Abstract
Long tolerated as a rite of passage into adulthood, bullying is now recognized as a major and preventable public health problem. The consequences of bullying—for those who are bullied, the perpetrators of bullying, and the witnesses—include poor physical health, anxiety, depression, increased risk for suicide, poor school performance, and future delinquent and aggressive behavior. Despite ongoing efforts to address bullying at the law, policy, and programmatic levels, there is still much to learn about the consequences of bullying and the effectiveness of various responses. In 2016, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine published a report entitled Preventing Bullying Through Science, Policy and Practice, which examined the evidence on bullying, its impact, and responses to date. This article summarizes the report’s key findings and recommendations related to bullying prevention.
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Acknowledgments
This study was supported by contracts between the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (200-2011-38807, Task Order 26); the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) (HHSN26300072); the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHSH25034018T); the Highmark Foundation (1026727); the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) of the US Department of Justice (2014-MU-MU-0011); the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (72186); the Semi J. and Ruth W. Begun Foundation; and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHSP23337031). Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project. The authors would like to thank members of the staff of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine who supported this project but particularly Francis Amankwah, Kelsey Geiser, and Annalee Gonzales. We also thank Kathi Grasso of the Committee on Law and Justice for her support, and Sally Cohen for her expertise in public health and policy.
Portions of this paper were reprinted with permission from “Preventing Bullying Through Science, Policy and Practice” (2016) by the National Academy of Sciences, Courtesy of the National Academies Press, Washington, DC.
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Flannery, D.J., Todres, J., Bradshaw, C.P. et al. Bullying Prevention: a Summary of the Report of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Prev Sci 17, 1044–1053 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-016-0722-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-016-0722-8