Bullying: a self-fulfilling prophecy?

Abstract

Fifty years of research revealed at least three major trends that increase the complexity of the phenomenon of school bullying and hinder its objective assessment: the disparity between the results of the studies, the difficulty in sustaining theoretically and empirically the hypothesis of an increase in violence, and the obstacles for the legal action. As a consequence, some scholars, as well as the public opinion, may develop a biased view of the situation. In both instances, an upward trend is taken for granted, possibly due to spurious reasons such as a vested interest in boosting the editorial and business market; which would make possible to better understand the inconsistencies of many of the proposals and formulas for intervention and prevention.