Why Is Bullying a Social Issue?

Why is playground bullying a social issue? There are many social issues that need to be addressed, but playground bullying in one way or another has affected everybody. Bullying is classified as “aggressive behaviour where a dominant individual or group abuses their greater power by threatening a less dominant individual” (Maher, 2008). Bullying usually has a large impact on how a person perceives and presents themselves in society. The majority of bullying happens on the playground when there is minimal supervision and surveillance which not only means that there is more bullying but the bullying is much worse, it is more likely to be physical, vicious and continuous. The main issues associated with bullying are self-harm, poor mental and physical health and social isolation. There are many forms of playground bullying, one of these being indirect bullying (Stanford, 2008). This involves repeatedly hiding another’s belongings, leaving people out and spreading malicious rumours. For example, in Queensland a group of Year 11 girls formed an elitist group where members rank themselves numerically according to their looks, weight and popularity (Courier Mail, 2008). Bullying in this form may not directly affect everyone, but connected with other forms of bullying, it becomes a major issue and can lead to self-harm or eating disorders among vulnerable students. Playground bullying can also come as face to face bullying. There are also two main types of face to face bullying, which vary in seriousness. Some are seemingly playful (but not always harmless) and some vicious (always directed to harm a person) (Rigby, 1998). Face to face bullying has many consequences. The main consequence is a low self-esteem. Children that are victims of face to face bullying come to think very low of them. This is because the bully has not only attacked them but they have done it in front of the student’s peers, creating a form of embarrassment. Although the main effect of