When a Bully Taunts

Taunting

Is based on an imbalance of power and is one-sided: the bully taunts, the bullied kid is taunted.

Is intended to harm.

Involves humiliating, cruel, demeaning, or bigoted comments  thinly disguised as jokes.

Includes laughter directed at the target, not with the target.

Is meant to diminish the sense of self-worth of the target.

Induces fear of further taunting or can be a prelude to physical bullying.

Is sinister in motive.

Continues especially when targeted kid becomes distressed or objects to the taunt.

When a bully taunts her target, there is no playfulness in the attack, no matter how much the bully may protest, "I was just teasing." The bullied kid was probably targeted because the bully knew he or she would not strike back. There is no good-natured give-and-take. The taunt is intended to isolate the target. It is intended to hurt, and the words are demeaning and cruel. The bully may  laugh, and so might the bystanders. The target is embarrassed, humiliated, or shamed, living in fear of what will come next. There is no empathy or compassion; rather, there is glee, excitement, or amusement over the success of the attack. The motive of the bully is not to make a new friend, engage in friendly banter, or lighten a difficult situation; it is purely to belittle and demean another child.  

From

The Bully, the Bullied, and the Bystander 

by

Barbara Coloroso