Childhood Bullying and Its Long Term Psychological Effects

Did you ever encounter a bully when you were a child? Going through bullying – whether it’s as the victim, an observer, or the bully – seems almost to be a quintessential experience of childhood. Many of us encountered a bully, in some form or another, during childhood. Being bullied is often misunderstood as a “normal” rite of passage for children.

But even though childhood bullying is relatively common and can be normalized, it’s far from harmless child’s play. Research shows being bullied as a child can have significant psychological consequences lasting for years. Bullying is a form of trauma, and trauma has long-lasting impacts.

Are you still grappling with the aftermath of being bullied as a child? There are ways for adults to heal from the mental health effects of childhood bullying and process their experiences.

Here is important information about the traumatic experience of childhood bullying and how it can affect your mental health even in adulthood.

What is the definition of bullying?

Bullying is generally described as a pattern of aggressive or intentionally hurtful behavior that happens between peers.

Not all aggressive behavior between children is bullying. According to the CDC, three main components of bullying can help us differentiate between bullying and other aggression^[1]:

1. Unwanted aggressive behavior
2. There is a power imbalance between the bully and the victim; for example, an older child may bully a younger child, or a more “popular” child may bully a shy and socially awkward child
3. This type of behavior repeats or is likely to repeat

In general, there are two different types of bullying, each as harmful as the other:

• Direct bullying, which includes things like physical violence, name-calling, and other physical/verbal acts of aggression
• Indirect bullying, which typically is characterized by social exclusion through rumor-spreading and other tactics

Unfortunately, childhood bullying is widespread. 1 in 5 school-aged youth report being bullied in the past year. These numbers are higher for LGBTQ+ youth; nearly 40% of them report being bullied.

If you were bullied as a child, you’re not alone. Many people have been in your shoes, and there are ways to heal.

How does bullying affect children?

Childhood and adolescence are unique periods of life in which your brain and identity are still forming. When you’re bullied during these critical developmental periods, it can lead to problems both in how well you’re able to trust and connect with others as well as how you see yourself.

Children who are bullied may develop strong feelings of resentment and anger. If no one intervenes in the bullying or protects the child, these feelings can become directed at the bully and the entire world. In extreme cases, victims of bullying may channel these feelings of anger into acts of violence. For example, in 12 of the 15 school shootings that happened in the 1990s, the shooters were bullied^[2].

Some children direct their pain inward; they may start to feel shame about being bullied. They might take on the blame for the bullying and develop poor self-esteem.

Being the victim of bullying can also affect other childhood relationships. It isn’t only the bully’s actions that have an impact – it’s the way the bullying affects other children’s perception of them. Children who are the victims of bullying may be socially outcasted, which can lead to feelings of isolation, despair, and even suicidal thoughts.

What is the long-term mental health impact of bullying?

The feelings brought on by bullying are powerful and don’t tend to disappear after the bully moves on or you grow older. While some young people may be able to bounce back from the emotionally devastating effects of bullying, many others continue to grapple with the psychological consequences years – even decades – after the bullying stops.

Research shows adults who were bullied as children are more likely to^[3]:

• Develop post-traumatic stress symptoms
• Have depression and anxiety
• Experience significant problems in their interpersonal relationships
• Have higher levels of inflammation in the body
• Experience psychotic disorders
• Have poor general health, including a higher incidence of body pain and headaches
• Be smokers
• Experience suicidal thoughts and attempt suicide

The British National Child Development Study followed all children born within a specific week in 1958 – over 7500 children – for 40 years. The researchers sought to understand how specific childhood experiences affected people later in life.

The results regarding bullying were startling. The study found children who reported being bullied constantly (around 28%) experienced negative emotional, physical, and financial effects up to 40 years later.

Not only did the participants who were bullied experience the health consequences listed above, but they also tended to have lower educational levels, higher unemployment rates, and lower overall earnings. They were also less likely to be in a partnership, less likely to have solid friendships and other social support, and reported lower happiness and life satisfaction^[4].

These research results make it clear just how long-lasting the adverse effects of childhood bullying are. Bullying is far from a “normal” rite-of-passage – it’s a traumatic event that, like other trauma, affects health and well-being far into the future.