It is daunting watching the recent news on TV that a 14-year-old died after being hit by a 16-year-old colleague in school with his fist on the head. Why are some children too violent? Where does this come from? Study shows that most bullies were identified in children with mental health problems including their parents. This is according to the Science Daily Report dated October 22, 2012 based on the research conducted by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans.
What is Bullying?
Bullying is an act of aggression that typically involves young people. It is defined as recurring and intentional hostility displaying inequality of power involving the executor and the victim. In 2011, a nationwide survey was conducted to gather the percentage of bullies among high school students. After 12 months, it was found that 20% of high school students in the United States were bullied. The study went deeper and disclosed that most bullying victims are found to be suicidal and have symptoms of a developing mental health disorder (obsessive compulsive personality disorder, avoidant personality disorder).
What Triggers a Child to Bully Another?
Further investigation on bullies’ mental health status was conducted to identify the causes of this dilemma. The association between mental health disorders and bullying in the United States among children aged 6 to 17 years old was figured out after the studying 64,000 children. As part of the study, the children went through sub-analysis for their mental health conditions. As a result, more than 15% of these children were found to be bullies with mental health disorder at the same time. They were diagnosed of depression associated with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD). Dr. Frances G. Turcotte-Benedict, MD from Brown University and resident physician at Hasbro Children’s Hospital in Providence, RI – emphasized the importance of giving psychological support to the victims of bullying as well as to the bullies – to expedite their healing process.
Parents’ Major Role
Parents should play an important role in preventing their children from becoming bullies. United States communities are influenced to establish programs against child bullying after learning about the research involving parents. According to Rashmi Shetgiri, MD, MSHS – it is important to establish a constant communication and parental attachment between the child and the parent to discourage a child from becoming a bully. The Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) supports this concept during their annual meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Researchers conducted another study to identify other factors that increase or reduce the risk of children becoming bullies. They distributed questionnaires among 45,897 parents with children 10-17 years of age. The results showed that there were bullying incidents initiated by 15% of the group. Those children have shown emotional and psychological problems as per the research. It is amazing to note that their mothers were most likely bullies themselves. There were clear indications in the study that bullies are normally living with angry parents.
How to Prevent your Child from Becoming a Bully?
Dr. Shetgiri said that parents should also work out their emotional or behavioral states with health providers. They should attend some parenting programs that will let them become aware of their child’s behavioral concerns and knowing the right approach to manage the child’s negative feelings or when he or she is disturbed. The health care providers will also teach the parents to respond or communicate to their children in a subtle manner. If the anger among parents is caused by marital problems, marriage counseling for the couple is a must. Sexual inabilities among husbands are one of the common reasons to drive their wives nuts. The proper use of Generic Sildenafil Citrate must be explored in this case to help ease the friction in the household thus, saving a child from being a bully!