Camper-to-Camper Behavior.

Dear Bob,

A sensitive situation occurred with a group of our male teen campers last summer that is baffling and upsetting. Two boys in a group of thirteen-year-old campers were new this year. Knowing how close this group has been over the years, we took specific steps to kelp all the boys get to know one another so that the new boys would not feel excluded. For example, the counselors held a special campfire for the bunk where the boys, supported by their counselors, shared a little about themselves and talked about what they liked about being at camp and what they were looking forward to.

All seemed to be going well until a boy from the cabin approached one of our key staff near the end of the first session. He was very upset and too disturbed to tell us what he had witnessed, but he urged us to talk to one of the new boys. When we spoke to the boy in question, we were shocked to learn that he had been brutally hazed by his peers.

Specifically, three other boys had held him down while a fourth pushed a broom stick handle against his backside. It turns out that by the time we discovered this, the hazing had happened three times! On two occasions, the young man who held the broom stick handle was a CIT in charge of supervising the cabin during clean-up. It eventually came out that this had also happened twice to the other new boy in the bunk.

Bob, we have a lot of questions. Was there more we could have done with the boys to have prevented this? Is this type of behavior becoming more prominent with youngsters today? These situations seem to be happening with greater frequency. What can we do short of never letting these boys out of our sight, which seems lust the opposite of helping them develop any sense of independence.

Upset at Camp

Dear Upset,

The situation you describe is the third of its kind to come to my attention this summer. (The other two are currently in litigation.) A check with several insurance companies that cover camps and track these kind of episodes confirms that, indeed, camper-to-camper abuse occurs more frequently than almost any other type of inappropriate behavior. It seems that aside from putting campers into vehicles, the greatest risk a camp director takes today is putting campers together with other campers.

Many camp professionals have witnessed what other child care professionals, such as teachers and social workers, have seen over the last few years, an increase in rude, inappropriate, and often aggressive or hurtful behavior among children. Many counselors are challenged by provocative camper behavior, which includes bullying as well as the hazing types of incidents you describe.

There are probably multiple causes for these developments, a few of which include the greater access children have to highly violent and over-stimulating material in the media, the presence of fewer caring adults who are genuinely involved with children in a significant or meaningful way, and the loss or lack of meaningful rituals and rites of passage where adults mark the growth and maturation of children.

Rituals and Rites of Passage

Indeed, many child advocates believe our culture has a dearth of meaningful rites of passage where adults are involved in a supportive and guiding way. Some people have suggested that our culture has failed our children and point out the three most common rites of passage currently engaged in by adolescent boys in the United States are getting drunk for the first time, getting a driver's license, and having their first sexual experience - hardly achievements reflective of camp values.

I focus on rituals and rites of passage because one way to think about hazing is as a ritual gone awry. I personally believe that children will never outgrow the need for significant ways to establish their membership in society or to mark passage to another phase in their lives. It is up to adults to provide positive and meaningful ones. When we do not, children invent their own. In the case of the kind of hazing you describe, the pattern is clear:

* it happens when adults are not around

* it is typically aimed at boys new to the group or those perceived as weaker or in some other way not worthy of membership in the group

* several boys who are otherwise seen as leaders initiate and participate in the abuse. The boys actually have a name for this ritual. They call it "probing."

Responding to the Incident

So what do you do? Before anything else, you must get good information. The type of behavior you detail is serious and can result in lasting trauma for the victim and may even lead to a lawsuit -- criminal or civil, involving the offender or the camp, respectively. Did the boy have clothes on? Was he penetrated? Was he physically injured? Who witnessed the event? Who initiated the event and who participated? What led up to the event? Did other adults know about it? These are important questions that must be asked calmly, in a safe environment, and in a clear way.

Next, you must confer with your crisis team. If you don't have a crisis team, create one now. It should include the director, a camp nurse or doctor, a lawyer who knows you and camp, someone from your insurance company, an outside social worker or psychologist who knows you and your camp, and depending on your organization, a member of your board or perhaps a trusted member of your local ACA section board. Your team will help you make such decisions as how and when to contact parents and have the boy seen by a qualified medical person.

Once you've investigated and taken the proper crisis response steps, there is repair work. The victims should have the opportunity to be seen by a therapist of the parents' choice. Offering to pay for this service frequently neutralizes notions on the part of the victim's parents to sue the camp for neglect, but again, this can be discussed with your crisis team. A thorough investigation by outside law enforcement authorities should be done. The offenders must understand the seriousness of their actions and must also get help.

In addition, the perpetrators will need to apologize to the boy who they victimized. This might be better done with the boy's parents present. The offenders should also write a letter to the other boys in the cabin. The offending boys should prepare their letter with the guidance of an adult and should read it to the boys who were victimized and their parents. In the letter, they should:

* admit that what they did was wrong and, in their own words, what was wrong about their actions

* inform the other boys of their apology to the victim

* apologize to the any boys who observed the conduct by recognizing that it may have been upsetting to them and that it was most certainly poor modeling

* say what they are doing to make sure they do not repeat such behavior in the future. Some ideas include reading an article on hazing or bullying and discussing it with a therapist or probation officer.

Ramifications for Supervision

Hurtful camper-to-camper conduct obviously has ramifications for supervision. Given the challenging behavior we see coming from campers, we must recognize the limits of what eighteen-to-twenty-two-year-old counselors are capable of managing. All camps can provide backup and a layer of insurance by training and having a group of more experienced, more skilled adults to supervise the counseling staff. Training this group of middle-management adults is crucial and will become increasingly important as camper-to-camper misconduct becomes more widely recognized.

It is also important to note that a CIT should never be left to supervise campers without another fully qualified staff person present. CITs are campers and do not have the maturity or skill level required to ensure that a safe group environment is maintained.

The steps you took to prepare the boys was great as far as it went. Boys of this age in particular need both challenge and meaningful responsibility. To further promote unity, I would have had the boys participate in some project that was challenging and offered the opportunity for making a true contribution to the camp community. I would also provide this group with mentors -- long-standing, truly respected adult members of the camp community -- to guide the boys through both their project and through preparation for a ritual at camp that notes their mastery, achievement, contribution, and service. It is through challenging activities and meaningful rituals that camp can provide older campers with a powerful and compelling experience that is coincidentally an alternative to hazing.

Bob Ditter is a licensed clinical social worker specializing in child, adolescent, and family therapy. He supervises content for bunkl.com