Types of bullying, how to identify them
Classrooms around the world face a serious problem day after day: the bullying. A serious situation that unfortunately is hindered by the fact that many children fear reporting bullying for fear of reprisals. For this reason, both parents and educators have to act as vigilantes to detect these cases to prevent them from going further.
Not all bullying It is the same, so you have to attend to the circumstances of each type of them to be able to act accordingly and put an end to the situation before things get worse. Knowing what are the characteristics of each type of bullying is essential in the fight against this situation that unfortunately affects the classrooms of many schools around the globe.
Types of bullying
In order to make it easier to detect bullying, the International University of Valencia, UIV, has classified these types of bullying. These are the most common in the classroom:
- Physical bullying. It is the most common type of bullying and consists of beatings, shoves and even beatings between one or more aggressors against a single victim. It is also common the theft or intentional damage of the belongings of the harassed.
- Psychological bullying. This harassment translates into constant persecution, intimidation, and threats of blackmail. The actions, although less visible in the absence of injury or theft, are very cruel and harmful, as they reduce the victim's self-esteem, fostering a great sense of fear that can lead to school or social phobia and important and lasting psychological problems.
- Verbal bullying. Although similar to psychological harassment, this type of bullying translates into non-corporal actions with the purpose of discriminating against and belittling the victim. Something very common is the beginning of rumors or jokes that have as purpose to mock or laugh at each other.
- Sexual bullying. One of the most serious types of harassment. It translates into constant proposals to the victims and the request for intimate photos. It also appears in the form of blackmail due to the disclosure of private data if certain conditions are not accepted.
- Social bullying. The objective of this harassment is no other than isolating the child or young person from the rest of the group, ignoring it, isolating it and excluding it from the rest. It can be direct: not allowing the victim to participate in activities, or indirect: ignoring, treating as an object, as if it does not exist or make people see that it is not there.
- Cyber bullying. A type of harassment that is becoming more frequent due to the expansion of new technologies. Their actions are very serious since they suppose a great humiliation for the victim, who sees how the teasing in social networks characterize his day to day.
Signs to attend
Once the types of harassment that exist are known, you have to to work to detect possible signs that put on the track of these cases. Here are some clues that should alert parents and educators:
- Recurring attendance absences.
- Abrupt and inexplicable drop in school performance.
- Depressive symptoms: anxiety, sadness, apathy, irritability, insomnia.
- Feelings of guilt, the child is the one who thinks that he is to blame for everything.
- Escape and avoidance behaviors. The child does not want to talk about what happens to him.
- Uncontrolled crying or extreme emotional responses.
Damián Montero
