VERBAL bullying often takes a back seat to physical bullying.
However, verbal bullying is at the forefront when it comes to the long-term, insidious psychological effects that individuals experience.
Miss Khoo Kar Mun ("Why I left RGS"; last Saturday) correctly stated that verbal comments can lead to a battering of a person's self-esteem.
Social influence can be used to the detriment of others. This alludes to the substantive power of social influence.
Social media, "confessions" pages and communications technology have made it easier to spread defamatory and derogatory remarks about someone.
Yet, students often fail to consider the impact their words can have on their peers.
Short-term psychological woes are common among those victimised, and research has increasingly posited that long-term damage can also result.
Many studies show an inextricable link between mood, thought and one's level of intrinsic motivation.
Victims of verbal bullying may have emotional and mood changes, which gradually affect their thinking, attitudes and perceptions of life.
They may also experience decreased levels of motivation and drive, known as avolition.
A "minor" form of avolition may not impair daily life to the extent that depression and schizophrenia would, but this can worsen over time, precipitating depression.
It is vital that schools empower those victimised to seek help. It is also wise to inculcate in students the value of thinking before speaking maliciously of another student.
More attention needs to be given to verbal bullying, to prevent it from becoming an inexorable malaise.
Aaron Low Chin Yong
