Youth's Attitude Towards Bullying And Hate Speech in Lithuania: Problems, Prevention And Vision For The Future

Abstract

In the vision of creating a safe society, the issue of the society's own involvement is particularly highlighted – how much and in what ways society is capable and motivated to engage in crucial issues concerning the prevention of violations of law. The aim of the article is to examine the concepts of bullying and hate speech, and to analyse the attitudes of young people (students and pupils) towards the problems of bullying and hate speech: their actions in dealing with these issues, their reactions, and the suggested methods for combatting against bullying and hate speech. The results of the study highlighted and confirmed three essential attitudes. First, there is a "thin line" marking the differences between bullying and hate speech. The analysis has shown that the main distinguishing features of bullying and hate speech are the motive and consequences of the actions. Second, there is a lack of involvement among students and pupils in responding to bullying and hate speech and in revealing/identifying negative facts. Third, there is a need for ongoing educational activities. Therefore, in the future educational dimension of society, it is necessary to analyse both the essential features and differences of bullying and hate speech, to encourage their recognition; to activate young people by encouraging proactive actions when cases of bullying or hate speech are identified.