Home - Stop Bullying

Northern Michigan University says no to bullying. Bullying is a real problem on college campuses, whether it be verbal, behavioral or online. As part of NMU’s stop bullying campaign, resources and facts have been compiled to help educate on the nature and popularity of bullying.

Bullying can occur outside of social environments, such as in the workplace or in the classroom. Victims of all bullying often experience high stress levels, reduced self-esteem, sleeping disorders and develop other physically and emotionally unhealthy habits. Words, like actions, can be hurtful.

These acts are simple to prevent. Remember to think before you speak and before you type. Take a moment to think about how not sharing negativity can have an extraordinarily positive impact.

Examples of bullying in college

While college students consider themselves grown adults capable of making their own life decisions on how to treat others, many still feel the need to belittle and bully others. Bullying occurs at all ages and college students can be more susceptible to bullying because of the close confines in which they live with one another.  The two examples below highlight how college students can be bullied and how they can handle those who bully.

• The Truth about Bullying in College
• Dealing with a Bully in College?

• Bullying includes repeated teasing, talking about hurting someone, spreading rumors, leaving someone out on purpose, attacking someone by yelling at them or hitting them.
• Workplace bullying includes repeated unwarranted or invalid criticism, blame without factual justification, being treated differently than the rest of your work group, being sworn at, exclusion or social isolation, being shouted at or being humiliated, excessive monitoring or micromanaging and being given unrealistic work deadlines.
• Victims of workplace bullying can experience significant physical and mental health problems, such as high-stress, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), financial problems due to absence, reduced self-esteem, musculoskeletal problems, phobias, sleep and digestive disturbances, increased depression and self blame and family tension and stress.
• Bullying does not always happen in person. Cyber bullying is a type of bullying that happens over text message or online communication.
• Bullying increases the risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors.
• No state has ever passed a law about hazing or cyber bullying.
• 42 percent of college students reported seeing someone being bullied by another student while about 8 percent reported bullying another student.
• Almost 15 percent of students reported seeing a professor bully a student, but 4 only percent reported that a professor had bullied them.
• 22 percent of college students reported being cyberbullied while 15 percent reported being bullied in person.
• 38 percent of college students know someone who has been cyberbullied, while almost 9 percent admit having cyberbullied someone else.
• Of college students who reported being cyberbullied, 25 percent reported being harassed through a social networking site, 21 percent reported that they received harmful text messages, 16 percent receiving harmful communication through e-mail and 13 percent through instant messages.