In 2003, 7 percent of students ages 12-18 reported that they had been bullied at school in the last 6 months; the percentage of students who reported being bullied increased between 1999 and 2001 but no difference was detected between 2001 and 2003.

Bullying can contribute to an environment of fear and intimidation in schools (Arnette and Walsleben 1998; Ericson 2001). In the School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey, students ages 12-18 were asked if they had been bullied (for example, picked on or made to do things they did not want to do) at school. In recent years, fewer than 1 in 10 students reported that they had been bullied at school in the last 6 months. Although the percentage who had been bullied increased from 5 percent in 1999 to 8 percent in 2001, no difference was detected between 2001 and 2003 (figure 6.1 and table 6.1). In 2003, 7 percent of students reported that they had been bullied at school.

In 2003, White students were more likely than Hispanic students to report being bullied (8 vs. 6 percent) (table 6.1). No other differences were detected in the percentage of students who reported that they had been bullied according to students' race/ethnicity and sex.

Grade level was inversely related to students' likelihood of being bullied: as grade level increased, students' likelihood of being bullied decreased (figure 6.2 and table 6.1). For example, in 2003, 14 percent of 6th-graders, 7 percent of 9th-graders, and 2 percent of 12th-graders reported that they had been bullied at school.

In 2003, public school students were more likely to report being bullied than private school students (7 vs. 5 percent). In the same year, rural students were more likely than their urban and suburban counterparts to report being bullied (10 percent of rural students vs. 7 percent each of urban and suburban students).

This indicator has been updated to include 2003 data.