destruction of the school goods
(the deterioration, the theft etc.).
Olweus (1994, 1999) considers that any definition of the bullying phenomenon
must comprise three criteria: (1) the fact that it is an aggressive behavior meant to
hurt someone, (2) which is carried out repeatedly and over time and (3) it takes
place within a personal relationship characterized by an imbalance of power (an
asymmetric power relationship). In his opinion, “a student is being bullied or
victimized when he or she is exposed, repeatedly and over time, to negative
actions on the part of one or more students” (1999, p. 31). Also, Olweus (1993,
1994) considers that one can make the distinction between the direct bullying/
victimization (with relatively open attacks on the victim) and indirect bullying/
victimization (social isolation and intentional exclusion from a group).
Ken Rigby distinguishes two senses of the term of „bullying”. The first sense,
more expanded, is that of systematic abuse of power (Rigby, 2002). By the other
sense, more restrained, „bullying is repeated oppression, psychological or physical, of a less powerful person by a more powerful person or group of persons”
(Rigby, 2007, p.15). The violent act is characterized, in Rigby’s opinion, by the
following elements: (1) an initial intention of hurting (2) the express desire to act
(3) the touching or hurting of someone (4) the beginning of the behavior by an
individual or by a stronger group against someone who is less powerful (5) the
lack of justification of the action (6) the recurrence of the act, and (7) the producing of a searched pleasure (Rigby, 2007).
Elinoff, Chafouleas, and Sassu (2004) consider the bullying to be an aggressive
individual or group behavior, characterized through direct hostility towards the
others, proactive (the initiation of the action without any provocation) or reactive
(as an answer to the action initiated by someone else), direct (for example, open
attack) or indirect (for example, isolation or exclusion) hostility.
Finally, for Lines (2008) „bullying behavior is continual physical, psychological, social, verbal or emotional methods of intimidation by an individual or
group. Bullying is any action such as hitting or name-calling that makes you feel
angry, hurt or upset” (p.19).
From the before mentioned definitions, one can extract a few elements that are
characteristic for the conceptual clarification of this phenomenon, elements that
can be identified through several approaches. We excluded any reference to the
manifestation forms because we do not consider their presence to be necessary in
a minimal definition. In fact, within the following section of this paper we will
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REALITATEA PE MASA DE DISEC}IE
detail this subject as well. In the following table we have synthesized these data,
taking into account the characteristic element and the author that sustained it (see
table 1).
Table 1. Characteristic elements for the bullying
Characteristic element
Author (s)
Dodge (1991), Olweus (1993), Rivers and Smith
A form of aggression
(1994), Batsche, Knoff (1994), Rigby and Slee
Category
(1999), Elinoff, Chafouleas, and Sassu (2004)
A form of violence
Roland (1989)
A form of oppression
Rigby (2007)
Besag (1993), Batsche and Knoff (1994), Smith
Repeatedly (systematic character)
and Sharp (1994), Olweus (1999), Espelage and
Time,
Swearer (2003), Rigby (2007)
frequency
A certain period of time, a longer period of
Roland (1989), Hazler and Hoover (1993), Batsche
time
and Knoff (1994), Olweus (1993, 1994, 1999)
Olweus (1993, 1994, 1999), Elinoff, Chafouleas,
Exposure to negative actions *
and Sassu (2004)
Abuse of power
Smith and Sharp (1994), Rigby (2002)
Hurtful action
Rigby (2002)
Content
Method of intimidation
Lines (2008)
Harassment
Hazler and Hoover (1993)
Direct hostility towards the others
Elinoff, Chafouleas, and Sassu (2004)
Olweus (1994, 1999), Besag (1993), Nansel et al.
Relation
Imbalance of strength or power
(2001), Farrington (1993) Rigby (2002, 2003,
2007)
To hurt for unjustified reasons
Olweus (1994, 1999), Rigby (2002, 2007)
The provocation of a pleasure, of a
Target
Rigby (2007)
satisfaction
The obtaining of a prestigious gain
Espelage and Swearer (2003)
(dominancy, power, status) or goods
Note: „It is negative action when someone intentionally inflicts, or attempts to
inflict, injury or discomfort upon another – basically what is implied in the
definition of aggressive behavior in the social sciences” (Olweus, 2002).
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Forms of Bullying
There were also studied the most frequent types or forms of bullying and there
were proposed several classifications, like the nature of the act (verbal/physical),
the distance rapport with the aggressor (direct/indirect), the number of persons
(individual/group), the obnoxiousness (malign/non-malign) and the type of reaction (proactive/reactive).
As about the frequency, the most common types of school violence are the
teasing and the name calling, followed by the hitting, the kicking, and the threatening (Hoover, Oliver, and Hazler, 1992; Sharp and Smith, 1994). As about the
proper manifestation forms, most of the classifications divide the violent behaviors
into two great categories: direct aggression versus indirect aggression (Olweus,
1991; 1993; Björqvist, Lagerspetz, and Kaukiainen, 1992; Rivers and Smith,
1994; Craig, Henderson, and Murphy, 2000) or overt versus covert aggression
(Crick, 1995; Crick, Casas, and Ku, 1999). The latter does not imply the face-toface confrontation, but the presence of a third-party, towards which the respective
person is denigrated (the lick, the rumor spreading etc.).
Rigby (2007) proposes a classification in which he crosses two criteria. In the
following table we took the two dimensions proposed by Rigby and we systematized the various manifestations of the school violence met in the specialty
literature (see table 2).
It is hard to classify the bullying behaviors because some of them can be put in
both categories. For example, the name calling is considered to be both a form of
direct bullying and of indirect bullying, obviously depending on the context.
Then, the threatening is a behavior that usually implies a face-to-face rapport, but
it can take all the three modalities of the direct bullying (physical, verbal, nonverbal). Even more, it can be a form of indirect verbal violence when, for example,
someone is threatened through another person.
Lately, new forms of bullying are being investigated. One of them is the
relational aggression, which refers to the bullying exercised over the social
relation, in order to compromise, destroy or manipulate it (Crick and Grotpeter,
1996; Crick and Nelson, 2002). Another form is the one called social aggression,
which represents the deterioration or the compromising of the self-esteem, of the
reputation or of the social status (Smith, 2004). The last and the most interesting
modality of bullying, explored within this decade, is called by the researchers the
cyberbullying. For example, Smith (2004) reports the data obtained through a
survey with 656 participants, between 11 and 19 years old. The results show that
16% of the participants received threatening electronic messages, 7% were harassed in internet chat rooms, and 4% by email. In another survey, having a
number of 360 teen-age participants between 12 and 20 years old, Slonje and
Smith (2008) investigated four categories of cyberbullying. The results show that
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there are little differences from the perspective of the involved variables, but it
was underlined the fact that the impact of cyberbullying was perceived as highly
negative for picture/video clip bullying in comparison with the other forms.
Table 2. Forms of bullying
Direct
Indirect
Physically assaulting, Hitting,
Spitting, Kicking, Slapping,
Tripping, Throwing stones, Pulling,
Getting another person to assault
Physical
Pushing, Damaging victim’s
someone etc.
property, Stealing things, Gun
threatening, Touching or grabbing in
sexual way etc.
Persuading another person to insult
Verbal
Verbal insulting, Name calling,
someone, Slandering, Making racial
Offence, Verbal threatening, Staring,
slurs, Spreading malicious rumors,
Taunting etc.
Gossiping, Manipulation of
friendships etc.
Non-physical
Removing and hiding belongings,
Obscene gestures, Intimidation,
Deliberate excluding from a group or
Non-
Humiliation, Making faces, Teasing,
verbal
sticking out the tongue, eye-rolling
activity, Rejecting, Social
marginalization, Silent treatment,
etc.
Ostracizing etc.
The Impact of Certain Variables: the Age and the Gender
Numerous studies approached the possible differences regarding the involvement of the students in bullying, from the perspective of variables like the age
and the gender. Regarding the first mentioned aspect, the results show that generally speaking the bullying cases reported for the boys are more numerous than
in the case of the girls, for the primary and secondary education level. The boys
are both victims and aggressors in a higher amount in comparison with the girls.
The results of a research made by Boulton and Underwood (1992) show that 65%
from the cases of bullying have as authors the boys, 15% girls and 19% both boys
and girls.
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From the point of view of the physical aggression/relational aggression rapport,
the girls practice the relational aggression in a higher percentage than the physical
aggression, while in the case of the boys the two forms manifest themselves
around the same percentage (Young, Boye and Nelson, 2006). Therefore, the
bullying of the girls has a less direct character than the bullying of the boys. The
girls practice a more subtle bullying, among the most frequent forms being the
rumor spreading, the gossip, the rejection, the social exclusion, and the manipulation of the social relationships (Lagerspetz, Björkqvist, and Peltonen, 1988;
Rigby and Slee, 1991; Whitney and Smith, 1993; Ahmad and Smith, 1994; Smith
and Sharp, 1994; Rivers and Smith, 1994; Olweus, 1999).
The other important variable that was studied is the age. Generally speaking,
the researchers noticed a higher frequency of the violent acts for the smaller age
categories than for the older age categories, which indicates a decrease of the
phenomenon positively correlated with the ageing (Rigby and Slee, 1991; Boulton
and Underwood, 1992; Olweus, 1994; Nansel at. al., 2001). The predominance of
certain forms of bullying gradually modifies once with the age. Therefore, in the
case of the younger persons, the physical aggressions are more frequent, while in
the case of the older persons the verbal and psychological aggressions are more
frequently met (Piskin, 2002).
Also, if for the younger ages the numbers show that the boys are more involved
in bullying actions (both as victims and aggressors), in the case of the older ages,
there is a tendency to diminish these differences, so that in college there are no
significant differences between boys and girls from this point of view (Rigby and
Slee, 1991; Boulton and Underwood, 1992; Nansel et al., 2001).
The Characteristics of the Victim
The victim is characterized first of all by a high degree of insecurity, anxiety
and depression (Olweus, 1991a; Olweus, 1993; Bond, Carlin, Thomas, Rubin,
and Patton, 2001). Usually, the victim is a pupil who cares about the others, who
is calm, lonely and sensitive. When attacked by other students, he or she commonly reacts by crying (at least in the lower grades) and withdrawal (Olweus,
1991a). In most of the studies, there were noticed the following common behaviors: avoidance, withdrawn, and escape behaviors (skipping school, avoiding
places at school etc.) (Batsche and Knoff, 1994). Usually, these students hardly
adapt themselves to the school life, they have difficulties in communicating with
the mates and with the adults, they respond in delay to the tasks given by the
teacher and they manifest concentration difficulties during the classes. The data
of several studies show the presence of the low self-esteem in the case of the
victims (Olweus, 1993; O’Moore and Kirkham, 2001). The students that represent
targets of the bullying acts for longer periods of time developed negative
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cognitions about themselves, like the belief that they would suffer only failures,
that they are unattractive, unintelligent, and that they do not matter in the eyes of
the others.
Olweus (1978, 1994) describes two types of victims: the passive (or submissive) victim and the provocative victim. The first category is represented by the
students that manifest sensitivity, anxiety, insecurity, withdrawal, and lack of
aggressiveness, but with closer contacts and positive relationships with the parents. They „are characterized by an anxious or submissive reaction pattern
combined with physical weakness” (1994, p.1179). The provocative victim, which
is the second type of victim, is described by Olweus as hot-tempered, restless,
anxious, and „one who will attempt to retaliate when attacked”. The students who
belong to this category deal with concentration problems, hyperactivity and they
provoke tension and irritation around them. They are less than the others and they
„are characterized by a combination of both anxious and aggressive reaction
patterns” (1994, p.1179).
How do the other mates see and treat the victims? Generally speaking, the
victims do not enjoy a good status in the eyes of the aggressors or of the other
mates. The researches show that the victimized students are described by their
own mates as „nerds”, „weak”, and „afraid to fight back” (Charach, Pepler, and
Ziegler, 1995). In most of the cases, they do not have any friend in the class
(Olweus, 1991a), they are gradually abandoned by the other children and they
spend their breaks alone (Olweus, 1993).
It was also noticed that the victims rarely report the bullying cases they are
involved into. The studies show that about 40% of the students from the primary
schools and around 60% from those of the junior high schools indicated as a
possibility to solve the bullying problems the appeal to the adults’ help (Olweus,
1991a, 1993). Roberts and Coursol (1996) consider that there are two main reasons
why these students avoid the reporting: the fear of revenge and the experience that
shows an inefficient support from the adults they appeal to.
On a short and average term, the bullying causes the victims psychological
disorders like the depression and the anxiety. Also, the girls specifically develop
eating disorders (Bond et al., 2001). Other consequences are the chronic absenteeism, the reduced academic performance, and the suicidal ideation (Beale, 2001;
Roberts and Coursol, 1996). A meta-analytic study made by Card (2003), cited by
Smith (2004), shows high correlations between victimization and some relational
variables on one hand [peer rejection (.38), poor friendship quality (.23), low
number of friends (.20), low peer acceptance (.19) etc.], and between victimization
and some personal variables, on the other hand [low self-esteem (.29), low
physical strength (.28), low school enjoyment (.21), poor social skills (.19) etc.].
Rigby (2003) systematizes the consequences of the involvement of the students
in bullying acts into four categories, taking into account both the mental and
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physical health: (1) low psychological well-being (unhappiness, low self-esteem,
anger, and sadness), (2) poor social adjustment (feelings of aversion toward one’s
social environment, loneliness, isolation, and absenteeism), (3) psychological
distress (anxiety, depression, and suicidal thinking), and (4) physical unwellness
(physical disorders, and psychosomatic symptoms).
The Characteristics of the Aggressor
The bullies represent a problem because they create an unfavorable school
environment in which some students do not feel safe, avoiding the passage or the
standing in certain school spaces (the yard, certain halls, the sports yard etc.)
(Batsche and Knoff, 1994).
With the help of results from several surveys, one tried to describe the psychological profile of the bully. Olweus showed that this is often one of the strongest
students in the class from a physical point of view (Olweus, 1991b, 1994), but
many other authors consider that this condition is not a must Beaty and Alexeyev,
2008). According to Olweus, the basic profile of a masculine bully is characterized
by the combination of two elements: a pattern of aggressive reaction and physical
strength (Olweus, 1994).
Some studies describe the bully as hot-tempered, impulsive and having a low
tolerance for frustration. For the „show” he offers, he is rewarded with a prestigious gain, sometimes with money or cigarettes (Olweus, 1993). The aggressive
student is characterized by a strong need to dominate the others, by using reprehensible methods and though some empathy towards the victims (Olweus,
2002; Espelage and Swearer, 2003). Regarding the self-esteem, the comparison of
the aggressive students with those who did not aggress the others shows that the
first have a lower level of the self-esteem (O’Moore and Kirkham, 2001).
Some authors nuance the profile of the aggressor, distinguishing several subtypes. Thus, Pearce (2002) identifies three different types of bullies: the aggressive
type, the anxious type and the passive type. The first type corresponds to most of
the aggressors and it is characterized by the initiation of certain negative actions
and not only over the weaker persons, but over anyone. Generally speaking, it is
a strong student, both from a physical and emotional point of view, who values
violence and does not cherish friendship. He is not sensitive to the sufferance of
the others, he is dominant, he lack self-control and he has a high self-esteem. The
anxious type, who is often a victim, is described as insecure, lonely, emotionally
unstable and with a low self-esteem. He tends to provoke attacks through other
aggressors or to choose improper victims, like students who are physically stronger than him. The passive aggressor, the third type, engages himself to bullying
behaviors in order to protect himself or in order to keep his status. In comparison
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with the others, he is characterized by higher empathy and sensitivity to the
sufferance of the victims, as well as guilt feelings caused by his deeds.
Regarding his popularity, Farmer et al. (2002), cited by Smokowski and Kopasz
(2005), identify two types of bullies. The first type of bully is the popular kind of
student, having good social competences and the ability to attract, organize and
manipulate the others. In this case, he is able to socialize with the others without
having to face the marginalization or stigmatization generated by his own violent
deeds. The other type is represented by the unpopular aggressor, a case in which
the group neglects him or even rejects him. The popularity of the bully decreases
once with the promotion to the higher classes and it is considerably decreased
around the age of 16 (Olweus, 2002).
Some bullies do not act by themselves; they only instigate the others to
violence, morally „guiding” their acts. Others, called by the researchers passive
bullies, followers or henchmen, participate to the bullying acts, but they do not
have their own initiative (Olweus, 1994). Also, Olweus (2002) noticed that many
bullies are not aggressive only towards the peers, but they are often aggressive
towards the adults, both towards the parents and the teachers.
The researches show that usually the aggressor is victimized within the family.
Synthesizing the results of several studies, Batsche and Knoff (1994) sustain that
the aggressor has parents with the following characteristics: autoritharism, preference for the physical means of discipline maintenance, hostility and rejection,
behavioral inconsistency (excessive authority alternated in an unjustified manner
with permissivity and exaggerated relaxation), reduced surveillance, low skills of
problem-solving etc. Within these families, violence is often practiced, seen as
something natural; this is the reason why the student who comes from this
environment is advised by the parents to answer with his own violence to the
violence he faces at school (Batsche and Knoff, 1994).
Oliver and Neal (1994) noticed that the families the bullies come from usually
face financial troubles; they develop a cold family environment, which lacks the
dialogue and the implication into the children’s life. These families are characterized by a weak structure of the internal relationships, rules inconsistency,
external social isolation and the lack of certain communitarian arrangements. The
family life is dominated by parental conflicts and disharmonies, rigidity in the
issues approaching and a reduced preoccupation for the formation of the social
competences at children and a weak parental control. The conclusions of several
researches show that, in most of the cases, the violence is learned from the family
environment (Sandu, 2007, 2008; Croitor, 2008), where there are major conflicts
and the aggression is valued as a way to solve the probl