Many people in the world today are a victim of bullying in one way or the other. Bullying is a delinquent act with three varying types and corresponding effects on the victim. These are:

• Physical bullying
• Social bullying
• Verbal bullying/ Covert bullying

Bullying in general terms is defined as the deliberate act of hurting a person’s emotion and sometimes inflicting pain and torture on the victim. Bullying can be perpetrated by one or more people with greater physical or social power than their victims. The bullies typically act aggressively towards their victims by verbal or intimidating its victims with the use of force and coercion.

Bullying has been observed in secondary schools where senior students tend to intimidate the junior ones because of the power of ‘seniority’ or merely as a means to hijack the properties of junior ones.

Another form of bullying (emotional/ social bullying) can also be seen among adults and in the workplace- both corporate and informal.

Now, let’s try to better understand the three major types of bullying which were listed above:

1. Physical bullying

This is when a person with a huge physique scares, threatens, or intimidates a person with a smaller physique by inflicting pain or torture on the person so as to forcefully collect or hijack their possession or legitimate right or simply just to satisfy a feeling of hatred for the person being bullied. This bully is prevalent in schools, colleges, and also on the streets.

2. Social bullying

This type of bullying occurs when a person manipulates another person’s social position by taking drastic steps to make sure that they fall out of favour in their circle of influence. It also occurs in a situation where a person is been ostracized from joining a group or social level in the society usually by withholding positions. This type of bullying is mostly witnessed within bodies and organizations of adults or people who share the same business interest. Social bullying is also called covert or relational bully.

3. Verbal bullying

Verbal bullying takes place when people intentionally or unknowingly inflict emotional pain on others through the use of sarcastic, violent, vulgar, or foul communication. The aim is sometimes to ridicule the other person or express their superiority.

All these types of bullying have their effects on the victim either physical or emotional. Most of the time physical bullying on students in schools often becomes detrimental to their development and safety in schools. Social bullying often makes people feel less of themselves and begins self-condemnation and making them feel unwanted. Verbal bullying tends to make the people who experience it to become emotionally withdrawn and unstable- especially when the communication lingers in their thoughts. This could lead to serious mental issues like psychosis leading to severe mental catastrophe or depression which can lead to suicide.

However, while schools have been trying their best to curb the menace of bullying, there are still some bad eggs in schools that make complete eradication impossible. If the necessary care is not taken and proper attention dedicated, these students can become delinquents and later become a threat to the security of the nation.