Children are often known for being outspoken, observant, and rude. Sometimes it can take a turn where kids will challenge each other and say the most horrid of things. However, a lot of the time, children bluff their achievements and abilities and often find themselves coming up short when contesting with someone else.
So the question stands, are kids all bark and no bite? In detail, can kids back up what they say when challenging another kid, be it in sports, video games, or even fighting? Taking a look into the mind of a child will give more insight into how something like this could occur.
Obviously, children model themselves after those closest to them, so while children being loud and abrasive is a stereotype (often seen on television or in movies) it’s not guaranteed. But, it does mean that children can and often say what’s on their minds, which can stick with them, even through all levels of school.
According to Education Week on January 24th, 2023, out of a survey of a little over 1000 parents, with children aged 6 to 18, a majority said that “in general children today don’t treat others with respect, are dishonest, don’t show gratitude, and are lazy.” According to CBS, kids fighting in school is on the rise. However, they hardly ever actually hit or hurt each other, only in rare cases do they actually hurt one another.
But, why would these two things be? Well, it can be attributed to a number of factors. Take a look at social media, everyone is wrapped in their own bubble that the slightest challenge to any sort of sense of self sparks outrage. In the form of arguing, but that arguing can lead to one person challenging another one even if they don’t mean it.
Maybe it’s more of a competition thing, where kids feel they need to one-up another person to prove just how much better they are. For instance, one-upping someone in a video game, like Rainbow Six Siege, for example.
Or, perhaps, it comes from a lack of sense of self. For instance, maybe someone feels inadequate when in an argument, so to get the edge over someone, they challenge them to a fight. It doesn’t particularly matter if they win, as long as the other person backs down, it makes them look like the stronger person (at least in theory).
But since this article is about students, it would absolutely be necessary to ask 2 students what they think about this. Specifically the question is, do kids back up what they say in the sense of if they have more bark than bite?
Alexander Ron-Garcia in the 11th grade said “In my opinion, underclassmen can be more crazy and then upperclassmen tend to be more behaved because it’s their last year and they have to be responsible for their future.” Kaden Davis in the 11th grade said “In my opinion, many students across the school make empty threats with no actual intent behind them and when they do get in the fight it’s not serious at all.”
In conclusion, do kids have more bark than they have bite? The answer should logically be yes, mainly because the need to challenge someone is mostly done by words, as previously said, people argue more. However, kids hardly actually pull their punches when it comes to the actual challenge that they might have offered.
