Bullying: A New Perspective with Nancy Willard

Welcome to Awareness, a show that reveals the story beyond the headlines, it has been a quick 3 weeks for me and I am very happy to say that I am coming to you from the new awareness studio, and I am truly grateful for your patience. 

So Let's jump right in, today we are going to reframe our perspective on bullying. We are going to change the way we look at this crisis. It's time we change our lens and look at bullying in context of social norms, up until now you have heard how devastating the effects bullying can be on our kids. Mallory Grossman and the Grossman's story is an example of how cruel bullying can be, you have also heard about my  encounter with bullying and the schools reaction. But now it's time we shift our focus to understanding this phenomenon. 

You will hear a point of view that is much different than anything you have heard on the mainstream media. It took me a while to find this point of view, and I am happy I am able to share this with you. 

Today we are joined by Nancy Willard, author of the books

• Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats: Responding to the Challenge of Online Social Cruelty, Threats, and Distress


• Cyber-Safe Kids, Cyber-Savvy Teens, Helping Young People Use the Internet Safely and Responsibly


• Cyber Savvy: Embracing Digital Safety and Civility

These books were published in 2007 and 2011 respectively. Nancy's book on Cyberbullying was the first book published on cyberbullying. With Nancy's help, the goal for today is to help you understand why it's not only the "weak" kids that get targeted but also the strong and popular ones. Also, you will gain a different level of understanding about bullying behaviors and a possible explanation for their expression.

For me, Nancy's information created a context and an deeper understanding  about bullying that has helped me, help my daughters.

Psychology Today article: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/sex-drugs-and-boredom/201006/culture-evolution-and-dominance

Podcast Social Media

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/

Facebook Bullying Group: https://tinyurl.com/y8osxqto

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod

Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com

Email: MyStory@awarenesspodcast.com

Find Nancy Willard’s information here: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com/guests/

Thanks:

Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme song, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.

Intro Music:

Highlander-Sasha Merkulov

Closing Music:

Pain-Attic Trax