Bullying - Powerplay on the Playground

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What is bullying? Everyone can relate to intimidating behavior by classmates in school, but is it limited to adolescents? And if not, where else does it occur and how is our legal system equipped to deal with it? Read about some practical incidents.

Bullying is usually prosecuted based on the effects it has on the victim (e.g., psychological abuse) since it has, as yet, no legal definition. But through the years cases have been brought to court to deal with bullying tactics, such as:

A dominant person, with greater physical/social power than the victim, is the one who usually perpetrates bullying.

Bullying traditionally occurred where humans interacted physically, as in the school or workplace. However, this definition has extended to include cyberspace in recent years.

Bullying has resulted in serious (even fatal) results. Experts estimate that around 85% of its victims suffer severe short-term stress and/or long-term psychological effects.

Moreover, the isolation and deep hatred caused by bullying has led too often to both murder and suicide, as seen in the many school shootings of recent memory (see below).

Recent statistics show that bullying in the workplace is no less common than in the schoolyard. It results in the intimidation, humiliation, and sabotage of the victim’s performance.

According to the Workplace Bullying & Trauma Institute, it is even three times more prevalent than illegal discrimination!

What’s more, bullying cases have reached 1,600 times the number of cases of workplace violence. Studies show that 1 in 6 workers experiences workplace bullying compared to the only 1 in 10,000 for workplace violence.

Recent Incidents

The 90s was notorious for its series of school massacres, the most prominent being the Columbine High School shootings of April 1999. A recent case, the Virginia Tech shootings of April 2007, recalled the shooting rampages of the 90s.

The children behind the Columbine shootings stated that bullies repeatedly victimized them. When school authorities failed to step in, the students resorted to violence. Experts who viewed the Virginia Tech shooter’s video clips say he suffered from isolation and deep hatred, two common traits of ostracized and bullied individuals.

In the Columbine case, and similar incidents, the victims sued both the families of the shooters and the school.

Bullying often happens when a group isolates or takes advantage of a particular student, outnumbering the victim. Common targets are students regarded as different or strange. Being disconnected makes it even harder for the victims to cope with bullying. At times, teachers may also knowingly or unknowingly perpetrate bullying.

Types & Penalties

There are six types of bullying that have been cited in legal cases to bolster claims against the perpetrator.

In the US legal system, bullying is most closely related to harassment — physical, verbal, or emotional. However, harassment related to bullying is far more prevalent than sexual harassment or plain verbal abuse.

Pending legal guidelines on prosecuting bullies, individual courts decide penalties on a case-to-case basis. Courts apply existing laws based on the effects on the victim. The greater the physical or emotional harm, the harsher the sentence meted out. Based on child protection laws, crimes against minors also carry more severe punishments.