ABSTRACT
Victims of bullying, the bullies themselves, and even those children who simply witness bullying will struggle in school and sometimes stop attending out of fear, experience low self-esteem, live in a constant state of stress response, become depressed and often turn to violent behavior. The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry states that "close to half of all children will experience school bullying at some point while they are at primary or secondary school." Many others, obviously, will do the bullying. Many state and local governments have stepped in to create laws around bullying. Although legislation is absolutely critical to enforce policies that will affect children, it's sometimes difficult to identify the players in the bullying cycle. The terms "bully," "victim," and "bystander" are commonly used to describe what takes place. Researchers note that many bullies have been victims of bullying themselves and, therefore, continue a destructive cycle.
