At least nine out of 10 young people from 18 countries across the globe believe bullying is a pervasive problem within their communities with two-thirds saying they have experienced it firsthand, according to a new poll.
More than 100,000 young people aged between 13 and 30 years and coming from countries including Mexico, Uganda, Ireland and Pakistan participated in the poll, conducted by UNICEF and its partners.
Other findings showed that a third of respondents thought being bullied was normal and didn’t tell anyone as a consequence, that the majority of victims of bullying said they were bullied because of their appearance, and that a quarter of victims said they didn’t know who to tell. Gender, sexual orientation and ethnicity were also cited as reasons for bullying.
Theresa Kilbane, UNICEF’s senior adviser on child protection, said bullying remains a largely misunderstood risk to the wellbeing of children and young people and called for an increased effort to make people aware of its harmful impact as well as the equipping of teachers, parents and young people themselves with the skills they need to identify risks and report incidents.
