EXPERT ADVISORY — February 23, 2026 — R0019

As schools around the country prepare to mark Pink Shirt Day this week, Brock University experts say children aren’t the only ones who need to be reminded about the dangers of bullying.

Professors in the Department of Child and Youth Studies and the Brock Research on Aggression and Victimization Experiences (BRAVE) group say some lesser-known aspects of bullying and aggressive behaviour are also important for parents, teachers and extracurricular organizers to keep in mind.

Associate Professor Ann Farrell says children in Grades 6 to 8 are most likely to have negative peer experiences associated with bullying. That timing has added significance when accounting for mental health concerns. 

“When you look at the research on mental health separately from bullying, we see similar developmental trends, where the peak onset of mental health difficulties come around that middle adolescence period, as well,” she says. 

Although bullying rates are lower during older adolescence, Farrell says the effects of past bullying often persist well beyond the initial incident. 

“Many young people don’t just grow out of or get over these experiences,” she says. “The lasting impacts on mental health can be both direct and indirect. For example, if you’re not having a good experience with your peers at school, then maybe you’re more often absent and that will impact your academics, affect choices for post-secondary education, career options and more.”  

Farrell says these negative outcomes can follow both those who are victimized by bullies as well as those who engage in bullying as they grow into adulthood.  

“In the long term, what we see is that this behaviour eventually catches up over time and can impact quality of relationships in the future, which can potentially then be related to other negative mental health experiences or outcomes,” she says.

In addition to bullying, Associate Professor Naomi Andrews wants parents and teachers to recognize the potential negative impacts of other types of unhealthy peer relationships. 

“Given anti-bullying policies and legislation, teachers may be more attuned to bullying behaviour and may not focus on negative peer interactions that are not bullying,” says Andrews. “But even behaviours that do not rise to the level of bullying can have detrimental relationship consequences for those involved.”

Andrews, who recently wrote about teasing in The Conversation, says engaging in bullying isn’t the only way children harm one another.

“Sometimes teasing can be benign, or even positive and playful, but sometimes teasing itself mirrors bullying,” she says. “We interviewed undergraduate students who spoke about specific teasing incidents in their childhood that were still painful today. These negative peer experiences can stick with people.” 

Andrews also studies aggressive behaviour between children and youths who describe each other as friends.

“Aggressive behaviour between friends is actually quite prevalent,” she says. “These are cases where, despite naming one another as friends, youth also report that they are being victimized by a friend. This type of aggression from someone who is expected to be kind and supportive can be particularly painful.” 

Professor Tony Volk says adult role models play an important role in efforts to combat bullying. 

“Adults need to stand up to bullies as well,” he says. 

He points to sporting organizations taking a stand against parents bullying young referees as a particularly meaningful example of addressing the problem.  

“There’s increasing evidence in sports like hockey and soccer that adolescent referees are being bullied, verbally abused and threatened at higher rates by parents, either during or after games,” says Volk. 

In response, some organizations have announced penalties for parents who engage in disrespectful or aggressive behaviour, up to and including lifetime bans. Volk calls this “a laudable and serious step forward in trying to model good behaviour.”  

He says when organizations stand up for their young referees by reprimanding adult bullies, they prioritize values like sportsmanship and civility for children and shift the balance of power that bullying relies on. 

“Teenage referees have less power than an adult physically, socially and financially, but knowing that there is an authority they can appeal to addresses that power imbalance,” he says. “It’s no longer the referee against the parent, but it’s the parent against the entire organization — and that’s a much different fight.”

Associate Professors Ann Farrell and Naomi Andrews and Professor Tony Volk, all in Brock’s Department of Child and Youth Studies, are available for media interviews on this topic.

 For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

*Sarah Ackles, Communications Specialist, Brock University [email protected] or 289-241-5483

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