The Hindu : New Delhi News : Why kids become bullies

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Dec 15, 2007
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New Delhi

New Delhi

Why kids become bullies

These children target those lacking in confidence to exhibit their superiority, finds out Devesh
K. Pandey

The gunning down of a boy by his two classmates in a school in neighbouring Gurgaon this past week may be a one-off incident, but it has certainly drawn attention towards the growing culture of bullying among children and its damaging repercussions on the psyche of others.

Preliminary investigations have revealed that the victim allegedly intimidated the accused in different ways. According to mental health experts, the bullied in these circumstances consider such a violent act against the intimidator justified, merely because they wish to get rid of the source of their humiliation and insult.

A well-known psychiatrist P.S. Das says there are primarily two categories of children who show bullying behaviour — those who by their personality are prone to aggression and violence, and those who are influenced by the violence shown in video-games and television. The behaviour in the first category of children is termed “conduct disorder”, says Dr. Das, adding that such personalities do not show any sign of guilt over their violent behaviour.

Children having the tendency to indulge in aggressive acts mostly target those lacking in confidence to exhibit their superiority. On several occasions, they do so to overcome a feeling of low self-esteem and insecurity in them. By intimidating others, the bullies also feel that they would get special treatment. The physical and verbal intimidation of children leads them to feel humiliated and oppressed. The constant fear that they would be subjected to mental torture again lead them to make various excuses to avoid going to schools. “Prolonged bullying occasionally result in violent reaction in the bullied,” says Dr. Das.

Dr. Das says the oppressed do not share unpleasant experiences with their parents or teachers because either they find that no action has been taken on their complaints over a period of time or the feeling of insult does not allow them to do so. Lack of proper communication is also one of the reasons.

To prevent recurrence of the Gurgaon-type incident, experts advise both the parents and teachers to keep an eye on the activities of their children. They should inquire into the reasons behind any aberrant behaviour of a child. Children should be encouraged to share their experiences with their parents and teachers. This cannot happen until they win their trust. Negative incentives as a correction method should be adopted to discourage children from indulging in violence. According to mental health expert Samir Parikh, school authorities can also teach children ways of responsible decision-making through group interactions.

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