University discovers link between bullying, self-harm and suicide

Both bullies and their victims have been found to be three times more likely to consider suicide or actions of self-harm by the age of 11, according to recent research conducted by the University.

In the recent paper published in the _Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry_, researchers believe that they have found that involvement in bullying greatly increases the chances of a child self-harming or contemplating suicide. The authors of the paper, Catherine Winsper, Tanya Lereya and Dieter Wolke, are all based at the University.

The subjects of the research were 6,034 children whose mothers had enrolled in the Children of the 90s, a long-term health research study at the University of Bristol. The research carried out at Warwick aimed towards the discovery of the levels of bullying in children, as well as investigating how prevalent thoughts of self-harm and suicide were in 11 and 12 year old children.

After collecting information from parents, teachers and the children involved, the research concluded that the increase in suicidal thoughts could not be attributed to factors other than the involvement in bullying.

When compared with children who have never been bullied, the victims of bullying were found to be three times more likely to contemplate suicide or self-harm, while long-term victims of bullying were found to be six times more likely.

The research also found that the children responsible for the bullying were at a raised risk of suicidal thoughts and self-harming behaviour.

Wolke, based in the Department of Psychology and Warwick Medical School, said that “4.8 percent of this community population reported suicidal thoughts and 4.6 percent reported suicidal or self-injurious behaviour.”

He explained how the study shows that “health practitioners should be aware of the relationship between bullying and suicide”, since very real risks appear to be evident much earlier than expected.

The report calls for “intervention schemes from primary school onwards”, believing that primary schools could and should be doing more.”

Suicide is a leading cause of death in the UK; in 2008 there were 4,282 recorded suicides in England alone. Men between the ages of 15 and 24 are at a particularly high risk.

Izzy John, the Students’ Union (SU) Welfare Officer, said that “people look at bullying and think it is just something that happens at school, but actually it does happen at university level as well.”

She explained how it is often supposed that “there is an expectation on people to put up with what they simply shouldn’t have to.” Too often bullying is dismissed as something that happens amongst children and that is “just a part of growing up.”

There is a range of support systems in place for any students who believe that they have been, or are being bullied at the University. For students who are suffering from bullying in their halls of residence, the first port of call should be their Resident Tutor; for other students there is the Student Support Services located in the SU.