EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL BULLYING TO BEHAVIOR 1

Effects of Physical Bullying to a High School Student’s Behavior

Hyojin Angelo Bernabe

Jahuen Cursaba
Lester Jerome Ortiz
Jade Nicole Lingwayon
Aila Marie Nieva

INTRODUCTION

Many of the students are experiencing, or had experienced bullying. The researcher’s

observed that the students involved in a case of bullying often change their behavior, especially

the victim. Even though the bully harms the victim in a physical way, the victim is affected in

any ways. The bullied student is affected mentally, physically and emotionally. If the child is

being physically abused this can really affect their behavior while they are still growing up. The

child might have changes in school performances and attendance, withdraw from friends and

activities enjoyed, show unusual aggression and rages to their schoolmates, have poor self-

esteem, they might flinch when touched by their schoolmates, be afraid or reluctant to go home

after school. They might even have suicidal thoughts or exhibit self-destructive behavior.
EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL BULLYING TO BEHAVIOR 2

Physical bullying includes all forms of physical harm done on the victim such as kicking,

shoving, punching, and the like (Sanapo, 2017).

According to the Cedar Falls School Organization, physical bullying can entail anything

from pushing and shoving to kicking, punching, fist fighting, being shot, being raped, or being

physically attacked by a gang. Bullying is a growing and serious problem in many schools. Many

students from different schools experienced bullying (Saleoan, et al., 2015).

High school students who experienced physically bullying can lead to a mental problem.

Bullying has a big impact to the behavior of the student. Bullying is mostly done by students.

There are the bully and also the bullied. The bully often hurt the ones who are weaker than them

while the bullied are simply the one being bullied. “Some victims of bullying at school hold

aggressive attitude which may place them at risk for involvement in high-risk behavior”

(Brockenbrough, Cornell, & Loper, 2002). When bullied, students are often traumatized to go to

school. Not being able to go to school can affect school academics which can also change the

victim’s life.

Bullying was defined as “intentional aggressive behavior” (Najam & Kashif, 2018) that

the person do to another purposely hurt them. Bullying is a serious matter to students including

school-aged children and adolescents (Rivara & Menestrel, 2016). And anyone can be victimized

by bullying. All students can be vulnerable and prone to bullying and the “weaker” ones are

more vulnerable to it. The researchers often encounter these cases happening so based on the

researchers’
EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL BULLYING TO BEHAVIOR 3

observation, the victims change their behavior and it is often visible to other students in their

surroundings.

Bullying is common in schools, many students are suffering. The school should focus on

this problem because it can affect the behavior of the students. The students who experienced

physical bullying live with fear, self-blame and it affects their personality and self-confidence.

This experience makes their behavior change.

There are a lot of victims of physical bullying, most of them are students and minors.

Sometimes physical bullying can affect the behavior of the victim. So the researchers want to

identify or examine if physical bullying is related to the change of behavior of a student and if

students’ experience can be a cause of the change of their behavior. This study aims to answer: a)

what are the common forms of physical bullying done to high school students, and b) what are

the behaviors of those high school students who experienced physical bullying.

The importance of the study is to identify the problem and give solutions to it, so that the

researchers know how exactly the researchers are going to help the bullied students. And also to

have various ways on how to help the bullied student. The importance of this study is also to

identify who can help and understand the psychological conditions and problems of those who

have been bullied at school.

Bullying has different forms, but the research is only limited to physical bullying. The

researchers will specifically examine the behavioral changes of the Baguio City National High
EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL BULLYING TO BEHAVIOR 4

School students who were victimized by the said form of bullying. The research will identify the

behavioral change regarding the behavior of students that became a victim of physical bullying.
EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL BULLYING TO BEHAVIOR 5

METHODOLOGY

I. RESEARCH DESIGN/DESIGN OF THE STUDY

The researchers have used descriptive design wherein the tallied answers of the

respondents regarding the topic of this research were analyzed and well processed. This kind of

design was adapted to identify the forms of physical bullying to a student’s behavior and how

physical bullying affect the behavior of the victim.

II. SAMPLING

The survey questionnaire was given and administered to a total of 50 students of Baguio

City National High School. The participants involved were randomly selected based on the

availability and willingness of that person.

III. RESEARCH TOOL AND INSTRUMENTATION

The questionnaire was designed to answer the researchers’ questions and to fulfill or

achieve their objectives. The questionnaire used both multiple choice questions and checklist

table form, where the respondents can check their desired answers. The contents of the

questionnaire was validated and approved by the researchers’ English teacher. The

questionnaires with the attached letter of consent were administered and the instructions were

discussed properly. After the respondents answered the questionnaire, the researchers retrieved

the questionnaires.
EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL BULLYING TO BEHAVIOR 6

IV. DATA ANALYSIS

The researchers analyzed a total of 33 questionnaires, which was based when the

respondents answered with a “yes” to the first question which is “have you been bullied

physically by someone?” The data were analyzed through frequency counting wherein the

respondents’ answers were tallied by the researchers. The researchers have gathered all the

respondents’ answers using 4-point Likert scale wherein the researchers solved its mean,

percentage, and rank.

V. ETHICAL ISSUES

The researchers assured that the respondents’ answers would be treated with utmost

confidentiality and will only be used for research purposes only.

EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL BULLYING TO BEHAVIOR 7

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Table 1. Common Forms of Violence Experienced by High School Students

Form of Violence Frequency Percentage Rank

Punching 16 21.92 2

Slapping 9 12.33 4

Kicking 8 10.96 5

Pushing 22 30.14 1

Poking 13 17.81 3

others 5 6.85 6

In the finding of this study, it was determined that pushing is the most common form of

violence received by the high school students who were victims of physical bullying. Then,

punching, mostly received by male students, obtained a total of 21.92% and poking which

obtained 17.81%.

The result from the questionnaire after being tallied showed that majority of the

respondents said that pushing, punching, and poking are the common forms of physical bullying

experienced by the respondents. This result was justified by a study from Olubunmi (2015) that

direct bullying involves a physical aggression, such as poking, punching, pushing, kicking, etc. It
EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL BULLYING TO BEHAVIOR 8

was identified that the students received many forms of physical bullying but the result showed

that pushing, poking, and punching were the common ones.

With the obtained data, it only showed that majority of the respondents who were

surveyed, received pushing, poking, and punching as a form of physical bullying. It only showed

that the forms of bullying can be hardly noticed like repeatedly poking the victim, but it can also

be a large movement like pushing or punching the victim that can be easily seen by the teachers

or staffs at school.

Table 2. Time Span of Physical Bullying Experienced by High School Students

Span Frequency Percentage Rank

3-4 weeks 21 63.64 1

2-6 months 2 6.06 3.5

7-12 months 3 9.09 2

2-3 years 1 3.03 5

4 years and more 2 6.06 3.5

No answer 4 12.12

According to the results of the study, the respondents are not fully aware of how long

have they been experiencing physical bullying since 12.12% of them have no answer to this

question. But out of 33 respondents, 22 of them answered that they have experienced physical

bullying at a span of 3-4 weeks. This supports the statistics saying that 5-15% of students are
EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL BULLYING TO BEHAVIOR 9

constantly bullied and The National Center for Education Statistics (2018) said that 33% of

students who reported being bullied at school indicated that they were bullied at least once or

twice a month during the school year, which is very alarming.

The findings of table 2 shows that the students who experienced physical bullying has

experienced it for a span of 3-4 weeks long. A monthly psychological and mental check-up for

the victims will benefit them knowing that most of them experienced 3-4 weeks long physical

bullying. It is definitely a hard time for the victims to cope with their situation since it is almost a

month with bullying. The guidance counsellors can also help with this since they can provide in

lifting their psychological health.

EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL BULLYING TO BEHAVIOR 10

Table 3. Changes in the Behavior of High School Students who Experienced Physical

Bullying

Behavior HIGH MID- MID- LOW Mean Rank

RATING HIGH LOW RATING

RATING RATING

Became more sensitive 8 8 11 6 2.55 3

Became more timid 2 7 13 11 2 7

Became depressed 5 9 7 15 2.3 5

Became aggressive 9 8 12 6 2.73 2

Had trust issue 12 10 7 4 2.9 1

Lost self-confidence 7 6 11 10 2.36 4

Excludes myself from other 6 7 5 14 2.09 6

According to the results of this table, the respondents’ experience results them to have

trust issues, which is a change of their behavior. Bullying is a primary motivator of school

shootings which shows signs of aggressiveness (Loveless, 2019). Victims also obtain aggressive

behaviors and attitudes said by Brockenbrough, Cornell, & Loper (2002) which was the top 2 on

the list.

The findings in table 3 concludes that the victims became aggressive, more sensitive, and

had trust issue. It only implies that the victims shows behavioral changes because of their

EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL BULLYING TO BEHAVIOR 11

experiences and often find themselves being aggressive, sensitive, and having trust issues. The

support system, which includes peers and family, can also be a factor that can help them in

overcoming these changes in their behavior.

EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL BULLYING TO BEHAVIOR 12

CONCLUSION

Many high school students have been experiencing physical bullying, many suffer from

repeated poking, punching, and pushing which are the common forms of physical bullying based

on the result of the survey. Also, the victims have trust issues, became aggressive, and became

more sensitive after being physically bullied. Physical bullying can affect a student’s behavior

especially on their school performances and the other students.

RECOMMENDATION

In the making of this study, the researchers have faced different problems, and discovered

practices that they wish to recommend:

1. The researchers recommend the victims to approach someone, open up, and seek help to

them to get through their situation.

2. The researchers recommend that the teachers should observe their students on their

behavioral changes so that the teachers will know the psychological health of the

students.

3. There should be more choices in the behavioral changes rating test to not limit the

options of the respondents.

4. The researchers recommend that the guidance counsellors will have a monthly

counselling to students that have signs of being a victim of physical bullying.

EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL BULLYING TO BEHAVIOR 13

REFERENCES

Brockenbrough, K. K., Cornell, D. G., & Loper, A. B. (2002). Aggressive Attitudes Among

Victims of Violence at School. Education and Treatment of Children, 273-287.

Loveless, B. (2019). Bullying Epidemic: Facts, Statistics and Prevention. Retrieved from

Education Corner: https://www.educationcorner.com/bullying-facts-statistics-and-

prevention.html

Najam, H., & Kashif, S. (2018). Impact of Bullying on Students' Behavioral Engagement.

doi:10.4172/2380-5439.1000261

National Center for Education Statistics. (2018, December 10). Bullying Statistics Every K-12

Teacher, Parent and Student Should Know. Student Reports for Bullying: Results From

the 2015 School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey, 1-51.

Retrieved from Campus Safety: https://www.campussafetymagazine.com/safety/bullying-

statistics-k-12/

Olubunmi, M. B. (2015). Dimensions of Bullying Among Secondary School Students in Ekiti

State, Nigeria. Psychology and Behavioral, 4(5), 190-193.

doi:10.11648/j.pbs.20150405.13

Rivara, F., & Menestrel, S. L. (2016). Preventing Bullying Through Science, Policy, and

Practice. Washington (DC): National Academies Press.

Saleoan, L. J., Sano, L. A., Tangangco, C., Tingda, A. Z., Toryaden, R. D., & Zapanta, C. G.

(2015, March 10). Manifested Bullying Behavior of Secondary Students in Selected

Public Schools in Baguio City. Retrieved from World Conferences:

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Dr%20Marilyn%20L%20Balmeo.pdf

Sanapo, M. (2017, December). SCIRP. Retrieved from When Kids Hurt Other Kids: Bullying in

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https://www.scirp.org/journal/PaperInformation.aspx?PaperID=81190