Introduction: Bullying and Hazing as Institutional and Societal Problems
Northeastern University Law Journal, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 1-13, 2013
Northeastern University School of Law Research Paper No. 158-2013
16 Pages Posted: 19 Oct 2013 Last revised: 21 Nov 2013
Date Written: Spring 2013
Abstract
This article introduces an issue of the Northeastern University Law Journal including articles related to bullying and follows a national symposium held at the law school on March 30, 2012 about bullying and a related practice, hazing.
The questions we might ask about bullying and hazing are numerous. To what extent does, and should, law play a role in deterring and/or providing recompense for the victims of bullying or hazing? If law does play a role, what form does and should it take – statutory law, administrative law, case law (primarily torts), or other law? For those who perpetrate these acts, should only civil liability be imposed or should statutes criminalize the conduct? Are there competing social values or interests that limit either civil liability or give caution to the imposition of criminal sanctions? To what degree has legislation directed towards bullying or hazing actually been effective in reducing their incidence? To what extent does responsibility for these acts extend beyond the primary perpetrators to the institutions in which, or related to which, acts of bullying or hazing occur? This piece considers why bullying and hazing are of such huge importance, not only to the victims of such behavior, but also to others.
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