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Verbal bullying: signs of appearance, consequences, and what to do

Verbal bullying: signs of appearance, consequences, and what to do

March 29, 2024

Bullying, or bullying, is a phenomenon that occurs in educational environments and that occurs very often among adolescents. In an analysis of the profile of aggressor and victim, Serra-Negra, et al (2015) recognize four main types of bullying: physical, verbal, relational and indirect (which includes rumor). Other authors, such as McGuinness (2007) add "cyberbullying" as a category that deserves to be reviewed separately.

In this article we will focus specifically on describing the manifestations, consequences and interventions of verbal bullying , starting with a definition of bullying and its main characteristics.

  • Related article: "The 5 types of bullying or bullying"

Beyond the victim and the victimizer

The term "bullying" is the neologism that refers to bullying. Its meaning translated into Spanish is "personal intimidation" and comes from the English "bully", which means "overwhelm with threats". Likewise, "bully" can refer to the person who is cruelly or intentionally aggressive towards others.


While present and recurrent phenomenon in the educational context , bullying has been specially studied since the 70's, initially in the Nordic countries after reports of teen suicide related to school bullying.

The most classic definition of bullying in this context includes the repetition of aggressive and intentional actions carried out by one or more students towards a group member ; to which is added a systematic abuse of power that involves the repetition of the damage and a series of inequitable relationships among the members (McGuinness, 2007).

However, bullying has been typically defined and analyzed around the relationship and psychological profiles of the victim and victimizer, as if violent behavior had its root and function only in these two individuals. Although the above has been very relevant, there are also other elements that activate and re-produce harassment in adolescent relationships.


  • Maybe you're interested: "The 11 types of violence (and the different kinds of aggression)"

Causes of bullying and its social components

Salmivalli, Lagerspetz, Björkqvist, et al (1995) tell us that, in its nature, bullying is a social phenomenon, while it takes place in groups that are relatively permanent. One of its main characteristics is that the victim has little chance of avoiding the perpetrators , not only because the phenomenon is often kept invisible, but because the attacks are generally supported by the other members of the group.

Therefore, bullying is also a category of aggressive behavior where there is an ambivalence of power that allows that act to be repeated in groups and periodically. It is not only a violent relationship that is established from an aggressor to a victim, but it is a type of violence that occurs in the context of a group, where, through determined roles, members can reinforce the violent behavior of other members .


For the same reason, it is possible to distinguish between a relationship where there is bullying and another where there is simply a conflict, by evaluating whether or not the power relations between the parties involved are fair. In other words, it is not about bullying when the conflict occurs between two people who have the same positions of power.

What is verbal bullying and how does it manifest?

According to McGuiness (2007), different investigations have shown that verbal bullying is the most frequent method of bullying. It happens in similar ratios between boys and girls, and insults are characterized mainly by racial and gender components. Likewise, The most common verbal bullying methods are slander , that is, false and malicious statements, teasing and calling the person with derogatory or violent nicknames.

On the other hand Serra-Negra, Martins, Baccin, et al (2015) tell us that the main trigger of verbal bullying is the dynamics of acceptance of some members of the group to other members, which is influenced by factors such as physical characteristics and the socioeconomic status of all of them.

In other words, in addition to the channel through which violence is exercised (verbal, physical, etc.), the various types of intimidation can take multiple foci. For example, offensive behavior can be aimed at gender, race, disability or social class , among other categories.

When these characteristics do not correspond to the expectations of the group, the individual is rejected and harassed.Thus, the same authors tell us that verbal bullying are mainly motivated by the following questions:

  • Physical characteristics , like obesity or a lot of thinness, the color of the skin, the type of hair, the way of dress, the disability, among others.
  • Prejudices and stereotypes religious, racial and gender, which includes homophobia, lesbophobia and transphobia.

Thus, the detection of verbal bullying starts with giving relevance to any statement whose content is focused on the previous issues. This can be detected both at school and at home. In fact, although bullying occurs by definition at school, it is in the comments made within the family where many times it becomes more evident . Once this is detected, it can be related to individual and emotional manifestations like the ones we will see below.

Emotional consequences of these attacks

According to Elipe, Ortega, Hunter, et al (2012), bullying can generate significant emotional imbalances, which if maintained in the medium and term, can have very negative and differential consequences for the victim and the aggressors. In this sense, expression and emotional regulation it is one of the possible predictors of the situation of bullying.

Likewise, other consequences of bullying in the person who is a victim, and which are in turn indicators of victimization, are the following:

  • Dropout or school failure .
  • Report excessive feelings of guilt.
  • Inhibition in communication and in socialization.
  • Repetitive psychosomatic diseases.
  • A negative assessment of oneself

Prevention and intervention strategies

Considering bullying as a phenomenon not only psychological but social is important because it allows us to analyze dynamics and components that sometimes go unnoticed, and that nonetheless they lay the foundations on which violent interaction is generated and reproduced .

Taking the above into consideration is an essential element in the planning of intervention strategies and prevention of bullying, both at the family level and in the educational environment.

While the latter, the family environment and the educational , are the two main support systems of adolescents, any alteration in both can significantly affect the course of their development (in the negative and in the positive). We will see in broad strokes some strategies that can be carried out in both contexts.

1. In the educational environment

Different studies show that there is less psychosocial adjustment and a low level of empathy among group members who attack others (Elipe, Ortega, Hunter, et al, 2012). In this sense, it is important that the educational environment reinforces empathy, and for this, it is necessary to know and work with the recognition schemes that exist among the different members. From there, it is necessary facilitate environments of coexistence free of stereotypes and harassment .

2. In the family environment

Prevention and intervention strategies in the family environment depend to a great extent on the dynamics generated by adults.

In this sense, it is important start with a detection of the indicators of bullying that are present at the verbal level , and then explore what are the background patterns that are causing the adolescent to have a derogatory perception of the characteristics of the partner he assaults. Intervening by modifying such schemes is important to counteract the tendency to aggression.

Likewise, both in the family and at school, it is important to have detailed and reliable information on the subject, which makes it possible to carry out educational strategies based on empathy and the respectful recognition of others.

3. Empowerment of the victim

It is also important to work with the coping styles of bullying victims. For this, it is essential to begin by recognizing the situation of bullying and knowing how to be a victim of it. However, what follows is to reinforce the recognition of herself as a person who also can generate resources to counteract the violent relationship .

This recognition starts from the way the person feels treated by adults and their contexts of reference, as well as by their peers. The interaction that the victim establishes with their closest environments can reinforce the situation of vulnerability, far from counteracting it, so this is an element that must also be analyzed.

Bibliographic references:

  • Serra-Negra, J., Martins, S., Bacin, C. et al. (2015). Verbal school bullying and life satisfaction among Brazilian adolescents: Profiles of the aggressor and the victim. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 57: 132-139.
  • Duy, B. (2013). Teachers' attitudes towards different types of bullying and victimization in Turkey. Psychology in the Schools, 5 (10): 987-1002.
  • Elipe, P., Ortega, R., Hunter, S. et al (2012). Perceived emotional intelligence and involvement in various types of bullying. Behavioral Psychology, 20 (1): 169-181.
  • McGuiness, T. (2007). Dispelling the Myths of Bullying. Youth in Mind. Journal of Psychosocial Nursing, (45) 10: 19-23.
  • Scheithauer, H., Hayer, T., Petermann, F. et al. (2006). Physical, verbal and relation forms of bullying among German students: age trends, gender differences and correlates.
  • Salmivalli, C., Lagarspetz, K., Björkqvst, K. et al. (nineteen ninety six). Bullying as a Group Process: Participant Roles and Their Relations to Social Status Within The Group. Aggressive Behavior, 22: 1-15.

What It’s Like To Be Bullied (March 2024).


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