More than 30% of students worldwide experience bullying

Speaking on the occasion of the November 15-19 “Anti-Bullying Week”, Cyprus International University (CIU) Psychology Department Lecturer, specialist Psychologist Nur Vural noted that studies conducted on the TRNC context have shown that students who experience bullying, especially in the school environment, have reported problems such as being made fun of, rumors spreading about them, being subjected to sexually suggestive comments and repeated hand gestures.
Vural stated that according to a UNESCO report published in 2022, more than 30% of students worldwide are victims of bullying, and that this can lead to low academic success or dropping out of school.
Bullying can be defined as continuous and aggressive behaviors by a group or an individual with the aim of disturbing the other party and bullying experienced in childhood and adolescence can also affect the relationships and behavioral patterns of the individual in adulthood.
Vural pointed out that bullying can be basically divided into two: “There are two types of bullying: physical (hitting, pushing, etc.), verbal (slandering, swearing, etc.), relational (exclusion, sulking, etc.), as well as cyberbullying, which includes harmful behaviors over the internet.”
Vural stated that when we look at the social dynamics of bullying, we can observe that there is a power imbalance between two people and that bullying behavior is normalized under the guise of joking, and warned, " We also see those who witness bullying exhibit a passive attitude because they do not know how to behave."
Vural drew attention to the fact that being subjected to bullying particularly damages the self-confidence of children and adolescents, and said, “It also causes them to feel lonely and misunderstood. This entails anxiety and depression.” 
Vural also provided information on punishing the bully and said that it is important for the punishment to be directed at the action not the person.
Vural pointed out that what is causing a person to bully can be determined by examining the phenomena of anger and violence and that anger management is a subject that needs to be addressed in every segment of society; she reminded that “Children learn by observing and modeling the people around them. Therefore, when they see anger expressed through aggressive behavior, the probability of them resorting to bullying increases.” Stating that families have important duties at this point, Vural said, “Families should stay away from statements and actions that encourage bullying behavior.”