Girls suffer for longer at the hands of bullies

[David Baxter PhD]

Girls suffer for longer at the hands of bullies
by Jessica Shepherd, The Guardian
Monday 12 January 2009

A study has found that, although boys might seem more likely to be the victims of bullying, girls are tormented for longer

Playground bullies torment girls for longer than boys, a study has shown.

Half the number of girls who are bullied between the ages of six and nine are still being bullied aged 10 or 11 compared with 30% of boys, a study of 663 children from state primary schools in north London and Hertfordshire found.

But boys appear more likely to be the victims of bullies. One in four admitted to being kicked, hit or teased at least once a week, compared with 20% of girls. Girl bullies are more likely to spread rumours about their classmates and deliberately alienate them, while boy bullies prefer to use violence or verbal threats.

Dieter Wolke, professor of developmental psychology at the University of Warwick, who led the study, said girls formed friendship circles earlier than boys. Girls who had not made friends a few years into primary school were most likely to suffer playground bullies for years.

Wolke, whose study will be published by the British Journal of Developmental Psychology, said: "Boys' social networks seem to be more flexible than girls'. Once girls are out of a social network, it is harder for them to get into one."

Wolke found between the ages of eight and 11, children shift from physical to psychological bullying. One in 10 of the children had had rumours spread about them or had been deliberately left out of social circles when they were between six and nine. This had risen to one in four by the time they were 10 or 11.

Wolke said children were increasingly bullying through text messages and social networking sites, such as Facebook.

Some 29 girls suspended from a Church of England comprehensive for setting up a hate group about their teacher on Facebook will return to classes tomorrow. The teacher, at the Grey Coat Hospital School in Westminster, is understood to be receiving counselling.

 

[David Baxter PhD]

Bullied girls more likely to stay victims

Bullied girls more likely to stay victims
Jan. 12, 2009

WARWICK, England, Jan. 12 (UPI) -- Girls targeted by bullies at primary school are 2 1/2 times more likely to remain victims than boys, British researchers found.

Research at the University of Warwick and University of Hertfordshire in England found girls being directly victimized by bullies -- being beaten and suffering physical or verbal threats -- at age 6 were significantly more likely to still be a direct victim at age 10.

The study, published in the British Journal of Developmental Psychology, also revealed the nature of bullying changes as children grow older, from direct victimization -- physical bullying and threats -- to relational victimization -- spreading of malicious gossip or the withdrawal of friendships leading to social exclusion.

Study leader Dieter Wolke of the University of Warwick said the researchers interviewed 663 children ages 6 to 9 about their bullying experiences. They also examined the peer hierarchies among the children by asking them to nominate the three children they liked most in their class. A follow-up questionnaire was then issued when the children were ages 10 and 11.

The study also revealed 171 children dropped out of the study because they had moved to another school. Wolke examined the data collected for all the original participants and found those who moved schools were 49 percent more likely to have been victims of relational bullying and had fewer friends.