Happy slapping—a new kind of bullying?

Happy slapping is a craze in which people, often young people, slap a stranger who has no idea this is going to happen.

The attackers use a cell phone to film the attack. Then they pass the video from cell phone to cell phone, and sometimes even post it on the Internet.

Concern about this fad is rising because some of these attacks have been violent. Many people consider this a new kind of bullying and fear it will become a problem in schools.

Two BBC online articles discuss this phenomenon:

Does happy slapping exist?

Concern over spread of slap craze


Send your ideas.

• Why do you think some young people find it fun to assualt people in this way?
• How can this kind of bullying be prevented in school environments?

Comments

[Monica]

I think they do this kind of bullying to hurt other young people by making fun of them. Watching these violent TV programs makes them want to do the same things they see.

[Martin]

Probably some young people do these things because they think it is funny and they feel good doing it. I think happy slapping is a way for them to get attention. Watching these kinds of TV programs probably encourages them to do this.

[Kristl Widner]

Kristl Widner
Bully Police USA
Media Researcher
Washington County Virginia District Director
bullypolice.org

[Norma]

I think that young people are doing this kind of bullying to have fun. Maybe some of them are playing a joke on people and don't think about the bad consequences. To stop this problem in schools, I think it is important to ban cell phones in schools.

[Howard Shapiro]

Hi Guys:

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Take care,

Howard
http://www.howardshapiro.net/about.html

[Gustavo]

I think young people are doing these kinds of things because they think it is funny, but it's completely wrong. These attacks are bad jokes and need to be reported to the police.

[Sam]

I think that some young people believe that happy slapping is a good way to embarrass students. Maybe they do his kind of bullying because they see too much violence.

[Ana]

I think that young people who do this must watch violent TV programs and movies, or maybe they play violent video games. I think that their parents are at fault because they permit their children to watch programs or play game with this content.

[Diaz]

These young people need to prove to their friends that they are mean. It is easy for them to film violent actions, save them in their cell phones, and send the films to their group. School can stop this if students give teachers their cell phones at the start of classes and pick them up at the end of classes.

[Zoe]

I think it is ridiculous! Happy slapping is a sad way to behave! Thank you 4 your time.

[Javier]

Young people who do this probably want to feel they have power and want to be more popular in their groups. I think violent programs just show how to do attacks. Maybe banning cell phones so they can't film them could help a little bit.

[Oscar]

Some young people enjoy seeing these things. Maybe these kinds of people don't have anything to do. To me, it is ridiculous. Showing violent TV programs is a way to invite young people to do these things. These programs have a bad influence on them.

[Paula]

There are problematic people who enjoy doing this. Banning cell phones in school might help stop this kind of bullying in schools.

[Raymundo]

We have to find a solution to this problem before it spreads to schools. If it starts to be a problem, I think schools should not let students bring cell phones to school.

[Elena]

Doing these things is dangerous. Maybe young people want to make these violent videos because they think they will be more popular. Banning cell phones in school may be necessary to stop this kind of bullying.

[Liz]

In my opinion, if a teenager is doing this, it is because she/he does not have a healthy relationship with her/his parents.

[Delia]

If it becomes a problem, I think in each school the principal should talk with all the parents about stopping the use of cell phones in the school.

[Mariela]

Some young people use cell phones this way to feel power. They like to look at themselves fighting in the pictures and want the other teenagers to look at them. If this is a problem in schools, it is very important that the schools prohibit cell phones.

These young people might be doing this kind of bullying because they are watching violent TV programs, or maybe they are living this kind of violence in their homes.

[Miguel]

If happy slapping becomes a serious problem, the authorities must do something about it because in the future it could affect everybody.

First of all schools should require students to leave their cell phones in a designated place when they arrive at school and pick it up after school. If a student has an emergency, he can request the principal make a call to the family.

[Dodus]

Young people who do this must watch violent TV programs or movies, or they may play violent video games. I think that their parents are at fault because they don't pay attention to the content in these programs, movies, and games.

[Sammy]

I think that some students believe that happy slapping is a good way to embarrass other students. Banning cell phones in schools could be a way to protect many young people in schools.

[Hector]

I think that some young people use cellphones to transmit violent actions because they need to prove to their friends that they are mean. Using a cell phone makes it easy for them to send the images to a group of people and also to save them.

Young people are like a sponge and can transform negative attitudes into manifestations of violence.

Schools can stop the use of cellphones in this way by having students give their cellphones to the teachers at the start of the school day and then pick them up at the end of class.

[Miko]

Hello
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[Esti]

I am a teenager and I think that the people who do this do it because they want to feel more important in front of the others.

[Inri Solórzano Huanca]

Inri Solórzano Huanca – Peru
I think bullying is a bad behavior specially in young people and when they are in the school. So I think that teachers have to be careful not to accuse a student of bullying without having seen it, because some students are afraid of them and they don`t say anything. I would tell the student who says that they have been bullied that they need to tell about the situation to their parents, then teachers can help and then they can deal with the situation properly.

Also bullying happens in both secondary and primary schools. Some people say it happens more in secondary school because pupils are teenagers, but I honestly think bullying is just as bad in both. My suggestion is that teachers should take more action when students tell them about any form of bullying. Schools should make special programs to resolve this problem not only with the students even with their parents. If we do anything what is the future of these young people when they will become citizens.