Why Do Children Bully?

Bullying can take on many forms and can be very damaging to children both physically and emotionally. Bullying is the desire of one child to hurt, threaten, intimidate, or embarrass another child. Bullying can be physical, emotional, written, verbal, and even sexual.

Bullying can happen to anyone and even popular, seemingly well adjusted children can bully others. Every type of bullying is serious, and should be dealt with accordingly. Understanding the different types of bullying and reasons behind it can go a long way in preventing and stopping this behavior. It should be clear that bullying is a serious issue that can have serious consequences and should be treated as such.

There are many reasons children bully others.

1. Some children have strained home lives, not be getting enough attention at home, have other family issues, or have been defined themselves so they do not tolerate differences. Children who come from abusive homes use violence to solve problems also may bully others. Children see, children do. If children are not taught the proper way to solve problems, they may resort to violence and bullying. It is well known that the abused eventually becomes the abuser.
2. Some children bully to compensate for their own problems, to gain a feeling of power, or to make themselves feel better. They turn to bullying as a way to solve these problems because it seems like the best way. If children have learning disabilities, or poor social skills they may also bully others to make themselves feel better about their social situation.
3. Some children are mean spirited or emotionally unstable and bullying others is actually enjoyable to them. Children may find happiness in the misery of others, have an emotional deficiency, or possess sociopathic characteristics.
4. Some children bully because they are being picked on themselves and they will retaliate by bullying others. This is a common way that the cycle of bullying continues and that children who would not normally bully others start to do so. No reason justifies bullying, but some children don’t know any other way to deal with their problems.
5. Some children bully because they have low self esteem or a poor self image.

The most important thing to remember when dealing with a child that bullies is that their motive may be different from the norm and the underlying problem must be resolved in order to stop the bullying cycle. The underlying reason is the key.

Give your child positive ways to deal with problems and stress so they don’t have to use bullying. Children who are stopped quickly are much less likely to suffer from long term effects of bullying.

Stopping bullying is important not only for the victims of bullying but for the bullies themselves. Children who bully often have problems later in life and end up committing crimes and continuing their cycle of aggression. Stopping a bully while they are young and making them realize the consequences of their actions is important to prevent future problems.

Related Resources

• http://www.theline.gov.au/
• http://www.bullypolice.org/
• http://www.bullying.co.uk/
• hhtp://www.bullyingcanada.ca/content/239799
• http://robertmijas.com/blog/the-facts-on-cyber-bullying/
• http://robertmijas.com/blog/focus-on-bullying-and-parenting-self-esteem-and-our-health/