myths about bullying that people often do not understand. The first myth about bullying is that bullying has to do with the size of the class. Bullies can be found in small classes and in large classes. In the past, one popular method for handling bullies was switching them to a different class either a smaller or larger one. However, this method has not been shown to be an effective way to prevent bullying. Who are the bullies? A second myth that Owleus’ (1995) discusses is that bullying is related to competition for grades. This historic depiction of the School Yard Bully has been captured in the popular television show, The Simpson’s. In this television series, the school yard bully is depicted as an illiterate baboon who uses aggression to mask his own lack of academic potential, but this is not a real portrayal of who bullies are. In fact, many bullies are not dumb and at the bottom of the class, but may instead be your star pupils. Instead, a number of specific characteristics have been noticed in research examining bullying. Menesini, Melana, and Pignatti (2000) found three primary characteristics related to an individual’s tendency to bully her or his classmates: (1) an aggressive personality, with a tendency to react aggressively in any situation; (2) little control over one’s emotional state and the behaviors associated with those emotions; and (3) a positive attitude towards violence and competition. While any of these alone can have negative effects, the combination of the three leads to many behavioral problems in school. Figure 10.2 is a scale developed by Jason Wrench (one of the authors) to examine an individual’s likelihood to react in a physically aggressive manner. This scale was developed as a means to assess an individual’s tendency to use physical aggression as a means of anti-social communication. While past researchers in the field of communication have focused on verbal communication, understanding physical communication and how it relates to bullying can be very beneficial in our present discussion. Overall, bullying is generally both verbal and physical in its most drastic forms.
Physical Aggression Scale Read the following questions and select the answer that corresponds with what you would do in most situations. Do not be concerned if some of the items appear similar. Please use the scale below to rate the degree to which each statement applies to you. Strongly Agree 1
Agree 2
Neutral 3
Disagree 4
Strongly Disagree 5
_____1. I am extremely careful to avoid physically attacking another individual.
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