Bullying Impact

April 22, 2008

The old saying suggests sticks and stones do more damage than words. But now a University of Florida study links taunting or name-calling in childhood with symptoms of depression and anxiety in early adulthood.

Adolescence can prove tough enough now UF researcher Eric Storch and his team have linked verbal or social abuse by peers with emotional problems once teens become college-age young adults.

Storch: “What we tend to see is that being bullied, as one particular stressful experience, is related to problems with depression, anxiety and loneliness later on in life.”

Experts say bullying has become harder to control because it’s not always physical. Scars from social bullying aren’t easy to see, but can run deep.

Storch: “Oftentimes those are really good kids and the consequences of their experiences are things like anxiety and depression, which in truth most people don’t notice because they’re internal experiences as opposed to something external like acting out or getting into trouble.”

So teachers parents and other loved ones should look carefully for signs of this social victimization before it takes its toll.

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