Opening the tap on the School-to-Prison Pipeline: KIDS BULLIED FOR YEARS MORE LIKELY TO GO TO PRISON
BY JANICE WOOD, ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR.PSYCH CENTRAL NEWS (THE AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION) REVIEWED BY JOHN M. GROHOL, PSY.D. | HTTP://BIT.LY/16R5Y0C
August 1, 2013 :: People who are repeatedly bullied as kids and teens are “significantly” more likely to go to prison, according to new research presented at the American Psychological Association’s 121st Annual Convention.The study found that close to 14 percent of those who reported being bullied repeatedly from childhood through their teens ended up in prison as adults, compared to six percent of non-victims, nine percent of childhood-only victims, and seven percent of teen-only victims.
The study also found that more than 20 percent of those who endured chronic bullying were convicted of crimes, compared to 11 percent of non-victims, 16 percent of childhood victims, and 13 percent of teen victims.
Another finding of the study: Compared to nonwhite childhood victims, white childhood victims faced significantly greater odds of going to prison.
The results also revealed that women who were chronically bullied from childhood through their teens faced significantly greater odds of using alcohol or drugs, and had a greater likelihood of being arrested and convicted than men who had grown up as victims of chronic bullying.
“Previous research has examined bullying during specific time periods, whereas this study is the first to look at individuals’ reports of bullying that lasted throughout their childhood and teen years, and the legal consequences they faced in late adolescence and as adults,” said Michael G. Turner, Ph.D., of the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology at the University of North Carolina i