Bullying The Amanda Todd Story, according to Ross and Horner (2009), constitutes: “repeated acts of aggression, intimidations, or coercion against a victim who is weaker concerning physical size, psychological or social power, or other factors that result in a notable power differential.” The case of Amanda Todd squarely falls under this definition. There were various types of bullying that she was exposed to, one, cyberbullying and two, traditional bullying. Cyberbullying involves electronic devices in the cyberspace platform, in the form of text messages or the sites for social networking such as Facebook, as in the case of Amanda. Traditional bullying occurs face to face, such as the case where Amanda was confronted by 15 students and assaulted afterward.B The Amanda Todd Story, according to Ross and Horner (2009), constitutes: “repeated acts of aggression, intimidations, or coercion against a victim who is weaker concerning physical size, psychological or social power, or other factors that result in a notable power differential.” The case of Amanda Todd squarely falls under this definition. There were various types of bullying that she was exposed to, one, cyberbullying and two, traditional bullying. Cyberbullying involves electronic devices in the cyberspace platform, in the form of text messages or the sites for social networking such as Facebook, as in the case of Amanda. Traditional bullying occurs face to face, such as the case where Amanda was confronted by 15 students and assaulted afterward.
Consequences were not stranger to Amanda Todd experienced as a result of being bullied. First, the social construct between Amanda and her schoolmates was negatively affected disrupting the connection between her and other students. She reports of instances where she had to sit by herself during lunch breaks. Second, Amanda was prone to suicidal ideation, a manifestation of an underlying mental health problem, which pushed her to take bleach in her first attempt. It only made her situation worse. She ended her life on her second attempt. Amanda’s efforts to deal with the situation included getting into drugs and alcohol, cutting, all in a bid to reduce the pain associated with bullying. Also, she changed school on numerous occasions, but her online presence nullified the effort. Both academic and social adjustments are poor.
Bullying The Amanda Todd Story is regarded an epidemic in numerous circles. Thus, there are numerous strategies, some proposed and others implemented, to deal with episodes of bullying. For instance, in Amanda’s case, by monitoring email and text message communications in her devices, and bullying hotspots her parents, teachers, and authorities could have gotten ahead of the situation. Additionally, having open communication between students and parents, teachers or authorities builds rapport, hence making students more likely to talk open up about their problems. One of the ways of creating these communication avenues includes classroom meetings, where students get to express their views besides academic affairs. Even more, the presence of a functional reporting system that would have prevented reoccurrence of Amanda’s bullying incidences.
In as much as bullying cases today bear notable differences to bullying some years back, there are some differences. For example, with the advancement of technology, bullying cases today have resulted in some form of home imprisonment, unlike the later days where bullying paused at the end of school day. Escape from day to day incidences of bullying is almost impossible as the online platform provides the perpetrators with numerous opportunities to inflict harm to the victims despite the distance. Besides, there are more ways of bullying today than back then. Some of the similarities include, the effects of bullying, although magnified, are similar. These include isolation, mental health problems such as depression, anxiety, suicidal tendencies, among others. Also, a lack of proper legislation or the ineffective nature of the avenues to deal with the cases mars the fight against bullying today as it did back then. This stems partly, from a lack of awareness (Ross and Horner 2009).
Several factors led to bullying behaviors. One, easily accessible internet. Specifically, since perpetrators are anonymous, can easily impersonate and a general decrease in fear of the possibility of being caught and brought to book has intensified the cases of cyberbullying. Second, a general lack of supervision or difficulties in monitoring text messaging and email communication contributes to bullying behaviors, because after all, such cases can go completely undetected. Third, despite the dangers associated with the usage of the internet, perpetrators and victims are brought together on this platform all to the benefit of the latter as it becomes easier to reach the former. It is attributed to the fact that an online presence contributes immensely to the shaping of the personalities of the younger generation.
BullyingThe Amanda Todd Story prevention programs have been widely cited as being effective in, a study by Olweus & Limber (2010) indicated, citing the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP) that has been successful in Norway according to reports. Although the evaluation of the program in different studies has earthed inconsistencies, there is a consensus that self-reported cases- by both perpetrators and witnesses have been on the rise Olweus & Limber (2010). Further, bullying prevention programs increase bystander- who have also been reported to experience negative effects- intervention in a bid to combat the act (Polanin, Espalage & Pigott, 2012). Moreover, the programs have gone a long way in raising awareness of the roles played by participants thus encouraging behavior that is active and pro-social (Polanin, Espalage & Pigott, 2012).
References
Olweus, D., & Limber, S. P. (2010). Bullying in school: Evaluation and dissemination of the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 80(1), 124-134.
Polanin, J. R., Espelage, D. L., & Pigott, T. D. (2012). A meta-analysis of school-based bullying prevention programs’ effects on bystander intervention behavior. School Psychology Review, 41(1), 47.
Ross, S. W., & Horner, R. H. (2009). Bullying prevention in positive behavior support. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 42, 747–759.
