Bullying has become a prevalent issue in the contemporary global context where high school students seem to be the most committed in escalating bullying activities and the effects associated with the same. While one would expect a reduction in such cases in alignment with technological advancement and the civilization that comes with it, the phenomenon has become worse as the perpetrators take on a new way of reaching out to the victim. The matter is worsened further by the invention of SmartPhone Apps that have the capacity to conceal the identity of an individual in various social networking sites. This makes it possible to say what one would not express verbally to the victim. With the search of identity which happens in teenage, and in particular the adolescent stage, most teenagers face the challenge of coping with rejection from their peers and bullying is a major aspect that a victim associates with such rejection. Eventually, bullying has adverse psychological effects in the identity formation of teenagers but can be addressed successfully to prevent the devastating outcomes that affect not only the victims but also the bully and others in their social circle.
Bullying and Identity Formation in Teens
The teen years also happens to integrate the age-bracket of adolescents, the period where those involved try to solve the problems of identity crisis. At teenage, an individual tries to answer the question of who he or she is and may act in particular ways to justify his thought and attitudes of who he or she is or supposed to be. The idea of self-esteem also comes in to play with some teens depicting high levels of esteem in whatever endeavors they engage in, good or bad. For those who engage in bullying as perpetrators, Swearer and Hymel (2015a) posit that such individuals tend to identify with and support masculine attributes as depicted in the society.
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Teenage, and in particular adolescence, is a stage of confusion where one cannot articulate his or her sense of the self unless others justify the thoughts and attitudes he or she has concerning the same. In this stage, adolescents rely more on their peers than parents and relatives for the approval of how they perceive themselves. Distress also arises as one is also unaware of his strengths and weaknesses (Nair, James & Santhosh, 2015). This is what yields the identity crisis. Stressful life occurrences have significant influence on the intensity of identity crisis as experienced by a teenager. Attempts to adapt to stress may yield a heavy negative impact on the perception of who one is or is supposed to become. Experiences of stress that one is unable to rationalize immerse the victim into an identity crisis that leads them to wonder who they really are and what life means. Such people never reach the level of identity achievement unless they receive adequate social support, particularly from peers (Nair et al., 2015). The victims of bullying, therefore, may face an identity crisis that leads them to finding no meaning in life due to the stress caused to them by their bullies. The case of Brenda Vela offers an example of how an identity crisis may yield hopelessness and eventual termination of one’s life (Strickland, 2017). Vela reached the climax of identity search by shooting herself at the age of 18 after an escalation of cyberbullying messages directed to her through the social media. These messages led to her realization that her body looks and shape were not attractive to her peers. The situation worsened for her when the bullies assumed her role and started advertising her for sex, a factor that made her choose death as the solution to ending her woes (Strickland, 2017). This is one sign of low self-esteem yielded by a lack of social support at a time when a teen mostly needs it.
In alignment with the arguments of Nair et al (2015), Vela can be categorized in the group of people with no clear self-definition. This is what led to her depression and inadequacy of self-confidence which resulted in choosing the identity of a “loser” (Nair et al, 2015, p.169). Such a negative identity comes from the view that it would be better to become what one was never meant to be rather than be without an identity. Vela is representative of bullied individuals who never get to achieve an identity with their despair leading them to suicidal commitments in a bid to end the struggle and challenges of identity development.
Psychological Repercussions and Outcomes of Bullying
One of the most featured aspects of psychology in alignment with bullying is stress and depression. While many people may tend to present the view that only the victims get stressed with their experiences, research has shown that bullies also experience high levels of stress and depressive symptoms. Strickland (2017) reinforces this idea by emphasizing that bullies and victims alike experience adverse effects of bullying in their lives. Some of the effects of bullying on perpetrators include social withdrawal, depression and anxiety, poor academic performance, delinquency, and diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder at adulthood (Swearer & Hymel, 2015b). The implication is that bullies experience high-level psychosocial problems, especially because their conduct does not garner any support as advocacy for expulsion and suspension from schools heighten as well as incarceration or rehabilitation with an aim to address their problem of aggression.
One of the most notable effects of bullying on victims is low self-esteem. According to a survey conducted by Ditch the Label Organization (2014), 83% of the 3600 young participants who reported experiencing incidences of bullying said that the experiences had an effect on their self-esteem. The participants of this study were aged between 13 and 22 years and represented more than 30 high schools and tertiary educational institutions.
Low self-esteem, coupled with stress, becomes the eventual product of bullying among the victims. The perception of not belonging to a group at the time of identity development reinforces the two psychological aspects, stress and low self-esteem. Eventually, it reaches a time when a teenager cannot cope with these aspects amidst feelings of helplessness. It is under such circumstances that suicidal or self-harming thoughts emerge. The above mentioned research by Ditch the Label (2014) found out that 10% of bullied participants had attempted suicide while 30% had contemplated about suicide or engage in events that culminated into self-harm. Other cases that align with the outcomes of stress and low self-esteem have been reported by scholars and researchers. Strickland (2017) embarks on the case of Brenda Vela who shot herself and died instantly after being overtaken by the stressful events of cyberbullying. Advancement in technology has made it easier for bullies to extend their mission on the social media through applications that conceal their identity and thus safeguard them from the anti-bullying commitments and the associated repercussions.
Remedies to Bullying and the Associated Effects and Outcomes
Stress and depression are at the core of the experiences of both the victim and bully. As mentioned before, the bully experiences various outcomes in alignment with his or her commitment to bullying. The fact that bullying is not an acceptable phenomenon in any social context may imply expulsion and suspension from groups, social circles, and school in general. This may culminate into the development the antisocial personality disorder (Swearer & Hymel, 2015a). This disorder further yields stigmatization by the community and the individual finds it hard to solve problems that align not only with the social but also private life (Yavuz, Sahin, Ulusoy, Ipek & Kurt, 2016).
For the victims, there are anticipations that someone will come to their rescue at some point. For instance, Miller (2017) presents the case of a boy who was a victim of bullying and whose father took a step to have him transferred to another school in a bid to keep him safe. This boy became victim of his peers after using statements that depicted him as disengaged from alcohol and drug use which his peers were actively utilizing. The peers viewed him as a traitor and utilized various tactics to show him so. They would call him “snitch” and even went further to painting the insult on the windshield of his car. At one time, his clean clothes were thrown into a toilet. Any attempt to rescue him from the nasty experiences was met with further actions aimed at frustrating him. Even when his father succeeded in filing for a transfer and won the case, the school’s board appealed the decision with arguments that the school did not tolerate occurrences of bullying and was doing its best to ensure the safety of the boy (Miller, 2017). Similar efforts to rescue Brenda Vela from the wrath of her bullies bore no fruit as the involvement of the police was null and void since the app utilized by the bullies could not be traced. Eventually, the victims end up suffering more even during the times of a search for solace.
Strickland (2017) argues that an emphasis on zero-tolerance policies in bullying is no longer a solution. It is the high time that schools embark on positive behavioral interventions and support (PBIS). Suspending or expelling a bully does not help as such an individual misses a chance to complete his or her educational endeavors and get a job. Such individuals can be changed through PBIS where the needs of bullies and victims alike are addressed. Swearer and Hymel (2015) suggest the need to bring up high-esteemed children who believe in themselves instead of relying on others to define who they are. Low self-esteem plays a critical role in escalating bullying and the associated effects.
Bullying is a phenomenon that seems inevitable in the contemporary global context. The advancement in technology reinforces the continuity of bullying endeavors as bullies adjust their tactics to align with such advancements. The notion of concealing one’s identity in the bullying activities makes things worse for the victim as he or she must be prepared to cope with stress levels that go beyond what can be uttered to him or her in a verbal exchange. Bullying has affected the identity development of many teens with some reaching their climax by committing suicide due to lack of social support from their peers. The problem is not only to the victims as the bullies also reach their climax with an antisocial personality disorder which yields stigmatization and inability to solve social and personal problems. Stress and depression are psychological repercussions for both the bully and the victim alike. The implication is that this is a problem that should integrate all those involved in a bid to find a long-lasting solution. Embarking on the expulsion and suspension of the bullies and other anti-bullying policies is now an outdated solution. There is need to adjust the approach to PBIS which considers both sides of the continuum to address the needs of all affected. Worth considering is the fact that the bully and the bullied are both victims of psychological repercussions which yield various outcomes depending on the individual’s level of self-esteem and probability of gaining social support.
References
Ditch the Label Organization (2014). Bullying may have life-long effects. Therapy Today, 25 (4), 1. Retrieved from http://web.a.ebscohost.com/ehost
Miller, J. R. (2017, August 18). School district fights transfer of allegedly bullied student. New York Post. Retrieved from http://nypost.com/2017/08/18/school-district-fights-transfer-of-allegedly-bullied-student/
Nair, K. R., James, J. K. & Santhosh, K. R. (2015). Identity crisis among early adolescents in relations to abusive experiences in the childhood, social support and parental support. Journal of Psychosocial Research, 10 (1), 165-173. Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com
Strickland, A. (2017, June 21). Bullying is a ‘serious public health problem,’ experts say. Cable News Network. Retrieved from http://edition.cnn.com/2016/05/10/health/bullying-public-health-zero-tolerance/index.html
Swearer, S. M. & Hymel, S. (2015a). Understanding the psychology of bullying: Moving toward a social-ecological diathesis-stress model. American Psychologist, 70 (4), 344-353. Doi: 10.1037/a003892
Swearer, S. M. & Hymel, S. (2015b). Bullying and discrimination in schools: Exploring variations across student subgroups. School Psychology Review, 44 (4), 504-509. Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com
Yavuz, K. F., Sahin, O., Ulusoy, S., Ipek, O. U. & Kurt, E. (2016). Experiential avoidance, empathy, and anger-related attitudes in antisocial personality disorder. Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences,46, 1792-1800. Doi: 10.3906/sag-1601-80
