There were never any bullying problems in my high school that I could speak of. The difference it's that in high school you are very aware they are just teenagers. In here, it could be anyone taking advantage of the anonymity to cause harm. Trolling can easily turn into bullying.
You are very lucky then. Most of the people I know have seen bullying problems in their high school. I've seen it. I think a bully-free environment would be ideal for learning. Then you could focus more energy on what is important, instead of on protecting yourself from negative attention. That would be a much better situation.
I was relieved once I entered the working world and bullying wasn't all that common. If it does go on, it's socially subversive or usually just plain old gossipy. Actually, it can be quite easy to ignore, unless they are trying to sabotage your job. However, I think the fear of losing one's job, because companies have policies to protect people from bullying and will fire you if you do it, encourages people to behave like grown ups even if they don't particularly want to sometimes. Plus, it's a job. You're there to earn a wage so that you can pay your bills, not to make everyone your loyal BFF or find a date for the weekend. So, that takes the pressure off having to be social at all when you're at work.
I agree with you that anyone out there could be taking advantage of the anonymity to be a dick. I do still believe most of it is probably teenagers. I saw a poll a few days back that asked the age of IIN users. There sure are a lot of kids here. Since I believe that most adults have been conditioned to act more rationally because of their years in the workforce, I think the large majority of nasty stories are made by IIN members who are teenagers. Anyway, that's my theory.
I disagree that teenagers are the problem. In fact, quite the opposite. Bullies are bullies regardless of their age. And they get more sophisticated. People also tend to deal with them better with age. I've had (what I assume) were 15 year olds attempting to bully me here. I completely disarmed them in very little time and then had a joke about it with them, because I have the tools to do that. If it were the other way around and I was attacking a 15 year old with all the experience I've gathered, I think that's entirely different.
I couldn't count the number of attempted 'attacks' I've had here from hatemail to some very nasty, bitter or manipulative people, but I will tell you that the three that stick in my mind all originated from people over 20. Worse, I think they all thought they were doing the "right" thing. From protecting their relationships (which were under no threat anyway) to destroying someone who has too much influence for the wellbeing of IIN. In each case there was a personal motive they chose to ignore. I am much too nice to ever publicly reveal their identity, to say what they did, or to make sure they don't do it to someone else, but hey, maybe one day I'll get drunk enough and a few things will slip out. Watch this space, folks.
Not that I actually need to say, to be honest. There are people vastly more intuitive than me on IIN. If I see what's really going on (and I am fairly dense sometimes), they must do too. In short, yes, some teenagers pull stuff but I think a bigger problem with this site is people older than teenagers bullying people because they're an easy mark. It's something I feel extremely strongly about.
Is it normal: Why users make stories of other users?
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There were never any bullying problems in my high school that I could speak of. The difference it's that in high school you are very aware they are just teenagers. In here, it could be anyone taking advantage of the anonymity to cause harm. Trolling can easily turn into bullying.
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You are very lucky then. Most of the people I know have seen bullying problems in their high school. I've seen it. I think a bully-free environment would be ideal for learning. Then you could focus more energy on what is important, instead of on protecting yourself from negative attention. That would be a much better situation.
I was relieved once I entered the working world and bullying wasn't all that common. If it does go on, it's socially subversive or usually just plain old gossipy. Actually, it can be quite easy to ignore, unless they are trying to sabotage your job. However, I think the fear of losing one's job, because companies have policies to protect people from bullying and will fire you if you do it, encourages people to behave like grown ups even if they don't particularly want to sometimes. Plus, it's a job. You're there to earn a wage so that you can pay your bills, not to make everyone your loyal BFF or find a date for the weekend. So, that takes the pressure off having to be social at all when you're at work.
I agree with you that anyone out there could be taking advantage of the anonymity to be a dick. I do still believe most of it is probably teenagers. I saw a poll a few days back that asked the age of IIN users. There sure are a lot of kids here. Since I believe that most adults have been conditioned to act more rationally because of their years in the workforce, I think the large majority of nasty stories are made by IIN members who are teenagers. Anyway, that's my theory.
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I disagree that teenagers are the problem. In fact, quite the opposite. Bullies are bullies regardless of their age. And they get more sophisticated. People also tend to deal with them better with age. I've had (what I assume) were 15 year olds attempting to bully me here. I completely disarmed them in very little time and then had a joke about it with them, because I have the tools to do that. If it were the other way around and I was attacking a 15 year old with all the experience I've gathered, I think that's entirely different.
I couldn't count the number of attempted 'attacks' I've had here from hatemail to some very nasty, bitter or manipulative people, but I will tell you that the three that stick in my mind all originated from people over 20. Worse, I think they all thought they were doing the "right" thing. From protecting their relationships (which were under no threat anyway) to destroying someone who has too much influence for the wellbeing of IIN. In each case there was a personal motive they chose to ignore. I am much too nice to ever publicly reveal their identity, to say what they did, or to make sure they don't do it to someone else, but hey, maybe one day I'll get drunk enough and a few things will slip out. Watch this space, folks.
Not that I actually need to say, to be honest. There are people vastly more intuitive than me on IIN. If I see what's really going on (and I am fairly dense sometimes), they must do too. In short, yes, some teenagers pull stuff but I think a bigger problem with this site is people older than teenagers bullying people because they're an easy mark. It's something I feel extremely strongly about.
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Okay, I suppose my theory has holes.