25 Disturbing Facts About Bullying You Probably Didn’t Know

Posted by , Updated on December 26, 2023

Defined as the use of force, threat, or coercion to abuse, intimidate, or aggressively dominate others, bullying is a serious social problem among children, teens as well as adults. Occurring in many different forms, bullying is a growing issue that needs to be addressed and dealt with, so we decided to compile some disturbing, little-known facts about bullying to raise awareness about this problem. After reading these 25 Disturbing Facts About Bullying You Probably Didn’t Know, you will also be able to notice warning signs in victims of bullying as well as in those who might be bullies themselves.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgSp6SRTzpI

25

Bullying mostly takes place at school, but it can develop in any context in which humans interact with each other. This includes family, workplace, home, sport team, neighborhood, prison etc.

school kidsSource: wikipedia.org
24

Rationalizations for bullying may include differences of social class, race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, appearance, behavior, personality, reputation, lineage, strength, ability etc.

school boySource: wikipedia.org, image: commons.wikimedia.org (public domain)
23

About 40% of those who were identified as bullies in school continue the trend of abuse and violence by the age of 30.

bullyingSource: nobullying.com
22

Bullying can be classified into four basic types: physical, verbal, relational and cyber-bullying.

BullyingSource: wikipedia.org
21

Over 67% of students believe that schools respond poorly to bullying, with a high percentage of them believing that adult help is infrequent and ineffective.

bullyingSource: dosomething.org
20

Bullying is often performed by groups. This type of bullying is known as mobbing.

mobbingSource: wikipedia.org,
19

The main differences between bullying and a common interpersonal conflict are repetition and intention to cause harm; bullies target the same person or group over and over again.

bullyingSource: bullyingstatistics.org
18

More parents are allowing their young children (for example those with protruding ears and other imperfections) to undergo plastic surgery to avoid being bullied.

protruding earsSource: http://latino.foxnews.com
17

Children who are bullied often show physical or emotional signs, such as being afraid to attend school, complaining of headaches or a loss of appetite, a lack of interest in school activities and spending time with friends or family, and having an overall sense of sadness.

sad boySource: wikipedia.org, image: www.publicdomainpictures.net (public domain)
16

School bullying most commonly takes place in the classroom (29.3%), in the hallway (29%), in the cafeteria (23.4%), in gym class (19.5%), and in the bathroom (12.2%).

bullyingSource: nobullying.com

Wait until you see #7; it’s truly disturbing.

15

More than 80% of young people think bullying online (cyber-bullying) is easier to get away with than bullying in person.

cyber-bullyingSource: dosomething.com
14

Unlike boys, girls used to tend to use more indirect, emotional forms of bullying, but new research indicates they are now becoming more physical too.

girl bullySource: factretriever.com
13

Surprisingly, bullying often occurs even in highly respected and prestigious professions such lawyers and doctors. Bullying in the medical profession is actually very common, particularly of trainee doctors and nurses. It might be an outcome of conservative traditional hierarchical structures and teaching methods in the medical profession, which may result in a bullying cycle.

doctorsSource: wikipedia.org, image: simple.wikipedia.org (public domain)
12

Bullied students are more likely to think about committing suicide, and some of them might even try to end their lives. There are at least 18 recorded cases of students (aged 13 to 18) who committed suicide due to being bullied.

suicideSource: wikipedia.org
11

As bullying is a worldwide social problem, many campaigns and events are organized to prevent bullying. These campaigns and events include: Anti-Bullying Day, Anti-Bullying Week, International Day of Pink, International STAND UP to Bullying Day, and National Bullying Prevention Month.

anti-bullying campaignSource: wikipedia.org
10

Researchers have found that bullying roles remain fairly stable throughout school. For example, even after switching to a new classroom, victims of bullying still continued to be victims.

sad girlSource: http://www.education.com, image: www.pexels.com (free licence)
9

It has been found out that the average bullying episode lasts only 37 seconds. Teachers notice or intervene in only one in 25 incidents though.

bullySource: factretriever.com
8

Approximately 160,000 teens reportedly skip school every day because they are bullied, and 1 in 10 teens drops out of school due to repeated bullying.

sad girlSource: nobullying.com, image: commons.wikimedia.org (public domain)
7

Shockingly, 1 in 4 teachers see nothing wrong with bullying and will only intervene 4% of the time.

teacherSource: text2stopit.org
6

Any child that is considered different (in any way) from their peers is much more likely to become the target of bullies.

Group of Friends SmilingSource: nobullying.com
5

About 42% of kids have been bullied while online with one in four being verbally attacked more than once.

girl with laptopSource: bullyingstatistics.org
4

The word "bully" was first used in the 1530's, meaning "sweetheart" from the Dutch boel "lover, brother." The meaning deteriorated through the 17th century through "fine fellow," "blusterer," to "harasser of the weak."

bullySource: wikipedia.org, image: pixabay.com (public domain)
3

Serial killers were frequently bullied as children or adolescents. Henry Lee Lucas, a serial killer and diagnosed psychopath, said the ridicule and rejection he suffered as a child caused him to hate everyone. Kenneth Bianchi, a serial killer and member of the Hillside Stranglers, was teased as a child because he urinated in his pants and suffered twitching, and as a teenager was ignored by his peers.

killerSource: wikipedia.org, image: www.pexels.com (free license)
2

Bullies are more likely to engage in vandalism, shoplifting, truancy, and substance abuse than students who do not bully during early childhood.

boysSource: factretriever.com, image: pixabay.com (public domain)
1

There are also many celebrities who were bullied when they were kids. Lady Gaga said she was thrown in a garbage can; Rosario Dawson was bullied for being flat-chested; Kate Winslet was mocked for being chubby; and Michael Phelps was bullied for his big ears.

Michael_PhelpsSource: usmagazine.com