October 31, 2005
Australia. 'Mean queens' rule the schools
According to the Townsville Bulletin, Australia's soaring divorce rate has led to a generation of girls who have "discovered their inner bitch" and who make life hell for their victims - using text messages and e-mail to intimidate and victimize.
"Psychologist Michael Carr-Greg told a conference in Melbourne yesterday female bullying was a largely unresearched phenomenon that was out of control in the nation's schools.
"Some of these girls are the queen of mean," Dr Carr-Gregg said.
And while male bullies tended to use their physical strength to intimidate others, female bullies had become adept at using SMS and email to victimise others.
Dr Carr-Gregg - who recently learned of an incident in which a girl was made to eat a pie filled with dog-food - said schools needed to introduce programs to tackle the problem.
"There is really nowhere some of these kids can hide," Dr Carr-Gregg said. "They can be emailed at home or texted wherever they may be. What's disturbing is that we are getting reports that girls are bullying at younger and younger ages."
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