Bullies, Victims, and Bystanders
- Types of bullies
- Types of bully victims
- Types of bully bystanders
Bully Bystanders
"I don't like it that he is bullied, but I can't do anything about it or they will turn on me, too."
While far too many students report that they are bullies, victims, or both, the vast majority of young people are neither bullies nor victims. Instead, most students fall into the category of bystander. This group includes everyone -- other than the bully and victim -- who is present during a bullying incident. According to John A. Calhoun, president and CEO of the National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC), 6 out of 10 American teenagers witness bullying in school one or more times each day. In addition to the terrible problems that bullying creates for those who are directly involved, student bystanders to bullying also experience feelings of fear, discomfort, guilt, and helplessness. According to the U.S. Department of Education, bystanders may experience the following:
- Be afraid to associate with the victim for fear of either lowering their own status or of retribution from the bully and becoming victims themselves
- Fear reporting bullying incidents because they do not want to be called a "snitch," a "tattler," or "informer"
- Experience feelings of guilt and helplessness for not standing up to the bully on behalf of their classmate
- Be drawn into bullying behavior by group pressure
- Feel unsafe, unable to take action, or a loss of control
It is clear that bystanders display distinct patterns of behavior during a bullying incident; these responses represent students' attitudes toward the problem of bullying (e.g., positive, neutral-indifferent, negative) as well as the actions they are likely to take during an actual incident. The Bullying Circle below, based on Olweus' early research as well as the research of Salmivalli and colleagues, illustrate and describe each of these bystander roles.
"Bullying poisons the educational environment and affects the learning of every child." - Dan Olweus
(click the image to enlarge)
In addition to describing the various roles that students can play in a bullying situation, the Bullying Circle further depicts the importance of moving young people to the right -- specifically away from the bullies and their supporters and toward defenders of victims. In a study by Boulton and Underwood (1992), middle school students responded to the question, "What do you do when you see a child of your age being bullied?" in the following manner:
- 49 percent said they tried to help in some way.
- 29 percent said they did nothing, but thought that they should try to help.
- 22 percent said they would not help because it was none of their business.
A full third of the young people in this study indicated that they could see why bullying happened, which seems to suggest that they -- at some level -- accept and/or condone bullying behavior among their peers. And, in another study by Whitney and Smith (1993), 18 percent of the participating middle and high school students said that they would join in if their friends were bullying someone. While most attempts to reduce youth violence have focused on the perpetrator or the relationship between perpetrators and victims, it is increasingly recognized that such interventions do not go far enough in creating safe schools and communities. It is also critical to consider the role of bystanders, whose influence in perpetuating or escalating violence has often been overlooked.
"If we don't involve bystanders, we can't solve the problem. The most dangerous place in a school is the restroom because of isolation. Well, you also can have isolation in the middle of a cafeteria if a bully convinces everybody else not to intervene. If we can show bystanders how to become involved as bystanders, we reduce isolation (Caldwell, Autumn/Winter 1997)."-- Richard Hazler, professor of counselor education, Ohio University
Bystanders clearly have a range of choices when it comes to bullying. They can passively accept it, overtly encourage it, or denounce a bully's actions and provide support to the victims. In fact, it is clear that many students who possess characteristics typical of victims are protected against bullying because of such social factors as peer acceptance and supportive friends.
Sidebar:Children with ADHD, ODD, and other behavioral disorders are particularly vulnerable to low self-esteem. They frequently experience school problems, have difficulty making friends, and lag behind their peers in psychosocial development. They are more likely than other children to bully and to be bullied. Parents of children with behavior problems experience highly elevated levels of child-rearing stress, and this may make it more difficult for them to respond to their children in positive, consistent, and supportive ways./p>
Page last modified by Department of Education on January 25, 2010
Page last modified or reviewed by athealth on January 31, 2014