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Why are Kids Targeted by Bullying?
What puts a child at risk of being bullied? Targets typically share a specific set of traits.
First, targets tend to be "different." They might have a different ethnic background, language, religion, disability, race, or appearance than other kids in their school or neighborhood. Such differences can be the first thing that a child who bullies notices.
Difference alone, however, does not necessarily lead to bullying. Children who bully want someone who responds in a way that allows them to feel powerful.
Targets of bullying typically have these four traits in common:
- They act vulnerable. When bullied, they become visibly frightened, cry, or do not have an appropriate response. That is just what the child who bullies wants; it becomes an invitation to even more bullying.
- They have few or no friends. Children who are socially isolated make easy marks. The child who bullies knows that no one is likely to come to the target's aid.
- They are not assertive. To the child who bullies, people who are not assertive seem weak or easily dominated. Targets are also less likely to tell someone about the bullying.
- They have low self-esteem and lack of self-confidence. Children with low self-esteem may feel they deserve the bullying.
Visit PACER's other sites: National Parent Center Network (ALLIANCE) | Kids Against Bullying | Project C3 | FAPE Project | Minnesota SEACs
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