Children who bully tend to have troubled relationships with parents and friends and may continue to bully throughout their teens if those problems are not addressed early, a new study by researchers at York University and Queen’s University shows.

“Focusing on the child alone is not enough. Bullying is a relationship problem. Children who bully are using power and aggression to control others,” says the study’s lead author Debra Pepler, a Distinguished Research Professor of Psychology at York University and Senior Associate Scientist at The Hospital for Sick Children. “We need to look at their relationships with their parents and with friends who may also bully. [continue reading…]