1.) Briefly define and describe the prevalence and impact of the problem.

 Bullying is perhaps one of the worst social phenomenons of all time. It has branched into other forms of injustice with civil and criminal law cases. Bullying is usually identified as a harmless more prevalent primary school issue but in fact, it can start in primary school and continue well into adulthood for many. It does not discriminate and comes in many forms of abuse to all types of people. Bullying is more than just verbal harm, it’s also physical, and psychological for some. In today’s society, it has also been relational to technological advances and can occur online in the form of cyber-bullying, or what’s well known as "trolling". The premise behind bullying is aggressive behavior towards another to display a power imbalance. "The importance of bullying has led to research in the last two decades that has produced hundreds, if not thousands, of papers on the topic." (Volk, 2014) The issues of bullying and cyberbullying have increased to alarming proportions..so much that, these issues have caused a crisis." (Cyberbullying & Bullying Prevention, n.d.) Bullying has had such an impact on our school systems in America, it is ranked the number one cause of absenteeism in the U.S. According to a Harvard study of high-school students, 96% say they have been bullied at least once in their lives. (Teach, 2010) Sadly, many of the people who experience bullying and were not successful in getting the help they needed have taken their lives. Bullying is a daunting contributing factor to the risk of suicide. Perhaps the worst part about this is, unlike health disparities that are uncontrollable, we have the power of this phenomenon. Bullying is 100% preventable and should become a present priority to make this an issue of the past.

2.) Provide an external source of information that serves as an "authority site," (e.g., non-profit association or foundation; not a personal blog.) The site should function as a source of education and possibly provide a source of emergency assistance. 

 stompoutbullying.org
This site is an excellent source of information and assists in daily and emergency use. 

3.) What did you learn that was new to you or most surprising about this form of gendered intimidation or violence?

Learning of the statistics associated with suicide and bullying’s contributory factors infuriated me. The CHADD resources were also really helpful in spelling out how students with ADHD are likely to be first bullied and then become bullies. That data put things into perspective and was thought-provoking too, on if there are other scenarios with certain demographics or populations that may experience bullying and then become bullies, and if there is a proactive prevention counter to avoid that dynamic transition for previous bullied students becoming the bullies. In any case, the bullying is at an all-time high, and unfortunately, cyber-bullying has become worst with less accountability for identifying and subjecting perpetrators to consequences. I feel bad for the students who are skipping school to avoid bullies. That can lead to a domino effect on their future for something completely out of their control. What’s worst is the bystanders who observe these events and do nothing. Silence is also violence. That is a concept that I wish was taught and implemented in addition to the education on abuse and violence so that others are educated on how to speak up and feel empowered to do so. Change can only take place in numbers. 

References

11 Facts About Bullying. (n.d.). DoSomething.Org. https://www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-about-bullying

Cyberbullying & Bullying Prevention. (n.d.). STOMP Out Bullying. Retrieved February 21, 2022, from https://www.stompoutbullying.org/

Teach, J. (2010). The Bully Cycle. CHADD. https://chadd.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/ATTN_12_10_BullyCycle.pdf

Volk, A. A., Dane, A. V., & Marini, Z. A. (2014). What is bullying? A theoretical redefinition. Developmental Review, 34(4), 327–343. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dr.2014.09.001