The recent suicide of Sandra Peña, a teenager from Seville, has added her name to the alarming statistics of adolescents taking their lives due to school bullying. Despite reporting her ordeal to the school on two separate occasions, she suffered for months without any intervention from the institution. According to the General Prosecutor”s Office, a total of 1,196 students experienced bullying in the previous year alone.
In a disturbing incident just a week ago in Vigo, parents raised concerns that their five-year-old daughter was being bullied by eleven-year-old classmates. The tragic circumstances surrounding Sandra”s death have sparked widespread protests across Spain, fueling a burgeoning movement akin to “Me Too,” aimed at breaking the silence surrounding bullying.
“Bullying is something that should deeply sadden us as a society because it represents a genuine social scourge and creates tremendous fear,” stated María Begoña Castro Iglesias, president of the Educational Psychology Section of the Official College of Psychology of Galicia (COPG). She emphasized that bullying involves ongoing mistreatment from one or more peers towards a student, manifesting in verbal, physical, or psychological forms, and can also include social isolation. Additionally, bullying can occur through electronic or technological means within the school setting.
This issue has devastating effects on victims and, as noted in the Galician educational protocol, requires immediate intervention. Castro acknowledged that while current protocols are appropriate, they fall short without genuine societal involvement. “The latest protocol developed in Galicia regarding bullying and cyberbullying is correct. The challenge lies in our collective engagement. Teachers need comprehensive training from university level; a few hours of training is insufficient to resolve the issue,” she explained.
However, Castro clarified that responsibility cannot rest solely on educators. “This is a problem that concerns us all: educational institutions, families, and society at large. Serious cases, such as the one in Seville leading to a completed suicide, trigger alarms, yet bullying remains prevalent, often unnoticed,” she asserted.
She advocates for prevention as a crucial tool in eradicating school bullying and calls for a coordinated and global approach. “We must prevent bullying. The focus should not only be on addressing existing cases. We need to promote values and coexistence, not just in schools but also within families and society. Parents must engage in conversations with their children; the art of listening and accompanying them has diminished. It”s essential to explain what bullying is and how to respond to it,” she advised.
The role of educational psychologists in schools has been a long-standing demand from the COPG, already implemented in regions like the Balearic Islands, and has proven effective in both preventing and addressing bullying. “These professionals possess the necessary technical training to intervene, conduct psychometric evaluations, and apply psychological tests in a legally sound manner,” she added.
Despite being less common than in the past, Castro acknowledges that some adults still downplay bullying, an attitude that hinders proper intervention and exacerbates the issue. “Families must understand that aggressive behaviors are learned early in life. If not corrected, they become entrenched,” she explained.
The psychological aftermath of bullying can be severe, leading to low self-esteem, fear, anxiety, depression, isolation, and in extreme cases, suicide. “Victims endure lasting consequences on their mental health and developmental progress,” she noted. Castro also warns that social media amplifies the issue, extending it beyond school boundaries and diminishing the effectiveness of awareness campaigns.
Intervention, she emphasizes, must target not only the victim but also the aggressor. “It is crucial to work with the bully through mentoring, corrective measures, and emotional education. They must reflect on their actions, repair the harm, and learn empathy and coexistence skills,” she stressed. Additionally, it is vital to establish that no behavior counter to coexistence will be tolerated.
Regarding the possibility of a bully remaining one if not intervened upon, she argues that the focus should be on the deterioration of the aggressor”s mental health, which, if untreated, may lead to personality disorders. Recent studies indicate that anger, insecurity, and impulsivity—often originating in childhood—are common traits among bullies. “They typically exhibit low self-esteem, limited empathy, and difficulties managing their emotions. They often resort to bullying as a means of feeling superior or admired, even at the expense of harming others. They seek admiration and social recognition, and to achieve that, they may humiliate, exclude, or undermine their peers,” she concluded.
In an effort to assist families, the professional college will soon publish an updated informational brochure on school bullying and how to confront it.
