A recent study states that when a child is exposed to overprotective parenting, he is more likely to experience bullying by his peers.
It's not uncommon for parents to be overprotective of their children, especially during the child's younger years. However, this is one factor increases the child's likelihood of experiencing bulling by his friends and classmates, researchers said.
According to a study that was a meta-analysis of 70 previously conducted studies involving more than 20,000 children, researchers found that children who have parents that are abusive, neglecting and overprotective are more likely to be bullied by their friends, peers and classmates.
Professor Dieter Wolke, Dr. Suzet Lereya and Dr. Muthanna Samara, authors of the study, urged anti-bullying programs to look beyond the school campus and to focus on better parenting to curb bullying.
The study authors called for anti-bullying intervention programmes to extend their focus beyond schools to focus on positive parenting within families, and to start before children enter school.
"The long shadow of bullying falls well beyond the school playground -- it has lasting and profound effects into adulthood. We know that victims and bully-victims are more likely to develop physical health problems, suffer from anxiety and depression and are also at increased risk of self-harm and suicide," Wolke said. "It is vital we understand more about the factors linked to bullying in order to reduce the burden it places on the affected children and society.
"People often assume bullying is a problem for schools alone but it's clear from this study that parents also have a very important role to play," he said. "We should therefore target intervention programmes not just in schools but also in families to encourage positive parenting practices such as warmth, affection, communication and support."
