Monetizing Utility Reductions Associated with Bullying

Although rarely measured, victims’ suffering is likely a large part of the overall cost of bullying. We use the compensating income variation method on data from the Icelandic SAGA (Stress-And-Gene-Analysis) cohort to estimate the monetary compensation needed to offset the welfare loss associated with bullying of women. We examine differences by frequency and extensivity of bullying, the type of bullying, the victim´s age during most recent bullying and years since most recent bullying. We find considerable differences in results across those bullying characteristics. To put this in context, the yearly value of reduced well-being associated with bullying in adulthood ($14,532–25,002 depending on model specification) by far exceeds the societal cost of reduced productivity and absenteeism, and the value of reduced well-being associated with bullying in childhood ($46,391–48,565, depending on model specification) by far exceeds the sum of the societal medical cost, travel cost of parents, and cost of reduced productivity of parents. Therefore, the greatest monetary damage from bullying is likely associated with the victims suffering, and its inclusion in the evaluation of societal consequences of bullying is thus crucial.