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by Donald B. Ardell, Ph. D.
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Wellness in the Headlines
(Don's Report to the World)

A Wellness Approach To Bullying

Monday February 12, 2007

"It is increasingly clear that the main function of human culture might be helping us overcome human nature. Self-deception is imbedded in our nature, so we have science to protect us from our inborn tendencies to self-deceive. Harassment and bullying of people who are different are parts of human nature. We have not yet created effective cultural institutions to combat it. When I worked as a behavior analyst in the public school system, I was doubly outraged, first, by the extent and viciousness of bullying in the schools and, second, by the indifference of school personnel. In one school, a severely autistic child with whom I was working was bullied by a group of young thugs -- Republicans in training. I likened it to tripping a visually impaired child. But my concerns fell on deaf ears. As noted by Gerri Hirshey in the New York Times article about an anti-bias program for teenagers ("Pushing Back at Bullying," January 28, 2007), adults seemed all too ready to dismiss the problem as a normal part of growing up. I refuse to accept cruelty as 'a normal part of growing up.' I am pleased that there seems to be an effort to raise consciousness about a pervasive and serious problem." ~Bob Ludlow

Bullying is endemic in American schools, and perhaps elsewhere, as well. The media has recently been awash about dreadful instances of bullying. Mean-spirited words and other harassments are morphing into levels of violence constituting criminality. Is this bullying inherent in human nature, as Bob Ludlow suggests? Is bullying a complex condition related in part to self-loathing, immersion in cultures of common indecencies, and poisonous peers? Or are factors quite different from these tendencies at play? Most important, is bullying amenable to reform?

These kinds of questions are addressed in numerous articles, books, conferences and programs focused on bullying. Suggested approaches for dealing with the problem range across a continuum from harsh penalties to education and guidance. While bullying has often been downplayed as part of the maturation process, it is now seen as a pervasive problem with damaging effects on the victims of bullying and even the perpetrators. In the latter instance, bullying tendencies are reinforced in attitudes and behaviors, a subtle form of learning that will plague bullies in the future and those unfortunate enough to come into contact with them. In the NY Times article quoted by Ludlow, above, reference is made to a 2001 report by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development that identified school bullying "as a growing public health problem." No fewer than 29 percent of about 16,000 American students surveyed acknowledged bullying, "either as a target, offender or both."

A question not addressed, since so few involved with bullying have much understanding of the wellness concept or the movement surrounding it, is whether wellness-inspired approaches might be useful for ameliorating bullying. I think this is a good possibility. Evidence for this expectation comes from a successful program that employs wellness-based strategies. Meet the ADL's (Anti-Defamation League) A World of Difference Institute training program.

While not exclusively focused on bullying, the ADA's "Difference" initiative offers workshops and other resources of an anti-bias nature. The focus is to create environments where students and others can learn to feel comfortable expressing opinions, beliefs and viewpoints that are different from the norm. Also, to BE comfortable, welcoming and sensitive to differences amongst people in terms of appearance, race and other factors. In short, it's a tolerance program. Tolerance is one of the common decencies of a wellness mindset, at least when wellness is used in a comprehensive manner worthy of the terms, not as a marketing device to push a remedy or treatment. ADA's educational outreach efforts help kids better understand and cope with problems, develop improved personal and social judgment and expand the quality of their social sensitivity, empathy and respect for others. Yes, these are effective attitudes and skills for encouraging those who do or would bully to appreciate the grotesque nature of such acts, but such attitudes and skills also serve to advance the quality of life for all skilled in such areas. Thus, the ADA is running a wellness program and deserves recognition as such.

If highly functional efforts of this kind were promoted and more widely appreciated as consequential to personal effectiveness and success in life, as well as a boost to the civility of varied communities such as school classrooms, workplaces and organizations, more people might be attracted to enroll in such endeavors. To paraphrase Georges Clemenceau's famous remark in the context of World War I, "the skills taught in the ADL's 'Difference' programs are too important to be left to anti-bullying education."

Be well. Look on the bright side of life.

Domain: mental
Subdomain: emotional intelligence

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