Journal of School Violence

Connecting Adolescent Suicide to the Severity of Bullying and Cyberbullying

While previous studies have identified that school bullying and cyberbullying victimization among adolescents is associated with suicidal thoughts and attempts, no work has measured the severity of bullying incidents and their impact on the youth at school within that context. As such, a survey was distributed to a representative sample of U.S. youth between the…

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NPR’s On Point with Tom Ashbrook – October 18, 2013

Dr. Patchin joins Tom Ashbrook for a discussion of the Rebecca Sedwick suicide and resulting felony charges leveled against two of those who allegedly bullied her. Also featured in the program are Jerriann Sullivan (Orlando Sentinel), Sheriff Grady Judd (Polk County, FL sheriff), and Sue Shellenbarger (The Wall Street Journal). October 18, 2013 Click here…

Does Bullying “Cause” Suicide? Cyberbullying Research Center

Does Bullying “Cause” Suicide?

The title of Deborah Temkin’s recent Huffington Post article is a simple request: “Stop saying bullying causes suicide.” Her plea is understandable and justified. Sameer and I also cringe when we read the ubiquitous headlines espousing the conventional wisdom proclaiming that “bullying causes suicide.” But what does the research actually say about the nature of this…

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White House Bullying Conference

On Thursday March 10, 2011, the White House convened a conference to address the issue of bullying. First Lady Michelle and President Obama welcomed parents, students, researchers, industry leaders and others to discuss the negative effects of bullying and highlight some of the best-practices and promising approaches in prevention and response. I was honored to…

Bullying, Cyberbullying, and Suicide

Empirical studies and some high-profile anecdotal cases have demonstrated a link between suicidal ideation and experiences with bullying victimization or offending. The current study examines the extent to which a nontraditional form of peer aggression – cyberbullying – is also related to suicidal ideation among adolescents. Among a random sample of approximately 2,000 middle-schoolers, youth…

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Cyberbullying Panic?

Several high profile incidents have put cyberbullying at the top of the headlines in recent months.  When Sameer and I first started studying this problem over eight years ago, it was rare to see a cyberbullying story in the media, now they are everywhere. Larry Magid, a technology journalist who contributes to a number of…

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Criminal Charges Filed Against Bullies in Phoebe Prince Case

It is not often that students are charged in criminal court for their participation in bullying.  But that is what happened this week.  As has been well-publicized, 15-year-old Phoebe Prince of South Hadley, Massachusetts, committed suicide in January after experiencing extreme levels of bullying from her classmates.  After conducting a thorough investigation, District Attorney Elizabeth…