The expression of emotion in response to bullying

Abstract

Recent literature on bullying suggests that victims of bullying are likely to have certain emotional reactions that contribute to the problem. That does not mean that victims in any way deserve the treatment that they get from more aggressive peers, but rather proposes that they themselves can be empowered to change the situation. The purpose of this review is to examine the proposal that the ways in which victims express their emotions during a bullying episode can play a crucial role in the responses of peers. There are implications for both researchers and practitioners to develop new insights that may help vulnerable children and adolescents.