Why is it hard standing up for people that you see are getting bullied?
28 Answers
Last Updated: 05/08/2018 at 7:57pm
Moderated by
Anna Pavia, psicologa psicoterapeuta psychotherapist psychologist counselor
Licensed Professional Counselor
I feel my work as my personal mission and I love it. My work with clients is nonjudgmental, supportive. I am a very good listener. I use several approaches. Amo il mio lavoro.
Top Rated Answers
Because at times you might fear you will become the new victim of bullying. Its really hard to stand up when you know you might get into trouble.
Anonymous
March 27th, 2015 4:58pm
Some of the biggest things that make it hard for people to stand to a bully or for some one else is are fear. Many fear that they will be made fun of for trying to stand up for someone else.else. Another reason is that they might not know what to do or how to do it, maybe not know what to say
Out of fear you might get hurt in some way. None of that should matter, we are here to love one another. Always protect your fellow person regardless of the consequences.
Instinctually, it is a flat footed decision that could either lead to your own harm, or risky success. Nowadays, you need to learn to assess the situation. Is it safe for me to act? Will I be able to say the right things to stand up for this person. Then, it's all about taking the initiative to say stop - or tell a peer about the situation as soon as possible.
Anonymous
January 4th, 2016 2:53am
1. The fear of being bullied just like the person you are watching
2. The conformity effect (peer pressure) ; no one else is helping so it must be the correct thing to do. When in reality it's not.
Most times, it's out of fear, in my personal experience. I've been bullied before, and I don't want to possibly subject myself to this treatment if I don't have to.
Sometimes, I start to just try and convince myself that my perception of what I see isn't accurate.
At the end of the day, though, I prefer to ask the person I see getting bullied.
Anonymous
September 12th, 2016 7:25am
Because people are scared they'll start nagging you instead. If you see someone who is being bullied, and want to help just image it is your best friend who would do anything for you. That might get you to feel more confident about helping as well.
Many people are usually afraid to stand up because they may be afraid that it will happen to them that is why.
Because you are scared you might end up being bullied yourself if you stand up for them. You wanna first protect yourself.
Because of the fear you will be bullied too, that you might have made a mistake which could humiliate you or you hope the other person is/can deal with it themselves and if not, they should get help themselves. People often don't want to get involved in other people's business.
Anonymous
December 29th, 2015 6:11pm
You may feel like you are going to get bullied by the person that bullied the person that you are trying to stand up for.
It is difficult because sometimes we have fears that we may be bullied ourselves or create more problems for the person being mistreated. Many people want to say something, just don't because they are afraid.
It is hard to stand up about it because you could start being bullied too and no one wants that.
Anonymous
May 29th, 2015 9:05pm
It's hard to stand up for people, because you don't want to be the target, and mostly you will get hurt trying, we try to rely on them telling an adult, and if they do and the bully does not stop, thats when we stand up for them, but mostly because we don't want it to cause more issues and us getting hurt trying.
A lot of people find it hard because they are worried that they will be dragged into it and also be bullied. However, if people are scared of this they can always alert a higher authority to help such as teachers or police.
I don't think that it should be hard, because telling somebody to stop shouldn't be hard. i think that people have a hard time because they don't want to be targeted by the bully.
Cause you don't wanna get bullied for standing. Most people refuse to stand cause of their status in school or work or where ever.
It is hard because most people are scared that the bullying will be directed at them if they intervene.
Because you know the bullies might go after you if you do. Also, just confronting someone and telling them they're doing something wrong is hard for most people, even if the person they're confronting is not a bully.
It can be hard as some bullies turn on the person who is standing up for the bullied person. they are afraid that they will become victms themselves
Possibly it is fear of getting bullied, or gaining a negative reputation with those who are on the same side as the bully.
It could possibly be because you don't want those bullies to start bullying you, most people are scared/nervous the bullies will act the same way to them.
It is hard because you do not want to get bullied yourself, and although you know that if you stand up to them you are in the right, some people may think you are in the wrong, and may turn to bully you.
Anonymous
January 8th, 2018 10:44pm
It's hard because as a spectator you are safe, but by getting directly involved you can get hurt too or embarrass yourself.
It can be difficult because you won't want to make the situation worse, or even get yourself bullied by that person. Sometimes it is easier to pretend not to see things than to be brave and stand up. remember to protect yourself first, even if it means getting a higher authority involved.
Most of the times people are just scared that they will get bullied themselves and they don't dare to help the bullied one. Seeing someone being teased is horrible, but sometimes it is just hard to get involved, because of the fear of what others will think of us.
If you're interested in psychology, look into "Bystander effect". It's quite interesting. Basically, when one is in a crowd of people, no matter how serious the thing that is happening, you are less likely to step in because all of the crowd members are thinking the same thing: "It doesn't have to be me, someone else will step in". This could help explain it; we don't feel responsible, even if we feel afraid or angry at the bully.
It is hard to do so because people dead being judged. They fear they will be made fun of. Also, many of us face the 'bystander effect' where we believe that someone else would respond in our place
Related Questions: Why is it hard standing up for people that you see are getting bullied?
Why is everyone around me always being so mean? Everyone in school thinks I am bitter. How can I change their minds?My friend is always negative towards me. What do I do?How do I know if I'm a bully?How to get my parents to stand up for me against bullies instead of apologizing to avoid any confrontation?How to deal with people that are bad mouthing me?How do you effectively confront people who are spreading negative rumors about you?Why would someone who is already in pain wish to inflict it upon others?How do you get over the feeling that people are laughing at you?What's the difference between bullying and teasing?