In some cases victims of bullying may feel like there is no other way out of the situation except getting back at their bullies by using an extreme force of violence. A new study based on a survey of more than 15,000 American high school students found that victims of bullying are nearly twice as likely to carry guns and other weapons at school. The study also found that 20 percent of participating students reported being victims of bullying, and that those teens were substantially more likely to carry weapons if they had experienced one or more "risk factors." These included feeling unsafe at school, having property stolen or damaged, having been in a fight in the past year, or having been threatened or injured by a weapon. Among bullying victims experiencing all four of those factors, 72 percent had brought a weapon to school in the past month and 63 percent had carried a gun. Those victims were, according to the study's authors, nearly 50 times more likely to carry a weapon in school as students who weren't bullied ("Bullying Victims Are Twice as Likely to Bring a Weapon to School," 2014, par. 2). As you can see, students who are bullied suffer tremendously and they often times have no one to turn to for help. It's this sense of abandonment and helplessness that can cause a tragic school shooting to occur. .
Technology means that bullying is no longer limited to schoolyards or classrooms. Cyber bullying is a new and growing phenomenon that allows teenagers to bully one another from the comfort of their own bedrooms. Cyber bullying occurs when a person (often a child, preteen, or teenager) is bullied, harassed or threatened through the use of the internet, cell phones and other forms of digital technology. Cyber bullying can be something as simple as sending a mean text or email, but it could also include posting nasty pictures or messages about someone online.