At the beginning of the detention, Bender acts contemptuously towards Claire dueto their differing lifestyles and personalities. However, by the end the detention theybecome much more acclimated and comfortable with one another due to getting toknow each other better, to the point of kissing each other. This drastic change intheir relationship within a short time frame can be explained by the Mere ExposureEffect.

At one point in the movie, Bender was imitating his father by saying, "Stupid,worthless, no good, retarded, big mouth, know-it-all, jerk". By his fatherplacing expectations on Bender's behavior and treating him in this manner,Bender unwillingly starts to behave in this manner in order to live up to his"prophecy".

Prior to their getting to know Bender in detail, other people considered him aggressive anddisrespectful and believed that such quality is a result of his predisposed personality. However,Bender has been treated badly at home, constantly abused verbally and physically, and he hashad to defend for himself alone. While everyone attributed his rude actions to personalpredisposition, the aggressive behavior of Bender could be more due to the impact of his domesticenvironment than it is due to his preexisting characteristics.

At one point in the film, Andrew belittles Bender for not having any goals for hislife and that Bender might as well not exist at the school due to the lack ofidentity. Andrew describes Bender accurately, as Bender is in a state of IdentityDiffusion due to his tough upbringing, as he has not yet realized his socialidentity.

At the very beginning of the film, the audience sees all the kids get dropped off bytheir parents, except Bender. This may suggest that his parents do not care abouthis life. Also, Bender makes many comments throughout the film about how hisfather doesn't pay attention to him. This type of parenting is quite similar to that ofa neglectful parent.

A defense mechanism that involves shiftingsexual or aggressive impulses toward a moreacceptable or less threatening object or person.

A defense mechanism that describes thetendency of an individual to act in a manneropposite from his or her unconscious beliefs.

In the film, Bender is both a smoker and drinkerwhich is normal activities for infants fixated inthe oral stage of development.