Why are children bullied? ~ Positive Behaviour / Anti-Bullying Resources at S.H.N.S., Newbawn, Co. Wexford

Why are children bullied?

For many people, when you talk about a child who gets bullied, there is a clear mental image in their head of the "classic" school victim. The small, perhaps chubby, bespectacled individual straight out Tom Brown's School Days or Billy Bunter.

The truth of who gets victimised is, however, far less clear cut. Any pupil, through no fault of their own may be bullied.

Anything, no matter how small, that sets the victim apart from the bully or bullies may be sufficient "justification" in their eyes. Sometimes all it takes is for the child to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Therefore it is not unusual to find that there are many children victimised through bullying who are popular and socially well adjusted.

It has been recognised that many of the negative and unsympathetic characteristics that are often ascribed to victims may be the result of long-term bullying rather than a cause of bullying.

There are, though, some children who unwittingly invite attacks by behaving in ways that cause tension and irritation in their immediate vicinity.

Such children, often referred to as 'provocative' victims may have inadequate social skills or learning difficulties.

Sadly however, research shows that no matter what the true origin of the bullying is, children who are bullied tend to see the cause of bullying in themselves and feel or imagine that there is something "wrong" with them.