Earlier studies reveal that bullying has a long-term impact on not only the victim but also the bully. A Duke University survey carried out recently suggests there may be harmful long-term effects of bullying on the victim but the bully actually benefits from it. People who have bullied their peers in childhood are most likely to be healthier than their peers who haven’t.

The study, which started in 1993 is based on the longitudinal Great Smoky Mountains Study, followed 1,420 people and interviewed them at nine different points in their lives. William Copeland, an associate professor of psychiatry at the Duke University led this research. Findings from earlier studies including the Great Smoky Mountains study show that people who have been bullied in the past suffer from long-term effects of bullying including anxiety, depression and panic disorders.

The Protective Effect of Bullying

Earlier this factor of bullying had been overlooked because most research studies divided the people affected into two categories: Bully-victims and pure bullies

Blood levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) was measured, out of all the participants of this study the people who had been bullied during their childhood and adolescent had the lowest count. CRP is a biomarker of chronic inflammation that's been linked to cardiovascular risk and metabolic syndrome. CRP is a sign of stress on the body, Copeland said, and "a harbinger of health problems down the road".

Bully-victims stood somewhere in between when the CRP was measured. They along with the people who hadn’t been involved in bullying at all, had a moderate level of CRP.

How Does the Protective Effect Work?

Copeland suggests bullies have these health benefits because they enjoy an enhanced social status or success as bullies. Former bullies maintained their CRP count even after controlling for body mass index, substance use, health status, and exposure to other types of trauma. Copeland however said that enhanced social status of bullies was probably responsible for the low CRP levels in bullies. But the low count, according to him, can and should be achieved through other ways that are more morally acceptable.