ANNOTATION
Bullyingjpc_1769 140..141
Kenneth P Nunn
Bronte Adolescent Intensive Care Mental Health Unit, The Forensic Hospital, Malabar, New South Wales, Australia
Key words: bullying; sensitive children; victims.
The invitation to write this paper raised a number of difficulties
for me. I was aware, of course, that what was in the frame of
discussion was the behaviour of children. Secondly, the major
focus is on the protection of anxious children from other chil-
dren with conduct difficulties or just garden-variety playground
insensitivity. There are some excellent websites that address
these issues1 and some recent Finnish longitudinal research2,3
that is the first of its kind, which broadly summarised says the
following:
1 There is a substantial increase in psychopathology in both
young men and women almost two decades after being fre-
quently bullied at age 8 years, with anxiety disorders,
depression and conduct disorder, all increased.
2 There is a substantial increase in psychopathology for both
young men and women almost two decades after doing the
bullying at age 8 years.
3 There is a substantial increase in suicide attempts and com-
pleted suicide in young adult women who have been fre-
quently bullied even after adjusting for depression and
conduct disorder.
4 There were increased rates of suicide and attempted suicide
in young men (including bullies, victims and boys who were
both bullies and victims at age 8 years), but the increase
disappeared when depression and conduct disorder were
taken into account.
There are at least five main emphases in the management of
bullying, which include the following:
1 Special targeting of girls who are frequently victimised for
prevention programmes may reduce completed suicide in
young adult women by up to 10%.3
2 Teaching children ways to avoid being bullied is likely to
be more effective than attempting to reducing bullying
behaviour.4
3 Teaching problem-solving skills and positive interaction skills
are likely to be as, or more, helpful than programmes that
emphasise rules and consequences to discourage bullying.4
4 Most interventions help a little if implemented thoroughly.
Most are not implemented thoroughly.
5 Cyber bullying must now be considered as part of the spec-
trum of bullying behaviour.1
However, I would like to be strategically obtuse for a moment
in order to address the problem without respect to children
alone and without the inevitable recourse to vulnerable targets
and less obviously, vulnerable perpetrators. These areas have
been discussed for so long in the literature and in the popular
wisdom that I do not believe I have anything new to offer.
Over the last 3 years, I have been working in the juvenile
detention centres in New South Wales, where around 400 chil-
dren at any one time, aged 10–18 years, are detained on remand
or with custodial orders. Over 90% are male and 50–60% indig-
enous. Those 20% with severe mental illness have an almost
90% recidivi.
Fostering Friendships - Enhancing Social Bonds in the Classroom
ANNOTATIONBullyingjpc_1769 140..141Kenneth P NunnBro.docx
1. ANNOTATION
Bullyingjpc_1769 140..141
Kenneth P Nunn
Bronte Adolescent Intensive Care Mental Health Unit, The
Forensic Hospital, Malabar, New South Wales, Australia
Key words: bullying; sensitive children; victims.
The invitation to write this paper raised a number of difficulties
for me. I was aware, of course, that what was in the frame of
discussion was the behaviour of children. Secondly, the major
focus is on the protection of anxious children from other chil-
dren with conduct difficulties or just garden-variety playground
insensitivity. There are some excellent websites that address
these issues1 and some recent Finnish longitudinal research2,3
that is the first of its kind, which broadly summarised says the
following:
1 There is a substantial increase in psychopathology in both
young men and women almost two decades after being fre-
quently bullied at age 8 years, with anxiety disorders,
depression and conduct disorder, all increased.
2 There is a substantial increase in psychopathology for both
young men and women almost two decades after doing the
bullying at age 8 years.
3 There is a substantial increase in suicide attempts and com-
pleted suicide in young adult women who have been fre-
2. quently bullied even after adjusting for depression and
conduct disorder.
4 There were increased rates of suicide and attempted suicide
in young men (including bullies, victims and boys who were
both bullies and victims at age 8 years), but the increase
disappeared when depression and conduct disorder were
taken into account.
There are at least five main emphases in the management of
bullying, which include the following:
1 Special targeting of girls who are frequently victimised for
prevention programmes may reduce completed suicide in
young adult women by up to 10%.3
2 Teaching children ways to avoid being bullied is likely to
be more effective than attempting to reducing bullying
behaviour.4
3 Teaching problem-solving skills and positive interaction skills
are likely to be as, or more, helpful than programmes that
emphasise rules and consequences to discourage bullying.4
4 Most interventions help a little if implemented thoroughly.
Most are not implemented thoroughly.
5 Cyber bullying must now be considered as part of the spec-
trum of bullying behaviour.1
However, I would like to be strategically obtuse for a moment
in order to address the problem without respect to children
alone and without the inevitable recourse to vulnerable targets
and less obviously, vulnerable perpetrators. These areas have
been discussed for so long in the literature and in the popular
wisdom that I do not believe I have anything new to offer.
3. Over the last 3 years, I have been working in the juvenile
detention centres in New South Wales, where around 400 chil-
dren at any one time, aged 10–18 years, are detained on remand
or with custodial orders. Over 90% are male and 50–60% indig-
enous. Those 20% with severe mental illness have an almost
90% recidivism rate, which swamps even aboriginality as a risk
factor for re-offending and return to detention (J Kasinathan, C
Gaskin, KP Nunn, pers. comm., 2009).5 Now, you might ask,
what has this to do with the issue of bullying?
The first answer to this question is, ‘Here is a group of serious
young bullies – what do they teach us?’
The second answer is, ‘Here is a group of the most vulnerable
young people in the state – what do they teach us?’
The third answer is, ‘If we consider, for just a brief time, life
from their perspective, it is difficult to escape the conclusion
that
the “successful” bullies are their heroes and those admired by
the rest of society.’
Where does this leave us on the subject of bullying? Each
weekend, players of various sports and codes within sports are
shown on national television committing acts of violence that
when committed by boys and girls in detention, lead to several
more months in custody. The zero tolerance of various levels of
government has no sway on the football field and no impact on
sledging behaviour in cricket. On the basis of much less evi-
dence of assault, sexual assault and antisocial behaviour, which
is regularly portrayed as endemic within rugby, young people
are being detained for sometimes months at a time while their
Key Points
5. cation to feel that life has not treated them well, receive serious
orders against them resulting in detention.
I am not criticising the judiciary or the police who have very
limited options placed before them in relation to these matters.
I am not even criticising football clubs, which provide some of
the only social fabric activities for much of the community. No,
it is a self-reflective process that I think is worthwhile.
What do they teach us? Bullies emerge within systems that
bully. The glorification of bullying behaviour in the adult popu-
lation is so endemic within the media, the business culture and
the governance of public administration that our preoccupation
with bullying among children is almost incomprehensible. On a
regular basis, I speak to colleagues who have been systemati-
cally bullied in the workplace by the very people responsible
for
the implementation of an anti-bullying policy. Bullies are not
only tolerated but often promoted because they will do the
unpleasant work of bullying.
Over the last 2 years, I have watched children and young
people detained by a society that has tolerated their parents’
abuse, neglect and victimisation of their children. The same
society has responded by offering the most tenuous of thera-
peutic services for mentally ill children with incarceration of
the
victims as the main alternative. I am part of that society along
with all our readers. By all means, let us respond to bullying in
children by whatever means is at our disposal. However, let us
not pretend that this is just a child’s problem. We adults have to
get our act together and work out what is acceptable and then
let the children know we have finally accomplished something
to show we are serious.
6. References
1 Miller V. Web review – Bullying. Paediatr. Child. Health.
Gen. Pract.
2009; 5: 34–5.
2 Sourander A, Jensen P, Ronning JA et al. What is the early
adult
outcome of boys who bully or are bullied in childhood? The
Finnish
‘From a boy to a Man’ study. Pediatrics. 2007; 120: 397–404.
3 Klomek AB, Sourander A, Niemela S et al. Childhood
bullying
behaviours as a risk for suicide attempts and completed
suicides: a
population-based birth cohort study. J. Am. Acad. Child.
Adolesc.
Psychiatry. 2009; 48: 254–61.
4 Rigby K. How successful are anti-bullying programs for
schools? Paper
presented at The Role of Schools in Crime Prevention
Conference
convened by the Australian Institute of Criminology in
conjunction with
the Department of Education, Employment and Training.
Melbourne:
Victoria and Crime Prevention Victoria, 2002.
5 Kenny D, Nelson P, Butler T, Lenning C, Allerton M,
Champion U. NSW
Young People on Community Orders Health Survey, 2003–2006.
Key
Findings Report. The University of Sydney Press, 2006.
8. vations of the hostage taker.
An awareness of the consequences of bullying has become more
visi-
ble to the public and more of a problem for law enforcement in
recent
times. Probably everyone has had some experience with
bullying, either
as a victim, witness or possibly a participant. Bullying is best
defined as
repeated and systematic harassment of another person. It can
take many
forms but is clearly intentional and cruel. Bullying behavior
can, in
some instances, consist of a single interaction; however, that is
not typi-
cal. Bullying may include physical attacks but may also consist
of ver-
bal threats and/or taunts. Blackmail and extortion, i.e., taking
one’s
lunch money or other valuables is also a form of bullying as is
being ex-
cluded from peer groups.
Horse-play and other encounters are not considered to be
bullying if
those involved have a personal relationship, as the intent of the
behavior
Dr. Mount is a Police Psychologist in private practice in Dallas,
Texas and the Edi-
tor of the Up Close and Personal feature seen in each issue of
this Journal.
Journal of Police Crisis Negotiations, Vol. 5(2) 2005
Available online at http://www.haworthpress.com/web/JPCN
10. Verbal Bullies
Verbal bullies rely on words to hurt or humiliate. Constant
teasing
and name-calling is their game. They may also make sexist and
racist
comments. This is the easiest one to inflict on victims as it can
be done
quickly. The long-term effects can be more devastating, in some
ways,
than physical bullying.
Relational Bullies
Relational or relationship bullies try to convince their peers to
ex-
clude or reject their victim. They want to cut off the victim’s
social con-
nections. Spreading nasty rumors, like verbal bullying, is often
part of
the pattern of trying to get the victim cut off from their social
connec-
tions. These types of bullies are more commonly girls.
Reactive Victims
Reactive victims may vacillate between being a victim and/or a
bully.
They may target other children just as they themselves have
been tar-
geted. These children tend to be impulsive and react physically
to any
perceived slight, often claiming self-defense as their
justification.
126 JOURNAL OF POLICE CRISIS NEGOTIATIONS
11. Bullying behavior can often be identified as early as the pre-
school
level. They tend to be more aggressive and interpret common
childhood
interactions in personalized, negative ways. If the other child is
per-
ceived as “out to get him/her” then it makes perfect sense to
retaliate
first using their physical and/or social skills to zero in on the
child’s
weakness and use the technique that is apt to cause the most
hurt. These
tend to become a lifelong pattern and bullying behavior in
childhood is a
significant predictor of aggressive behavior in adulthood. These
chil-
dren lack a sense of remorse and refuse to accept responsibility
for their
behavior. Consequently interventions need to begin at the
preschool
level. They need to be instructed in less aggressive approaches
of deal-
ing with conflict and learn how to approach frustrating and
conflicted
situations in more prosocial ways.
Attempts to develop assessment instruments include the Hare
Psychop-
athy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV) which was validated
using the
PCL-R, developed for individuals 18 or older. The PCL:YV can
be used
with individuals from age 12 until 18. Psychopathy has proved
12. to be a ro-
bust prediction of aberrant behavior and its application to
juveniles is apt to
be just as useful for this age group as it has proved to be with
adults. The
Structured Assessment of Violence Risk in Youth (SAVRY)is
based on a
structured professional judgment model and was designed to be
used from
age 12 until age 18. The Estimate of Risk of Adolescent Sexual
Offense
Recidivism (ERASOR) is also designed to be used between the
ages of 12
and 18; however, it is focused on estimating the recidivism risk
of someone
who has previously committed a sexual assault. The Risk-
Sophistica-
tion-Treatment Inventory (RSTI) was developed by Salekin
(2004) for use
with individuals between the ages of 9 and 18. It is a rating
scale based on a
semi-structured interview. There are 3 scales: Risk for
Dangerousness, So-
phistication-Maturity and Treatment Amenability. Raw scores
(based on a
3 point scale) are converted into T-Scores which afford standard
scores and
percentiles that facilitate comparisons and interpretations.
Without intervention the outlook for bullies is not good. They
may ini-
tially have some social acceptance and popularity as they are
perceived as
being powerful and able to do what they want to do. However,
by late ad-
olescence (14 or 15) that initial acceptance by others soon
13. diminishes sig-
nificantly. Their peer groups include other bullies and gang
affiliations.
They often drop out of school and become involved in the
juvenile cor-
rections system. By the early 20’s about 60% have at least one
criminal
conviction. They are more likely to develop Antisocial
Personality Disor-
ders, substance abuse disorders and are also more likely to use
mental
Up Close and Personal 127
health services as well as being involved with law enforcement
and the
criminal courts system.
While victims resent having been bullies, they have more
options
available to them and tend not to interact with bullies after age
16. They
are more vested in school and social groups and are developing
life
plans. Some of the victims carry emotional scars throughout
their life-
time and a few do not survive the humiliation of having been
bullied.
Most victims, however, do not harm themselves or others and
continue
on their developmental path.
INTERVENTIONS
14. Since the children know who are the bullies, the most effective
tool
would be the mobilization of the vast majority of children who
are neither
bullies or victims. The fear of being bullied is a major cause of
stress for
children at school, which provides an incentive for them to
become in-
volved. One way to do this is to establish a social climate at
school that
does not reward bullying or physical aggression. There should
be posted
rules regarding bullying and teasing. A violence and bullying
prevention
program should be established and curriculum developed which
provides
information on problem solving, conflict resolution,
communication
skills and developing and maintaining friendships. There should
be a
means for victims and others to contact school counselors or
other faculty
in a confidential manner. Finally, proactive responses by faculty
and con-
sistent supervision are all important intervention components. It
is be-
lieved that bullying can be significantly impacted if everyone
associated
with the school(teachers, students, student groups,
administrators and
parents) work together to stop bullying. This will have a
significant re-
duction in long-term community costs and a reduction in the use
of law
enforcement, correctional and mental health resources.
15. REFERENCES
Borum, R., Bartel, P., Forth, A. (2002). Manual for the
Structured Assessment of Vio-
lence Risk in Youth (SAVRY), University of Southern Florida,
13301 Bruce B.
Downs Blvd, Tampa, FL 33612-3807. E-mail: [email protected]
Bully B’ware Productions, 1421 King Albert Avenue,
Coquitlam, British Columbia
Canada V3J 1Y3, (604) 936-8000, 1-888-55BULLY. E-mail:
[email protected]
128 JOURNAL OF POLICE CRISIS NEGOTIATIONS
Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R), 2nd Ed. (2003).
Multi-Health Systems,
Inc., Box 950, N. Tonawanda, NY 14120-0950.
Salekin, R.T. (2004). Risk-Sophistication-Treatment Inventory
(RSTI) Psychological
Assessment Resources, 16204 N. Florida Ave., Luntz, FL 33549
(800)331-08378.
www.parinc.com.
Worling, J.R. & Curwen, T. The “ERASOR” (2001). SAFE-T
Program, Thistletown
Regional Centre, 51 Panorama Crt., Toronto, Ontario, Canada
M9V 4LB.
Up Close and Personal 129
