• Many students tease their peers to go along with the crowd.
• Bullies often come from homes in which physical punishment is used and where parental involvement and warmth are frequently lacking.
• ¢ Bullies often defend their actions by saying that their victims provoked them in some way.

Who gets bullied?

• Students who are physically different (i.e., in race, body size, clothing) are more likely to be victimized, as are those who "are not good at things that everybody else is."
• Victims of bullying may be anxious, insecure, and cautious and suffer from low self-esteem. They may lack social skills and friends and thus are often already socially isolated.
• Victims of bullies often fear school and consider it to be an unsafe and unhappy place. Victims will often stay home 'sick' rather than go to school or travel on the school bus.
• Victims experience real suffering that can interfere with their social and emotional development, as well as their school performance.
• Those who report bullying often state that they are bullied themselves.
• Teens who are bullied at school show signs of antisocial and depressive behavior as a result.
  

Bullying can also have negative lifelong consequences - both for students who bully and for their victims.