Girl bullying: Aggressive behaviour of secondary school girls

Abstract

Most schools have some kind of problem with bullying. Bullying means to repeatedly harm a person psychologically, physically and/or emotionally. Power and aggression play an important role in bullying – bullies feel they can use power aggressively in different forms to gain something from the peer group or from the victim. Both girls and boys engage in bullying behaviour, but with some evident differences. Boys often use more direct physical assaults and threats, whereas girls often use more indirect methods such as exclusion from a group or the spreading of rumours about another person. The aim of social aggression in girls is often to gain status, social position or to negotiate power. But how does a girl develop into a bully? Bullying behaviour cannot be ignored by parents and teachers, because the victims of bullying often report physical and mental health problems. They may for instance develop self-esteem problems and in some cases may even contemplate suicide. The future of the bully is also at stake, because such a person could turn out to be an abuser in his/her adult years. This article focuses on the trends and challenges associated with aggressive behaviour among girls in secondary schools. The specific aims of the study are to study the profile of the female bully, evaluate the possible causes of aggressive behaviour among girls in secondary schools and to make recommendations as to the handling and prevention of such behaviour. The researchers studied the problem from the Family Systems and Attachment approaches. The context of the bully often determines certain aggressive behaviour and the way in which the victim responds is also dependent on her context. The parents, school and society all play a role in destructive behaviour and the prevention thereof. Data for this study were collected by means of document analysis and questionnaires. Respondents answered open-ended questions indicating their experiences in schools regarding aggressive behaviour.