Do New York Schools Have the Highest Bullying Rates in the Country?

An alarming new study has found the states with the worst bullying issues in the country - here's how New York performed.

New York has some of the toughest anti-bullying laws and policies in the books - but are they actually helping?

The Problem with Bullying

About 1 in 5 kids today say they experience bullying either in person or online. The Association for Psychological Science recently outlined the long-lasting effects of bullying on both the perpetrators and the victims.

The research claimed that those who were tormented by bullies in school, as well as those who did the teasing, faced higher rates of poverty, academic failure, job termination, and turning to crime in their adulthood.

It also found those who either engaged in or suffered from bullying are at increased risk of drug and alcohol abuse.

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On the flipside, schools that have higher rates of bullying also suffer financially. Schools that rely on attendance-based funding can lose millions if students stay home to hide from their tormenters.

With increased awareness about the repercussions of bullying in schools, WalletHub compared data that tracked the prevalence and prevention of bullying across 47 states and the District of Columbia.

WalletHub measured states across 20 key metrics, including prevalence of online or in-person bullying, as well as truancy costs for schools.

While New York has made national headlines before because of school bullying, WalletHub found the Empire State is making strides to tackle the issue head on.

New York among Bottom 10 States with Worst Bullying Issues

New York continues to treat bullying like a serious issue and has implemented multiple laws to curb the unwanted behavior in its schools.

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WalletHub found that the Empire State not only had some of the lowest bullying prevalence rates in the country, it also scored favorably when comparing its anti-bullying laws and policies to other states.

When dissecting the data, the state was found to have the 10th lowest rate of high school students involved in physical fights at school. It also had some of the highest student-to-counselor ratios in America.

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New York also reportedly benefitted from a low percentage of high school students bullied on school property. It also was in the top 20 states with the lowest percentage of students who attempted to die by suicide because of bullying issues.

However, the biggest indicator of the ongoing bullying problem is WalletHub found that New York tied with Illinois, California and Texas for having the highest cost of truancy due to bullying. With so much funding tied to absenteeism, that means schools are motivated to keep students in the classroom.

However, not everything was all sunshine and rainbows.

When studying the repercussions of bullying, the Empire State had the 11th worst score in terms of impact and treatment.

 Methodology

For those curious as to how WalletHub created its latest survey, the website pulled data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, StopBullying.gov, the National Education Association, and other sources.

Data from psychologists were also used to complete the study.

You can compare how New York performed to the other 49 states here:

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