Bullying

Bullying is the intentional use of physical force, comments, and threats to abuse, dominate, or intimidate one or more people. It is a serious global issue, manifesting in both personal interactions and social media. In 2022, about 19% of students ages 12-18 reported being bullied during school (National Center For Education Statistics [NCES], 2024). This statistic means that roughly 1 in 5 school students in the United States experiences bullying. Bullying is not limited to education and social media; bullying in professional environments  has become more common as years pass. 52.2 million workers were being bullied at their workplace at the time of the 2024 Workplace Bullying Survey, while 22.6 million workers were witnesses to bullying in their professional environment (Namie, 2024). This means that roughly 74.8 million people have been affected by workplace bullying in the United States. 
Globally, the bullying issue is worsening. The United Nations (2026) reported that two-thirds of children worldwide say cyberbullying is increasing in schools.  

According to Vinney (2025), there are six types of bullying that occur: physical, verbal, relational, cyber, sexual, and prejudicial.

Physical Bullying

• Physical bullying is any assault on a person or their belongings. This includes certain hand gestures such as the middle finger. (Vinney, 2025). However, if both parties involved have similar size and physical body strength, it is not considered physical bullying (Vinney, 2025). In professional environments, this includes throwing office items and purposely bumping into them. 
  

Verbal Bullying

• Verbal bullying means using any spoken or written language to insult, abuse, or intimidate the victim. According to Vinney (2025), verbal bullying is often the most common form of bullying due to bullies frequently passing it off as “jokes” between friends. The same can be done in professional environments such as offices where there may not be enough evidence for human resources to stop it. 
  

Relational Bullying

• Relational bullying is more commonly known as social bullying. The actions involved with social bullying include embarrassing victims in social situations, making false rumors about them, and purposely leaving them out of group activities (Vinney, 2025). Relational bullying is often undetected in schools which can cause victims to be depressed, have social anxiety and be isolated (Vinney, 2025). Relational bullying is more often seen in females. Females can use relational bullying, such as spreading rumors about each other, to protect their place in the friend group (Children Hospital of Philadelphia, n.d.). In professional environments, relational bullying can happen for a number of reasons such as employees being jealous of each other or trying to be the one that gets promoted. 
  

Cyberbullying 

• This type of bullying happens over social media and text messages and includes sending harmful messages and photos that cause humiliation for the victim (Vinney, 2025). Cyberbullying is extremely harmful because social media is involved in our lives 24/7 which means victims do not get a break. NCES says that “In 2021-22, among students that were bullied, 22% reported that the bullying happened online or by text” (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2024). In the workplace, employees could send old pictures of others that could possibly get the victim fired, if inappropriate.  
  

Sexual Bullying

• Sexual bullying can happen in-person and online. Actions that are involved in sexual bullying include sexual unconsented touching, sexual jokes, and sending sexual videos or photos (Vinney, 2025). Sexual bullying has become more common due to the increase in usage of apps like Facebook or Instagram. In professional environments, this could be as simple as one employee inappropriately touching another employee without permission.
  

Prejudicial Bullying

• Prejudicial bullying can also happen in-person and online. The victim is bullied because of their race, ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation (Vinney, 2025). This type of bullying can happen in fire departments or hospitals where there are certain stereotypes for what employees should work there.  
  
  
  
  How Bullying Changes Mental Health: The mental health issues that come from bullying varies depending on which position the person is in while the bullying is occurring (StopBullying.gov). 
  
  
  The Victims
  People that are being bullied often have negative physical and social health issues such as depression and loss of interest in activities (StopBullying.gov). 
  
  The Bullies
  Kids and young adults that bully others are more often to engage in dangerous, harmful, and abusive behaviors as they get older including substance use, being abusive in relationships, and other aggressive behaviors. 
  
  The Bully-Victims
  People who are bullied and bully others at the same time have the highest risk of mental health issues. They are more likely to grow a family at an earlier age than most, have trouble with commitments in their personal lives and careers. They can also suffer from long term depression. 
  
  The Witnesses
  People who witness bullying often have feelings of guilt, feel unsafe in work environments, and suffer from depression and anxiety later in life (StopBullying.gov). 
  
  
  How Resources Can Help
  ​Resources that can help recognize bullying, teach how to stop it, and how to report it are important and helpful. 
  
•  The Center for Parent Information and Resources: Multiple resources listed and linked on their official website that can help parents and teachers recognize when bullying is happening and how to stop it. 
• Crisis Text Line: A free, confidential chat that is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Crisis counselors are also able to connect with people that need help on Whatsapp. 
• StopBullying.gov: A great site to learn information about bullying and the federal guidelines on reporting it. 
  
  The links to all the resources listed above are located at the end of this blog. 
  
  Bullying will remain a serious global issue throughout education and personal lives. Stopping every bully may not be possible now but saying something when you see someone getting bullied is a great step to take. Educating yourself on the signs of bullying, what to do when you see it happening, and how to get help is another step everyone should do in order to help decrease bullying globally.
  
  

References: 
Anti-Bullying Alliance. (n.d.). Bystanders. https://anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk/tools-information/all-about-bullying/whole-school-and-setting-approach/peer-support-strategies-0
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. (n.d.). Relational Bullying. Center for Violence Prevention. https://violence.chop.edu/relational-aggression
Crisis Text Line. (n.d.). Bullying resources you need to know. https://www.crisistextline.org/topics/bullying/
Namie, G. (2024). 2024 WBI U.S workplace bullying survey. Workplace Bullying Institute. https://workplacebullying.org/2024-wbi-us-survey/
National Center for Education Statistics. (2024, July). Student bullying. U.S Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences.https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/a10/bullying-electronic-bullying
StopBullying.gov. (n.d.). Long-term effects of bullying. U.S Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.stopbullying.gov/bullying/effects
The Center for Parent Information and Resources. (2020, May). Bullying. https://www.parentcenterhub.org/bullying/#:~:text=Facts%20about%20bullying.,of%20Child%20and%20Adolescent%20Psychiatry.
United Nations. (2026, March 10). An “alarming” two-thirds of children say cyberbullying has increased. UN News. https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/03/1167111
Vinney, C. (2025, October 24). What are the different types of bullying? 
Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-are-the-different-types-of-bullying-5207717