BULLYING IN SCHOOLS

The issue of bullying in schools is widespread and devastating to students of all ages. According to StopBullying.gov, with data by Robers, et al, in 2013:

• 37% of 6th grade students are victims of bullying

• 28% of Junior High and High school students are victims of bullying

• 160,000 kids stay home each day because of fear of bullying

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49.8% of tweens (9 to 12 years old) said they experienced bullying at school and 14.5% of tweens shared they experienced bullying online. [10]

Research shows that students who have been bullied are more likely to develop:

• School avoidance and lower academic achievement 

• Psychosomatic problems such as headaches, stomach aches, sleep problems, and poor appetite 

• Low self-esteem 

• Depression

• Anxiety

• Later problems with alcohol and other drugs 

LGBTQIA+ BULLYING

• LGBTQIA+ youth are 4 times more likely, and questioning youth are 3 times more likely, to attempt suicide than their straight peers [2]

• Suicide attempts by LGBTQIA+ youth and questioning youth are 4 to 6 times more likely to result in injury, poisoning, or overdose that requires treatment from a doctor or nurse, compared to their straight peers. [3]

• Nearly half of young transgender people have seriously thought about taking their lives, and one quarter report having made a suicide attempt. [4]

• LGBTQIA+ youth who come from highly rejecting families are 8.4 times as likely to have attempted suicide as LGBTQIA+ peers who reported no or low levels of family rejection. [5]

• Each episode of LGBTQIA+ victimization, such as physical or verbal harassment or abuse, increases the likelihood of self-harming behavior by 2.5 times on average. [8]

CYBER-BULLYING

Kids spend an average of 44.5 hours online each week. 

• 37 percent of cyberbullying incidents go unreported.

According to the iSafe Foundation:

• At least 52% of teens have been bullied online.

• 35% of children have actually been threatened online, some more than once.

• About 53 percent of children have said something that was mean or hurtful to someone else online.

According to the Teen Online & Wireless Safety Survey conducted in 2009:

• 34 percent of those who participated in cyberbullying did so both as victims and as bullies.

According to a 2013 survey carried out by Trolled Nation, on behalf of Knowthenet.org:

• 37 percent of cyberbullying incidents go unreported.

• Almost 85 percent of 19-year-old males have admitted to being victims of cyberbullying incidents without reporting them.

SUICIDE

It is difficult to determine causation between bullying and suicidal ideation, but there is correlation bet bullying and depression and anxiety, which cause elevated risk for suicidal ideation. 

• Suicide is the second leading cause of death in young people ages 10 - 24 [1]

• 4400 Young People Commit Suicide Each Year

• 1 out of 6 students nationwide (grades 9-12) seriously considered suicide in the past year

• For every suicide, there are at least 100 suicide attempts

• Some studies show that 80% of teen suicides may be attributable to bullying [9]

• Suicide attempts are nearly two times higher among Black and Hispanic youth than White youth. [7]