When is bullying

When adults respond quickly and consistently to bullying behavior they send the message that it is not acceptable. Research shows this can stop bullying behavior over time.

Parents, school staff, and other adults in the community can help kids prevent bullying by talking about it, building a safe school environment, and creating a community-wide bullying prevention strategy.

Learn what cyberbullying is, how to prevent it, and how to respond to it if you or someone you know is experiencing cyberbullying. Sometimes bullying overlaps with discriminatory harassment, which is covered under federal civil rights laws. Learn more about your civil rights. School staff can help prevent bullying by establishing and enforcing rules and policies that clearly describe how students are expected to treat each other. Bullying behaviour is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time for example, through sharing of digital records.

Bullying of any form or for any reason can have immediate, medium and long-term effects on those involved, including bystanders. Single incidents and conflict or fights between equals, whether in person or online, are not defined as bullying. Bullying is a phrase we hear regularly and often: in the media, on TV shows and movies, in schools and in conversations among both adults and children. Parents, students and schools are rightfully worried about bullying.

In the U. Bullying is defined as follows:. The repeated actions or threats of action directed toward a person by one or more people who have or are perceived to have more power or status than their target in order to cause fear, distress or harm. Bullying can be physical, verbal, psychological or any combination of these three.

When a person or a group behaves in ways—on purpose and over and over—that make someone feel hurt, afraid or embarrassed. It is important to distinguish bullying from other unkind, mean and harmful behavior. Calling someone a name or pushing someone once, being rude or having an argument with someone is not bullying.

Of course, these behaviors should be addressed but may have different consequences and interventions, which is why the distinction is critical. To be defined as bullying, all three components must be present: 1 repeated actions or threats, 2 a power imbalance and 3 intention to cause harm. If bullying is identified correctly, there are various ways to address it. Because identity-based bullying targets who the student is—a core part of their identity—it can be especially harmful.

It impacts not only the individual student but everyone else around them who identifies in the same way and who worries that they may be the next target. Ask: What can we do to help?