Are your clients going to school fearful of bullying? Or are you fearful they will be the ones doing the bullying?
There are different types of bullying that affect children and youth. What a bully uses to aggressively control, intimidate, or humiliate their target depends. Upon the target’s differences, perceived weaknesses, or other factors. But understanding that bullying is not only physical help professionals understands the ways bullies think. And learning their means of acting helps to treat them and those around them to reduce this behavior.
Sherri Gordon has written many articles and books about bullying prevention. She wrote an article about these types of bullying. A link to her article is at the end of this piece. She listed six primary types of bullying.
They are:
1.Physical Bullying
This is something youths in behavioral health care understand. Many of them are either the targets or the aggressors in this form of bullying. There is usually a physical size difference between the aggressor and target. The aggressor slaps, kicks, shoves the target or does other physical acts. This becomes the more obvious form and which others notice, leading to school suspensions or other forms of restriction.
2.Verbal Bullying
With this form, an aggressor doesn’t need to be larger in stature but feels superior to others. These statements belittle, demean, and/or humiliate others. This occurs for many youths with special needs, who appear different or “weaker”.
3.Relational Aggression
This type of bullying isn’t noticed like the others. Tweens and teens, many times girls, use this to manipulate peers and affect social standing. This happens with gossip, rumors, breaking confidences, insults, etc. It’s designed to put the target on the “outside” group and the aggressor on the “inside” group. Think of the movie Mean Girls and you have an idea.
4.Cyberbullying
Becoming more common, the use of social media or technology to harm and embarrass someone. A text, a phone call, a chat, an image are the vehicles to cause pain. Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, and Instagram are common sites where this happens. When a bully doesn’t want to face their target, this becomes easier.
5.Sexual Bullying
When youths engage in name-calling, crude comments, vulgar gestures, this leads to sexual bullying. This occurs with boys to girls or even girls to girls. This also includes sexting as well. The goal is to shame another person about their body, appearance, etc. At times it leads to sexual assault.
6.Prejudicial bullying
This type of bullying occurs when the aggressor has negative feelings about the target’s sexual preference, religion, or ethnicity. Based upon judgments the aggressor has, verbal attacks occur. But it can also be non-verbal, such as looks, facial expressions, gestures, etc.
By the way, these don’t only happen in school or youth atmospheres. Workplace bullying occurs frequently, as well as on the freeway, in stores, etc.
Bullying prevention requires a comprehensive approach. Which involves the adults in their environment. Those doing the bullying as well as the targets. And those who are the witnesses. Because all willingly or unwillingly participate in the actions. Just as in family therapy, everyone plays a role in the problem and everyone must contribute to the solution.
Here’s the link to Sherri Gordon’s information:
PRAXES provides training to behavioral health organizations on subjects such as bullying prevention. For more information or a quote for training courses for your organization, please contact us.
Got questions? We've got answers.
PRAXES is a nationwide behavioral health software, consulting, and training company. No one in the behavioral health industry has a better reputation, and if you give us the chance, we’ll show you why! At PRAXES, our services improve the efficiency and structure of behavioral health agencies serving children and families nationwide. PRAXES brings over 45 years of administrative and clinical expertise. With more than 100 client companies nationwide, we offer the expertise to advance the quality of behavioral health services. We accomplish these goals through our new clinical decision software, our training of best practices, and helping companies meet regulatory standards. At PRAXES, we believe in being creative and fostering new ways to serve children and their families. Our vision is to empower the families our agencies serve with skills that not only improve their functioning, but help them to thrive in their everyday lives. When you give us the chance, you’ll be connected directly to our friendly staff, so you can expect immediate attention to your inquiry. So, don’t wait, call now!
Dan Thorne has unique perspectives on the field of mental health. As a clinician, he has had over 40 years of experience working with clients in the Southern California area. After obtaining his Bachelor’s degree from the University of California at Irvine, he worked with children in the Orange County Juvenile Hall. Here he honed his earliest techniques on at-risk children. After that, he obtained his Master’s degree in Counseling from California State University, Fullerton.
In the 1990’s, Dan turned his attention to the clinical and administrative side of behavioral health organizations. For three years, he was the Assistant Administrator of Starting Point, a chemical dependency facility in Costa Mesa, CA. In 2001, he took an opportunity to be the Director of Harbor View Community Services Center in Long Beach. When he arrived, the Center had only 80 clients and 13 staff. When he left, there were over 400 clients and 75 staff. Dan created several programs through their contract with the Los Angeles County Departments of Mental Health and Child and Family Services. Under his guidance, Harbor View became one of the leading providers of children’s services in Los Angeles County.
While improving the results of the client’s parents at the Center, Dan reflected on his experiences as a parent. His children themselves had special needs such as mental and intellectual challenges, and Dan knew the toll it takes on the parent. In order to help the child, the parent has to be healthy. From this concept, he created his parenting program. After years of refining it, teaching it to his staff at the Center, and then taking the results and comments from these efforts, he became the developer of the current PRAXES program. It is a culmination of Dan’s personal trials and tribulations as a parent along with empirical results and research of over 40 parenting programs.
Our vision at PRAXES is to advance the strength of parents and caregivers of children with special needs (mental health, intellectual, or physical) through education, support, and empowerment. Thus, they can live healthy and functional lives while caring for the child.
Apogee is a clinical decision software designed to help behavioral health practitioners with their treatment and patient engagement. It provides evidence-based and research-based components. Not only do they consist of elements from such practices as Cognitive Behavior Therapy, Seeking Safety, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Functional Behavior Analysis, but also the Intensive Models for Parents, Youth, and Children.
PRAXES has over 30 years of accreditation experience. We know what it takes to get your organization accredited. Whether it’s Joint Commission, CARF, or COA, our team can provide an evaluation of your current status and review the standards which need improvements. We will assist you with the policies, documentation, and training required to be accredited.
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