Relational Aggression and Emotional Violence
Bullying is prevalent in our society. Whether it is the physical bullying of a young boy for his lunch money, a group of girls socially isolating another girl, or a mother, feeling in the right, publicly yelling at another mother; these are all examples of bullying. As a society we have agreed upon rules regarding physical bullying, touching, hitting, pushing, or tripping. We have not agreed upon what constitutes girl social and emotional bullying, how to recognize it, and what to do about it.
In addition, we need to separate the bullying behavior from the bully. Really there is no bully; there is just the behavior. She is not a bully; it is not who she is; but rather behavior that can be changed. When the term bully is used it is not a description of who she is as a person, but as a way to abbreviate the description of behavior.
When Does Bullying Start
“Girls absolutely exclude one another in kindergarten,” said Michelle Anthony, a psychologist and co-author of the new book “Little Girls Can Be Mean.” When one girl excludes another from playing or prohibits access to other girls, this is a form of bullying and can be seen at a very early age.
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