Bullying on College Campuses: A Primer

In years’ past, the topic of bullying on college campuses has been minimized or completely overlooked, contrary to the consistent national attention brought to the problem’s prevalence in middle and high schools.  (The sparse amount of research done on college bullying supports this view.) 

There is an inaccurate assumption that bullying behaviors end with high school graduation, assuming that students are more mature, exercise more foresight (impacting the behavior-consequences dichotomy), and become more socially appropriate and accepting of others.  Unfortunately, this is not always the case.  The fact of the matter is that adult bullying exists, and occurs in the hallowed halls of our institution every day.

RESEARCH

Seung Hui Cho, Virginia Tech shooter

Mark Chapell and colleagues concludes that “…bullying by students and teachers is a fairly common problem in college.”  My own research and personal and professional experience support this view.  Given the serious and long-term negative mental health consequences associated with being bullied, the fact that bullied students have been associated with lethal retaliatory violence in American secondary schools, and that as many as one million American college students may be carrying guns and other weapons on campus on a regular basis, it is recommended that the issue of bullying on college campuses receive greater attention and implement proactive procedures. (“Bullying in College by Students and Teachers,” 2004)

Defining bullying in terms that most people can understand, and explaining the long-term, devastating psychosocial effects that result from being bullied will assist me in the development of an innovative prevention program to stop bullying from being commonplace on community college campuses around the country. 

DEFINITION

When bullying behaviors are not specifically and globally defined, not only in society as a whole, but also in a college’s policies and/or the Student Code of Conduct, people who've witnessed or have been on the receiving end of repeated, unwarranted and denigrating treatment can’t agree on how to label it.   In their policies and Student Codes of Conduct, many colleges use the narrow terms “harassment,” “threat of harm,” and “hazing” instead of the overarching term of “bullying.”  These specific aggressive acts constitute only part of how bullying behaviors are manifested.

Bullying is defined as repeated, intentional behaviors that involve a real or perceived imbalance of power, which are meant to instill fear, intimidation and self-loathing in another person, where the target has difficulty stopping the behavior directed at them, and struggles to defend themselves. (National Bullying Prevention Center)

Components of bullying include:

1)      Physical abuse:  Episodes of aggressive behavior, usually resulting in physical injury; being held against one’s will; touching a person without permission

2)      Psychological abuse:  Mistreatment intended to cause mental or emotional pain or injury:  Rejecting, degrading, terrorizing, isolating, corrupting/exploiting

3)      Verbal abuse :  The use of epithets or other demeaning words meant to belittle

4)      Defamation:  False statements that injure another’s reputation and exposes him to public contempt, hatred, ridicule or condemnation

5)      Exclusion: Being ignored, left out on purpose, or not allowed to join in

6)      Threats:  Being made afraid of getting hurt, maimed or killed and/or the same threats targeted toward family and loved ones

7)      Extortion:  Obtaining money and property under force and duress

8)      Academic Sabotage:  Purposeful vandalism directed against any academic endeavor or equipment

9)      Theft: Stealing money and property

10)  Defamation of property: The willful abuse and damage to one’s belongings

11)  Use of technology to bully:  Use of communication technologies intended to harm another person

PSYCHOSOCIAL EFFECTS

Chapell and colleagues state that college bullying is often ignored until it reaches violent consequences. “There’s a … lack of awareness in higher education to the nature, the scope and the impact of bullying,” he said. (Bullying, 2004)  That's an understatement.

Some people are lucky enough to go through higher education without bearing the brunt of being bullied, but those who have not been so fortunate are left scarred by the torment that they have endured.  Bullying has the ability to permanently change personalities.  Survivors are psychologically impacted, often experiencing depression, paranoia, isolation and, in extreme cases, suicide (now termed "bullycide" by the media).

Being the repetitive target of bullying damages one’s ability to view oneself as a worthy, desirable, capable and effective individual.  Psychosocial effects include (but are not limited to):

·         Low self-esteem

·         Feelings of worthlessness

·         Hopelessness about the future

·         Depression

·         Suicidal ideation and/or attempts

·         Fear of coming to campus, specific classes, or certain places

·         A general feeling of being unsafe and unprotected wherever they go

·         Lethal retaliatory violence

In many cases, students feel forced to drop out of college because feel they are not getting the protection and support they need from the institution to fight the problem, and therefore the option of higher education is abandoned.  Retention and completion rates are consequently negatively impacted.  In extremely rare cases, violent, horrific tragedies like those at Virginia Tech and Oikos University occur.

WHAT CAN BE DONE?

My philosophy is that colleges need to take a more proactive approach in protecting every campus member from being abused…or worse.  Here’s my plan:

Create a campus culture of zero-tolerance:

• Distinguish bullying behaviors from other student conduct and personnel incidents, and establish separate sanctions for dealing with these situations.  (On our campus, student bullying currently comes under the category of "Threat of Harm.”)
• Support funding and resources to develop and implement a comprehensive prevention program.  Campus constituents should be mandated to participate in the training to recognize bullying in and outside the classroom, how to submit an accurate incident report, how to refer a target to counseling services in a private and sensitive manner, and identifying the signs of depression in themselves and others.  (For students, these trainings are to be repeated every semester and during Fall Institute Week for faculty, staff and administration.)
• Bullying behaviors must be reported immediately, and expeditious, serious consequences will be executed to address the behaviors of the person who bullies, and support and protect the target.  Counseling will be provided for targets and "bullies" alike.
• Recognize and reward acts of kindness and respect.

CONCLUSION

Because we operate in loco parentis on our campus, it is our responsibility to teach more socially-acceptable interpersonal skills and behaviors where they don't exist or haven't been learned.  It is equally our obligation to take a proactive stand against bullying behaviors by separating them into specific categories for the Student Code of Conduct and college personnel policies.  Creating new language and sanctions to protect the psychosocial health and academic endeavors of our students, colleagues and community will strengthen our stand...and our campuses.  

QUESTION:  Does your campus or place of employment specify bullying behaviors in its code of conduct?  Have you seen someone being bullied?  Have you been the target of bullying?  Are you (or have you been) a person who bullied others?

Works Cited

Bullying in College by Students and Teachers.  Chapell, Mark; Casey, Diane; De la Cruz, Carmen; Ferrell, Jennifer; Forman, Jennifer; Lipkin, Randi; Newsham, Megan; Sterling, Michael; Whittaker, Suzanne.  Adolescence, Spring 2004, Vol. 39 Issue 153, p. 53-64.

National Bullying Prevention Center website.  http://www.pacer.org/bullying/resources/info-facts.asp

(c) 2012-2014 Robyn Posson King.  All Rights Reserved.