6. Bullying at school

This indicator repeats information from the 2002 Indicators of School Crime and Safety report.

The percentage of students who reported that they had been bullied at school increased from 5 percent in 1999 to 8 percent in 2001.

Bullying can contribute to an environment of fear and intimidation in schools (Arnette and Walsleben 1998; Ericson 2001). In the School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey, students ages 12?18 were asked if they had been bullied (for example, picked on or made to do things they did not want to do) at school. In 2001, 8 percent of students reported that they had been bullied at school in the last 6 months, up from 5 percent in 1999 (table 6.1).

In 2001, males were more likely than females to be bullied (9 vs.7 percent); however, no differences could be detected according to students? sex in 1999 (about 5 percent each) (figure 6.1 and table 6.1). The percentage of students who reported that they had been bullied increased between 1999 and 2001 for all racial/ethnic groups except Blacks. About 6 percent of Black students in both years reported they had been bullied. During this period, the percentage of students who had been bullied increased from 5 to 9 percent for White students, and from 4 to 8 percent for Hispanic students. In 2001, one difference could be detected among racial/ethnic groups in the percentage of students who reported being bullied: White students were more likely than Black students to report being bullied (9 vs.6 percent).

In 1999 and 2001, grade level was inversely related to students? likelihood of being bullied: as grade level increased, students? likelihood of being bullied decreased (figure 6.2 and table 6.1). For example, in 2001, 14 percent of 6th-graders, 9 percent of 9th- graders, and 2 percent of 12th-graders reported that they had been bullied at school.

In 1999, public school students were more likely to report being bullied than private school students (5 vs.3 percent); however, no differences were detected between public and private school students? reports of being bullied in 2001.

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