Chapter 10: Trajectory from Bullying to School Violence: A Gender Perspective

An examination of the path from bullying to school violence from a gender perspective is needed to understand where the emphasis should be for future school violence prevention programs and research and to determine if these should be different for boys and girls. This chapter examines the literature on school violence as it relates specifically to bullying, since it affects both boys and girls. A review of gender-related studies to bullying behavior is examined from a historical perspective, international and national prevalence, categories of bullying, psychological correlates, and social group influences. Finally, future directions and conclusions are examined.

Initially, the focus on bullying was addressed in response to a case where males were involved as victims in Norway. The incident involved three 14- year-old boys who committed suicide as a result of extreme harassment from classmates (Olweus, 1993). The term “bullying,” however, had been defined 30 years earlier by Olweus (1972), who coined it as “mobbing” and defined it as an individual or a group of individuals harassing, teasing, or pestering another person.