Bullying & Harassment

Expert Advice

Conversation that supports you.

I need Advice for

What is Bullying?

Bullying is hurtful and intentional repeated verbal, physical, social or psychological aggressive behavior by a person or group directed towards a less powerful person or group that is intended to cause harm, distress or fear.

Who is a bully?

Bullies are not just limited to the “big boys” of a class, but could be the popular girls or even the jocks, with the intention of putting the victim down just because they can.

Types of Bullying

Verbal – such as insults, teasing, name-calling
Physical – deliberately taking away of possessions, use of violence such as hitting, kicking, blocking, punching or touching in inappropriate ways
Social or emotional – berating and belittling for refusal to do something or otherwise.
Cyber-bullying – Using social media (Internet) or via text messaging or cell phone or other technology to hurt, threaten, embarrass or target someone

What is not bullying?

One off-incidents
Simply disliking and ignoring a person
Mutual conflicts, where both (groups of) people are at disagreement

Impacts of Bullying

Bullying can not only affect the victim but the bully and eye-witnesses as well. With an overall negative effect, it can result in victims feeling scared, depressed and reluctant to go to school, while the bully may become even more aggressive.
More severe consequences include slipping grades and academic interests as well as the possibility of going into depression.
No form of bullying is less severe than the others and each one can have several consequences if not dealt with soon and correctly.

What to do if you are being bullied?

Stay calm and do not give the bully a reaction.
Alerting authority helps to frame a plan and how to better help particularly in unsupervised areas.
Talking to a trusted teacher, school counsellor or a parent.
Strength and safety lies in numbers so move in groups and avoid the bully.

Regular and repeated violence and cruelty directed towards a person is abuse.

There are three broad categories of abuse – emotional, physical and sexual. An abusive relationship is one that is unequal. An abuser exerts power and controls in that relationship, by resorting to actions that can harm, or cause harm, to the other, in order to get what they want. Abusers come in all shapes and sizes, while those abused may be kids, teens and adults.

In this issue of Bullying, there is also a factor of Negative Peer Pressure. When the bully tries to put pressure on the bullied, and there by creates a pressure of the same against the will of the person who is being bullied.

Negative peer pressure may force a person to try smoking, alcohol, drugs, eve teasing, or playing a wrong prank on elders etc.

This might lead to a life time trauma for the bullied person and it can create a sense of lack safety in the outer world.

Negative Peer Pressure:

It is a Pressure created by the bullies or the friend circle around the person that forces or influences the victim to engage in risky activities that can be harmful to oneself in in nature. The victim feels the compulsion to do it so as to Fit in the group or sewt of social life. It can Impact a person, mentally, emotionally, physically and behaviorally as well.