Bullying is a problem of great interest to students, educators, communities, and the nation because the results of this behavior negatively affect many aspects of society. Even though some people view bullying as a benign character-building rite of passage that all children endure, many other people see it as having far-reaching, harmful but preventable consequences. For example, school violence can be a direct result of bullying. According to Department of Education research presented in 2002, “Almost three-quarters of the attackers [in school violence incidents] felt persecuted, bullied, threatened, attacked, or injured by others prior to the incident” (Simplicio, 2013, p. 345). While other disciplines such as psychology and education may provide answers to questions people have about bullying, sociology is uniquely qualified to address all issues surrounding the topic of bullying because of its scientific and comprehensive perspective. In order to understand bullying and how it affects individuals and of society as a whole today, a sociologist must explore what bullying is, examine research about bullying, and evaluate what is being done to deal with bullying in schools.
Bullying is a particularly appropriate topic for a sociologist to investigate because it deals with both individual and group behaviors that affect society as a whole. Sociologists can research to examine specific points about bullying such as why bullying may cause students to fear going to school, different bullying tendencies by gender, what role parents play in encouraging or preventing bullying, how economic status affects bullying, and so forth. In addition, sociologists may synthesize research that others have done to try to answer broader questions about bullying, such as what kinds of interdisciplinary programs work to prevent bullying, changing perspectives about bullying in society at large, examinations of long-term effects on academics, and more. Sociology helps give perspective on human behavior and how this behavior develops; therefore, almost any research question regarding bullying will be of sociological interest since it concerns a specific type of human behavior. A sociologist can examine any aspect about bullying, including its definition, how and why it happens, and what actions or behaviors can stop it.
Some sociological theories such as structural functionalism, symbolic interaction, and social conflict can help understand bullying. Structural functional theory examines the purpose things play in society as a whole. A theorist of this type may frame research in terms of what a society would be like that did not have the problem of bullying. Symbolic interaction theory is based on the idea that people learn from example by those around them and from their life experiences; therefore, a theorist of this type will examine the life-circumstances of bullies. A social conflict theorist will examine the construction of society that allows bullying to take place in terms of power and control. Any of these perspectives can potentially offer valuable information to answering questions about why bullying happens and how to stop it.
Sociological research about bullying demonstrates that there are many important questions about bullying that need further research. For instance, in the past, the verbal, physical, and emotional conflicts of bullying took place in person between students on school grounds or social events, but the advent of the Internet has added a much less understood area known as “cyberbullying” (Simplicio 2013, p. 345). Because much less is understood about how cyberbullying happens and what it involves, many researchers attempt to define exactly what it is. For example, Burton, Florell, and Wygent describe it as “actions . . . intended to inflict harm and be perceived as hurtful,” and “there must be a pattern of negative behaviors, rather than an isolated incident” through technology including cell phones, computer char rooms, social networking sites, and so forth (2012, p. 103). In other words, an angry student who sends an email to another student saying he does not want to be friends with another student anymore is not a bully because it is not necessarily meant to be cruel and is a one-time thing. However, another student who posts anonymous, false, and cruel accusations on social rivals’ Facebook pages on a daily basis is a bully because it is a “pattern” of negative behavior intended to hurt others.
Today’s researchers offer a great deal of information about bullying via their studies that is designed to answer the specific questions communities have about bullying including why it happens, who does it, who it happens to, and how to stop it. Doctor Joseph Simplicio takes a conflict theory perspective toward bullying, writing, “In all cases bullying is a result of an imbalance of power” (2013, p. 346). Simplicio’s examination of the topic indicates that he believes the over-protection of children is at the heart of children’s problems today, where “parental and communal shields” are placed around “children to the point where they are incapable of handling” the problem of bullying or any other life problem themselves (2013, p. 348). Simplicio is clearly on the side of people who tend to believe that most instances of bullying are of the benign character-building type. Other researchers consider new technology, especially the Internet, to be of great concern to communities and educators. Florell and Wygant bring up the point that the Internet “increases situational anonymity” (2012, p. 103). In other words, the problem of cyberbullying is that because students can disguise who they are when they engage in negative or aggressive behavior towards other students on the Internet, this may cause them to increase the number of and severity of bullying incidents because of the perception that they can more easily get away with it. Florell and Wygant’s research shows that bullying is still prevalent in schools, with 96.65 of children being either bullied or bullies at some point within their lives (2012, p. 105).
While the previous researchers address specific issues about bullying, others such as Austin, Reynolds, and Barnes examine how educators work together to deal with bullying. They examine a variety of studies to see what methods prove to be effective in stopping bullying. The researchers recommend school-wide policies, community connections, parent outreach, and direct intervention to students as essential elements in stopping bullying (Austin, Reynolds & Barnes, 2012, pp. 287-288). Their conclusion is that bullying decreases when the school and community work together to provide a place where every student can feel safe.
In spite of all of the research, bullying remains a problem in schools. Because forms of bullying such as cyberbullying rely on new, ever-changing technology that increasing numbers of students have access to, it is important for sociologists to continue examining the short and long term effects of the Internet on bullying. While conclusions can be made about traditional bullying, the same questions may need to be reframed and asked again in terms of new technologies. Sociology can be of great value to educators, administrators, parents, and more because its scientific methodology can provide reliable facts and data about what is happening in terms of bullying and provide some good ideas about what is effective in putting a stop to it. This kind of sociological insight into bullying can improve the lives of individuals as well as groups as sociologists provide the answers to what bullying is, provide and evaluate research concerning bullying, and find ways to stop and prevent the problem from happening.
Austin, Sheila M., Reynolds, Glenda P., & Barnes, Shirley L (2012).School Leadership and Counselors Working Together to Address Bullying. Education, 133(2), 283-290.
Burton, K. Alex, Florell, Dan &Wygant, Dustin B. (2012).The Role of Peer Attachment and Normative Beliefs About Aggression on Traditional Bullying and Cyberbullying.Psychology in the Schools, 50(2), 103-115.
Simplicio, Joseph (2013). Suck It Up, Walk It Off, Be a Man: A Controversial Look at Bullying in Today’s Schools.Education, 133(3), 345-349.