Case Study Jackie is ten years old. She lives with her dad, who gained primary c

Case Study
Jackie is ten years old. She lives with her dad, who gained primary custody of her and her younger sister after her parents’ divorce when Jackie was two. Though they don’t live with her, Jackie and her sister Andrea spend time with their mother a couple times a month and for longer stretches during the summer when school is out, and their relationship with her is positive. Jackie’s dad, Howard, works a lot, but leaves the girls in the capable hands of the nanny, Theresa, who has been taking care of them since the divorce. Theresa is 30, newly married, and heavily into working out. Jackie and Andrea have a good relationship with Theresa and she’s even managed to get the girls to do light workouts with her. It keeps the kids busy and Theresa also manages to stay a bit more active at work than she would otherwise. Lately, though, Jackie has begun putting on weight. She’s always been a little
chubby, chubbier than Andrea, but neither her parents nor Theresa were concerned about it. They all figured that, as she got taller, she’d drop those few extra pounds. After all, both of her parents were relatively tall and slender. She’s gotten taller, but the weight is still on. Jackie knows that her parents are concerned about the weight gain, but she continues to sneak extra cookies and other snacks when her parents or Theresa aren’t looking.
At school, Jackie has several close friends that she’s known practically her whole life. Like
many girls around this age, Jackie and her friends have sleepovers and go to each other’s birth-day parties. They choose teams together in gym and are Girl Scouts together. In the group, Jackie would probably be viewed as the leader. She dictates when and how games are played, sometimes changing the rules to advantage herself. She decides on teams, and insists on being the one to go first whenever the girls are telling stories at sleepovers or playing games at home or at school, being louder than the others. The other girls like Jackie but they’re also a little afraid of her.
Points to Ponder
1 Are there any behaviors that Jackie displays that you view as problematic? What are they and why?
2 Based on the reading, would you consider Jackie’s behavior to be bullying? Why or why not?
3 How might Jackie’s eating habits and social interactions be connected? 4 What other information might you need to better understand Jackie’s situation?