Introduction:

The word "bully" was first used in the 1530s meaning "sweetheart", applied to
either sex, from the Dutch boel "lover, brother". Its meaning deteriorated through
the 17th century through "fine fellow", "blusterer", to "harasser of the weak". Later,
it meant "protector of a prostitute", which was one sense of "bully". However, the
verb itself, "to bully" was first used back in the 18 th century.

Definiton:
Bullying is a form of aggressive behavior in which someone intentionally and
repeatedly causes another person injury or discomfort. Bullying is characterized by
an individual behaving in a certain way to gain power over another person. This
behavior is often repeated and habitual.
It can be classified into four types:
1. Physical (hitting, punching, or kicking)
2. Verbal (name-calling or taunting)
3. Emotional (destroying peer acceptance and friendships)
4. Cyber-bullying (using electronic means to harm others)
Physical, verbal, and relational bullying are most prevalent in primary school and
could also begin much earlier. Cyber-bullying is more common in secondary school
than in primary school.
Furthermore, if bullying is done by a group, it is called mobbing.

Participants
The 3 main ingredients of bullying are: 130kg of the bully, 45kg of the victim, and
a pinch of bystanders. Often, bullying takes place in the presence of a large group
of bystanders who are not involved in the very action. In many cases, it is the
bully's ability to create the illusion that he or she has the support of the majority
present. And not to forget the victim: a typical victim is likely to be aggressive,
lacking social skills, being noticeably rejected and isolated. They may also have
physical characteristics that make them easier targets for bullies such as a physical
deformity. Interestingly, boys are more likely to be victims of physical bullying,
while girls are more likely to be bullied indirectly.

Motives for bullying:

Envy and resentment are among the top motives for bullying. Research on the
self-esteem of bullies has showed pretty ambiguous results. Some bullies are
arrogant and narcissistic. They use bullying as a tool to hide their feelings of shame

and anxiety, or to boost their self-esteem. By demeaning others, the abuser feels
empowered. Also, there are those may bully out of jealousy or because they
themselves are bullied. Psychologists claim that people who are prone to abusive
behavior tend to have fragile egos. Because they think too highly of themselves,
they are frequently offended by the criticisms of other people, and react to that with
violence and insults.
A combination of other factors, such as depression, personality disorders,
addiction to aggressive behaviors, quickness to anger and use of force, may
also be causes of this behavior.
Bullying may also result from a genetic predisposition or a brain abnormality in
the bully. Some children fail to control their emotions and aggressive behavior due
to ineffective discipline and a stressful home life.
When it comes to kids, bullies have negative attitudes and beliefs about others,
feel negatively toward themselves, come from a family environment characterized
by conflict and poor parenting, perceive school as negative, etc. However, adults
who bully have authoritarian personalities, combined with a strong need to control
or dominate.

Effects:
Bullying can cause loneliness, depression, anxiety and a low self-esteem.
Even though there is evidence that bullying increases the risk of suicide, bullying
alone does not cause suicide. Depression is one of the main reasons why people
who are bullied commit suicide. It is estimated that between 15 and 25 children
commit suicide every year in the UK alone because they are being bullied.
One of the effects of bullying is violence. Serial killers were frequently bullied
through direct and indirect methods as children or adolescents. For example,
Kenneth Bianchi, a serial killer, kidnapper and rapist, was teased as a child
because he urinated in his pants and suffered twitching, and as a teenager was
ignored by his peers.
Contrary to this, some have argued that bullying can teach life lessons and improve
social skills. For instance, the victims of bullying usually learn how to "stand up for
themselves".

Bullying in different contexts:

1. Cyberbullying
Cyberbullying is any bullying done through the use of technology. This can
easily go undetected because of lack of parental/authoritative supervision. It
is the most anonymous form of bullying and includes: abuse using email, text
messaging, social networking sites, etc.
2. Gay bullying
Gay bullying implies a verbal or physical action done by a person or group
against one person who is gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered, etc.
3. School bullying

Bullying also takes place in school hallways, bathrooms, on school buses, in

classes, etc. Teachers are commonly the subject of bullying, but they are also
sometimes the originators of the same.
4. Sexual bullying
Sexual bullying is based on a person's sexuality or gender. It is when
sexuality or gender is used as a weapon by males or females towards others
although women are more commonly bullied sexually.
5. Workplace bullying
Workplace bullying can include verbal, nonverbal, psychological, physical
abuse and humiliation. In most cases, the superior is the one who mistreats
his/her subordinate.

Prevention:
Many campaigns and events throughout the world are designed to prevent bullying.
For example, Anti-Bullying Day, International Day of Pink, etc. Numerous methods
proved effective in stopping bullying, such as increasing tolerance and empathy for
victims.

Conclusion:
Bullying is the use of force, threat to abuse and aggressively dominate others. This
behavior is often repeated and habitual. It can develop in any context in which
humans interact with each other. This includes school, family, workplace, home,
neighborhoods, etc. The reasons why bullying happens are differences of social
class, race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, appearance, behavior, body
language, personality, etc.