Abusive Practices Can Arise in Close-knit Groups. Curbing Such Actions Proves Challenging
Hazing: A Secretive Tradition Persisting Despite Its Toll
Hazing, a ritualistic practice often associated with initiation into sports teams, Greek life, and high schools, continues to thrive, defying state and federal laws. Here's the latest incident that's stirred the pot – 11 high school lacrosse players in Syracuse, New York are accused of participating in a staged kidnapping, a hazing activity that authorities have deemed "hazing on steroids."
This time around, one younger player is left traumatized, and the older teammates face charges of unlawful imprisonment in the second degree. While the community attempts to make sense of it all, law enforcement officials grapple with the aftermath.
The hazing problem isn't new, but our understanding of its true scope remains vague. Experts and advocates emphasize the need for more effective prevention practices, as incidents like the one in Syracuse serve as stark reminders of the issue's continued prevalence.
A Practice Shrouded in Secrecy
Despite different definitions offered by advocacy groups, sports teams, and colleges, the underlying intent of hazing remains consistent: to humiliate, degrade, abuse, or endanger individuals seeking to join a group, regardless of their willingness to participate, according to advocacy group StopHazing.
Professor Hank Nuwer, a renowned author on hazing, estimates that at least one hazing death has been reported annually in the United States from 1959 to 2021, with more reported in 2023, 2024, and so far this year. Lipkins, a psychologist and author of "Preventing Hazing," worries that the disconnect between popular expectations of hazing and rites of passage may be overshadowed by the more violent and hazardous practices that students are actually experiencing.
Patterns and Predictions
Reports suggest that hazing incidents occur around the same time each year, following similar traditions, but growing increasingly severe year after year. Approximately half of American students, prior to entering college, have been subjected to hazing, according to a 2008 University of Maine study – offering a glimmer of the problem's pervasiveness but not a comprehensive picture.
Prevention and Change
Prevention can't be a one-size-fits-all approach. To encourage students to open up about hazing experiences, advocates suggest asking about specific behaviors rather than posing direct questions about hazing. Getting students to report hazing is challenging due to the practice's appeal to belonging, secrecy, and the enforced "code of silence."
Prevention strategies can be custom-built to focus on multiple fronts, such as public health strategies, skill-building techniques, research, and education and training. These efforts should emphasize self-reflection and understanding of relationships within groups instead of a strict "thou shall not haze" approach.
However, experts like Lipkins remain skeptical of any truly effective prevention methods, arguing that more attention should be paid to the supervision and enforcement of policies by adults within the educational system.
Legal Recourse
Advocates and experts are hopeful that new research on hazing coupled with a newly enacted national law requiring colleges to share annual hazing statistics and reports will help shed more light on the problem and contribute to prevention efforts. In December 2022, then-President Biden signed the "Stop Campus Hazing Act" into legislation, an amendment to The Clery Act, which mandates colleges to maintain and disclose crime statistics, including hazing incidents.
The act stipulates that colleges must share their hazing policies on their websites and disclose which campus organizations have violated these policies, giving prospective students and their families a more informed understanding of groups they're interested in. Ultimately, preventing hazing requires combining legislative pressure, cultural change initiatives, and support for victims, experts contend.
- In an effort to combat the persistent issue of hazing, experts suggest focusing prevention strategies on public health strategies, skill-building techniques, research, and education and self-development, emphasizing self-reflection and understanding of group dynamics instead of a strict prohibition approach.
- The 11 high school lacrosse players in Syracuse, New York, who are accused of participating in a staged kidnapping as part of a hazing activity, serve as an example of the need for more effective documentation and reporting of hazing incidents, as the true extent of the problem remains unclear.
- The need for better supervision and enforcement of anti-hazing policies by adults within the educational system is emphasized by experts like psychologist Lipkins, as it is argued that this could potentially help prevent hazing incidents, which often involve plotting and secretive activities, from occurring.
