Cases of bullying and cyberbullying are on the rise in Italy: how to recognise them and what to do to help victims, who are getting younger and younger.
The latest case is particularly appalling. A young pupil at a well-known school in the affluent "Milan bene" ended up in accident and emergency following a bullying incident involving some very young classmates. The bullies — four children of around ten years old — allegedly tried to force their classmate, just 7 years old, to get down on the floor because "girls clean floors", and then, when she refused, began kicking her until they cracked one of her ribs. Many questions about the incident remain unanswered, not least because of the alleged attempt to cover it up by the management of the school where it took place, the prestigious (and expensive) Collegio San Carlo in Milan. But the San Carlo case is only the latest in a long series of news stories that bear witness to an increasingly serious and ever-earlier phenomenon, which often has irreparable consequences for victims and their families.
Between September 2015 and June 2016, Telefono Azzurro recorded a total of 270 cases of bullying and cyberbullying in Italy — roughly one a day. In 45 per cent of cases, the incidents occurred in the north, a figure that rises to 70 per cent when it comes to online bullying. In the majority of cases, the bullies are male and personally know the children they target, while girls are the most frequent victims of cyberbullying (70 per cent of the total). A particularly troubling figure is that relating to the age of bullying victims, which is getting lower and lower. In 22 per cent of cases, according to Telefono Azzurro, victims are children as young as 5. In the case of cyberbullying, on the other hand, the phenomenon mainly affects secondary school students, with 50 per cent of requests for help coming from pre-adolescents.
The figures, also recorded by other bodies, point to a progressive increase in violence in schools, and above all in online attacks. During 2016, for example, the Centro sul disagio giovanile e adolescenziale received around 1,200 requests for help, 80 per cent of which were linked to situations originating on the web. In 2009, the first year for which data are available, there were 300 cases in total. Istat data are current to 2014, but already reveal an alarming trend: more than half of young people aged between 11 and 17 said they had experienced at least one offensive, disrespectful or violent incident in the previous year, while 5.9 per cent of young internet or mobile phone users reported having been the victim of harassment via text message, email, chat or social networks.
According to the Telefono Azzurro dossier, bullying victims suffer in many cases from generalised anxiety and emotional difficulties. In 30 per cent of cases they engage in self-harming behaviour, while 10 per cent go as far as thinking about suicide. A typical warning sign is a refusal to go to school, but also a general and persistent sadness and a tendency to withdraw. A bullying victim also tends to have little self-confidence and to avoid confiding in adults, often out of fear of not being believed or of incurring reprisals from the bullies. Insomnia and eating disorders can be other warning signs that should not be underestimated.
Anyone who suspects a bullying incident is being committed against a child, grandchild or friend should first of all inform the school management and the child's family. It is also possible to contact Telefono Azzurro's free helpline, 1.96.96, which is available 24 hours a day, every day of the year. The line is naturally also available to victims themselves, and is complemented by an online channel at www.azzurro.it/chat. Calls and messages are answered by psychologists, neuropsychiatrists and specialist educators who can provide concrete support in managing the situation. Other initiatives, such as anti-violence helpdesks and listening points, are active across the country, thanks to the work of associations and volunteers. Meanwhile, Parliament has long been considering a law to combat the phenomena of bullying and cyberbullying, which provides, among other things, for the appointment of a designated teacher in every school and the possibility of requesting the removal of websites that are the subject of online harassment. Some Italian regions are discussing similar legislative measures: the Lazio Regional Council, for example, has already passed a law on the subject.