Article: Parents Intervene

[Chocko]

Bullying problem getting worse
<exsl:string xmlns:exsl="http://exslt.org/common">Mar 2, 2008 12:49 PM</exsl:string>
A child psychologist wants parents to intervene when their children bully others, saying the problem is getting worse.

Ian Lambie says the impacts of bullying can be very severe on children's mental health, with those worst affected feeling depressed and suicidal.

The What's Up youth helpline has revealed bullying is the second biggest worry for young callers, behind concerns about what others think of them
He says Internet sites such as Bebo and text messaging are partly to blame for the rise in bullying.

Lambie is not surprised children are worried about what others think of them, however - What's Up revealed that one in five calls is about the issue.

He says it's normal for kids to try to work out who they are through others, and that children are likely to compare themselves with each other as a way of benchmarking.

0800WHATSUP is aimed at five to 18 year-olds.



http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/411365/1611883

[Graceysmum]

Yikes. It's just so scary. The question is where do all these bullies learn to act like that?!

[KIDPOWER]

Children need their adults to be powerful positive leaders and to intervene and re-direct their behavior when it is destructive with the same conviction that we would stop them from deliberately throwing books or toys through a window.

We need to pay attention to mixed messages that make it look cool or funny to be rude, mean or unkind. The Simpsons TV show is a classic example. Even in Harry Potter, which I personally really love, the children are shown bullying each other and adults are very half-hearted about stopping it. Of course, if there were no conflict, there would be no story- but we can use literature and media to discuss what is safe/unsafe behavior and why.

Also, it's normal for children to experiment with all kinds of behavior. if they are exploring the negative use of leadership, they need adults to point this out and to have high expectations of everyone working together to keep everybody emotionally and physically safe.