Bullying is one of the phenomena that has been most talked about recently, as there seems to have been an increase in cases of violence in the school context. In fact, bullying has always existed, but nowadays it has a greater media impact and its name may be more attractive as it comes from the English language.

This phenomenon has devastating consequences and, in some cases, fatal outcomes for the person who is the victim. In this article we will look more closely at the traits and characteristics of school bullies.

Types of bullying

Bullies can carry out different behaviours to infringe fear and pain on the person who is the victim of the bullying, and new technologies have allowed bullying to take place not only in classrooms or educational centres, but many victims are even bullied via mobile phones or computers. That is why there is talk of different types of bullying. They are as follows:

  • Physical bullying : Includes physical contact such as kicking, hitting, pushing or tripping.
  • Verbal bullying : It is a type of bullying characterized by the bully expressing cruel words, threats, insults, etc.
  • Relational bullying : It is the one whose purpose is that the victim does not join the group. For example, not inviting him to parties.
  • Cyberbullying : Occurs through new technologies, such as mobile devices or the computer.
  • Carnal bullying : It is characterized by macho or obscene comments, by touching the victim in intimate places or pressuring him to do something he doesn’t want to do.

Consequences of Bullying for the Victim

Whatever the type of bullying, the victim often suffers serious problems in his life . Children can experience a great deal of panic and avoid going to school so as not to meet their bully.

The negative consequences for the victim of bullying are, fundamentally, these:

  • Pathological stress.
  • Depression.
  • Feeling of guilt .
  • Low self-esteem and negative self-concept
  • Low academic performance and school failure.
  • Panic attacks.
  • Insomnia.
  • Extreme anxiety .
  • Bad reputation and low popularity.
  • Social isolation and loneliness.
  • Problems in their social relations.
  • Suicidal ideation .

Psychological profile of the school bully

Bullies can have a variety of physical characteristics. They are tall, short, athletic, thin… However, in terms of their psychological profile , it is possible that many bullies have a number of common characteristics that we explain below.

  • You may be interested in: “The KiVa method, an idea that is ending bullying”

1. Need to dominate and control others

Bullies often have an autocratic personality and engage in undemocratic behavior. They possess dichotomous thinking , so for them the only opinion that counts is their own.

They like to dominate others and feel superior, because they generally have low self-esteem. That is why they look for “easy” and weak victims .

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2. Explosive and impulsive temperature

These types of individuals are not usually emotionally intelligent and do not have much emotional control . They don’t have self-knowledge skills and therefore they are not able to manage or regulate them. Their character is impulsive and they tend to explode at the minimum, giving free rein to their anger.

3. Enjoy and are stimulated by violence

There are individuals who are encouraged by violence and enjoy using it to gain respect. Bullies seek to feel respected and feared , and the use of violence is one of the best ways to make victims fear their presence. Furthermore, they enjoy it even more when victims are humiliated in public, as it is an expression of their power.

4. Lack of empathy

One of the most outstanding characteristics of these individuals is that they lack empathy. They are unable to put themselves in the shoes of many of the people around them and that is why they are so hostile and cold. It is impossible for an individual to harm another if he is able to visualize his suffering and put himself in their shoes.

5. Poor self-criticism and low frustration tolerance

As they are not very empathetic and have a low emotional intelligence, the “bullies” are characterized by problems in recognizing their mistakes : there is no self-criticism in them. They are people who tend to blame others for their failures, and even use other individuals to project their low tolerance for frustration. In other words, to use them as scapegoats.

6. Intolerant of differences

Tolerance towards the differences of others is one of the best virtues that human beings can possess, and it is one of the keys to living in harmony with other people. Respect not only for the difference of aspects, opinions and ideas is what makes us great. Abusers are not tolerant individuals , but think that their truth is the only one that exists. They are often full of hate and prejudice, so they tend to display sexist and racist behaviour.

7. Rigid thinking

Intolerance turns these individuals into rigid thinkers. They are not people who like to dialogue (in the sense of exchanging different ideas and points of view) or who have a positive attitude towards consensus. What does not fit with their ideas or beliefs is wrong. They possess the absolute truth and because they think that theirs is the only existing truth.

8. Defying the rules

Bullies at school are often boys with antisocial personalities, who are confrontational and who continually break the rules. The fact is that the antisocial personality is associated with any kind of mistreatment . These individuals are characterised by irresponsible behaviour and hate to be controlled. However, they use hate and anger to control others.

9. Manipulators

They are manipulative people, and their behavior always has an objective: their own interests. They use blackmail to cause fear in their victims and they are lying people. They always blame others before themselves.