As we observe the National Day of Action against Bullying and Violence this week, it’s worth considering the role of social and communication disorders in bullying.
Poor social problem-solving skills are a common characteristic of bullies and their victims, and children with communication problems are more likely to be bullied.
How is bullying different to meanness and rudeness?
Bullying is the use of force or threat to abuse, intimidate or control others. Bullies perceive that they are socially or physically more powerful than the victim. There is a combination of hostile intent, imbalance of power and repetition of bullying behaviours over a period of time.
There is a difference between rudeness, being mean and bullying. One difference is intent. Rude kids don’t intend harm. People who are being mean or bullying are intending to cause harm. Mean kids usually only … Read the rest