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Girls Psychological Bullying

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Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science

Synonyms

Direct bullying; Emotional distress; Indirect bullying; Intrasexual competition; Relational; Aggression; Verbal bullying; Victimization

Definition

Bullying is a strategic, goal-oriented, and malicious behavior that harms individuals who have less power (Volk et al. 2014).

Introduction

Although girls’ psychological bullying is a broad term that could apply to one’s reaction of being physically assaulted, we define it as a behavior centered on spreading rumors, manipulating, criticizing, socially excluding, or assassinating the character of victims (SooHoo 2009). Indirect targeting behaviors that stem from relational bullying (e.g., rumor spreading) often occur with, but prior to, direct bullying behavior (e.g., rejecting the victim in front of a group) (Besag 2006; Letendre and Smith 2011). Regardless of the mode of aggression employed by bullies, the harm caused to victims of psychological bullying can be significant (Besag 2006). Whether girls are receiving benefits from...

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References

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Correspondence to Kimberly P. Mularczyk .

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Mularczyk, K.P., Volk, A.A. (2016). Girls Psychological Bullying. In: Weekes-Shackelford, V., Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_858-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_858-1

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

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