Girl Defenders

April 22, 2009

WHEN BULLIES PICK-ON OTHER KIDS AT SCHOOL… YOU CAN APPARENTLY COUNT ON GIRLS TO COME TO THE RESCUE.

A NEW UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA STUDY FINDS THAT GIRLS ARE MORE
LIKELY THAN BOYS TO DEFEND BULLYING VICTIMS… HELP THEM AFTER
WARDS OR TRY TO BREAK UP AN INCIDENT ALTOGETHER. IN FACT RESEARCHERS SAY IN DEFENDING VICTIMS… GIRLS MAY BE RESPONDING TO EXPECTATIONS PLACED ON THEM BY FRIENDS AND LOVED ONED TO SHOW EMPATHY AND SUPPORT.

Jim Porter/UF education researcher: “Friends were more likely to expect girls to defend than they were to expect boys to defend and that correlated to more defending out of girls.”

THAT SEEMS TO FIT WITH ‘FEMALE’ STEREOTYPES OF EMPATHY AND
FRIENDLINESS. RESULTS SHOW THE EXPECTATIONS OF PEERS SEEM
TO MATTER MORE THAN THOSE OF PARENTS OR TEACHERS.

Jim Porter/UF education researcher: “This tells us to practically get in there and look at whose friends are whose. I know parents at home worry about whom their child is going to be a friend with. And maybe we need to give teachers and educators the power to start looking at that too and saying who are these children’s friends and how are their friendships affecting their behavior?”

SO PEER PRESSURE HAS A BENEFIT. GIRLS WHO DO DEFEND OR HELP BULLYING VICTIMS OFTEN GET A BOOST OF SELF ESTEEM.

(See related post: )