Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other types of

aggression Aggression is overt or covert, often harmful, social interaction with the intention of inflicting damage or other harm upon another individual; although it can be channeled into creative and practical outlets for some. It may occur either reacti ...

. To these descriptions, one can also add the Kantian notion of the wrongness of using another human being as means to an end rather than as ends in themselves. Some sources describe abuse as "socially constructed", which means there may be more or less recognition of the suffering of a victim at different times and societies.

Types and contexts of abuse

Abuse of authority

Abuse of authority includes harassment, interference, pressure, and inappropriate requests or favors.

Abuse of corpse

:''See:

Necrophilia Necrophilia, also known as necrophilism, necrolagnia, necrocoitus, necrochlesis, and thanatophilia, is sexual attraction towards or a sexual act involving Cadaver, corpses. It is classified as a paraphilia by the World Health Organization (WHO) ...

'' Necrophilia involves possessing a physical attraction to dead bodies that may led to acting upon sexual urges. As corpses are dead and cannot give consent, any manipulation, removal of parts, mutilation, or sexual acts performed on a dead body is considered abuse.

Abuse of discretion

An abuse of discretion is a failure to take into proper consideration, the facts and laws relating to a particular matter; an arbitrary or unreasonable departure from precedent and settled judicial custom.

Abuse of dominance

Market dominance by companies is regulated by public and private enforcement of competition law, also known as antitrust or anti-monopoly law.

Abuse of indulgences

In the Catholic Church, an indulgence is a way to reduce punishment for sin, often by prayer, pilgrimage or good works. In the Middle Ages, some Church officials demanded money in exchange both for forgiveness of sins and for other rewards such as future salvation.

Abuse of information

Abuse of information typically involves a breach of confidence or plagiarism, or extending the confidence of information beyond those authorised. In the financial world,

Insider trading Insider trading is the trading of a public company's stock or other securities (such as bonds or stock options) based on material, nonpublic information about the company. In various countries, some kinds of trading based on insider information ...

can also be considered a misuse of internal information that gives an unfair advantage in investment.

Abuse of power

Abuse of power, in the form of "malfeasance in office" or "official misconduct", is the commission of an unlawful act, done in an official capacity, which affects the performance of official duties. Malfeasance in office is often grounds for a

for cause Just Cause may refer to: * Just cause (employment law), a common standard in United States labor arbitration, and a reason for termination of employment. * ''Just Cause'' (film), a 1995 legal thriller starring Sean Connery * ''Just Cause'' (TV se ...

removal of an elected official by

statute A statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs the legal entities of a city, state, or country by way of consent. Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy. Statutes are rules made by le ...

recall election A recall election (also called a recall referendum, recall petition or representative recall) is a procedure by which, in certain polities, voters can remove an elected official from office through a referendum before that official's term of offi ...

Abuse of process

A cause of action in

tort A tort is a civil wrong that causes a claimant to suffer loss or harm, resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act. Tort law can be contrasted with criminal law, which deals with criminal wrongs that are punishable ...

arising from one party making a malicious and deliberate misuse or perversion of regularly issued court process (civil or criminal) not justified by the underlying legal action.

Abuse of rank

Rankism (also called abuse of rank) is treating people of a lower rank in an abusive, discriminatory, or exploitative way.

Robert W. Fuller Robert Works Fuller (born 1936) is an American physicist, author, social reformer, and former president of Oberlin College. Biography Robert Fuller attended Oberlin College, leaving without graduating in order to earn his Ph.D. in physics at ...

claims that rankism includes the abuse of the power inherent in superior rank, with the view that rank-based abuse underlies many other phenomena such as bullying, racism,

sexism Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but it primarily affects women and girls.There is a clear and broad consensus among academic scholars in multiple fields that sexism refers primari ...

, and

homophobia Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitude (psychology), attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, h ...

Abuse of statistics

:''See:

Abuse of statistics Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to Distributive justice, unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practice ...

Abuse of the system

:''See: Abuse#Gaming the system''

Abuse of trust

:''See:

Position of trust A position of trust is any position that requires its holder to enjoy the trust of those who elected or chose the holder. It is often used in a more restricted sense defined by an organization or by legislation. One possible legal summary of a Pos ...

Abusive supervision

Abusive supervision is most commonly studied in the context of the workplace, although can arise in other areas such as in the household and at school. "Abusive supervision has been investigated as an antecedent to negative subordinate workplace outcome". "

Workplace violence Workplace violence (WPV), violence in the workplace (VIW), or occupational violence refers to violence, usually in the form of physical abuse or threat, that creates a risk to the health and safety of an employee or multiple employees. The Nationa ...

has combination of situational and personal factors". The study that was conducted looked at the link between abusive supervision and different workplace events.

Academic abuse

Academic abuse is a form of workplace bullying which takes place in institutions of higher education, such as colleges and universities. Academia is highly competitive and has a well defined hierarchy, with junior staff being particularly vulnerable.

Adolescent abuse

:''See:

Anti-social behaviour Antisocial behavior is a behavior that is defined as the violation of the rights of others by committing crime, such as stealing and physical attack in addition to other behaviors such as lying and manipulation. It is considered to be disrupti ...

Juvenile delinquency Juvenile delinquency, also known as juvenile offending, is the act of participating in unlawful behavior as a minor or individual younger than the statutory age of majority. In the United States of America, a juvenile delinquent is a person ...

Parental abuse by adolescents Abuse of parents by their children, also known as child-to-parent violence (CPV), is a form of domestic violence, and is one of the most under-reported and under-researched subject areas in the field of psychology. Parents are quite often subject ...

Parental abuse of adolescents Child abuse (also called child endangerment or child maltreatment) is physical, sexual, and/or psychological maltreatment or neglect of a child or children, especially by a parent or a caregiver. Child abuse may include any act or failure to a ...

Adult abuse

Adult abuse refers to the abuse of vulnerable adults.

Alcohol use disorder

Alcohol use disorder, as described in the

DSM-IV The ''Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders'' (DSM; latest edition: DSM-5-TR, published in March 2022) is a publication by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) for the classification of mental disorders using a common langua ...

, is a psychiatric diagnosis describing the recurring use of alcoholic beverages despite its negative consequences.National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
"Diagnostic Criteria for Alcohol Abuse and Dependence"
''Alcohol Alert,'' No. 30 PH 359, October 1995. Alcohol use disorder is sometimes referred to by the less specific term alcoholism. There are two types of people with alcohol use disorder: those who have anti-social and pleasure-seeking tendencies, and those who are anxiety-ridden- people who are able to go without drinking for long periods of time but are unable to control themselves once they start.

Binge drinking Binge drinking, or heavy episodic drinking, is drinking alcoholic beverages with an intention of becoming intoxicated by heavy consumption of alcohol over a short period of time, but definitions ( see below) vary considerably. Binge drinking ...

is another form of alcohol use disorder. Frequent binge drinking or getting severely drunk more than twice is classed as alcohol misuse. According to research done through international surveys, the heaviest drinkers happen to be the United Kingdom's adolescent generation.

Animal abuse

Animal abuse is the infliction of suffering or harm upon animals, other than humans, for purposes other than self-defense. More narrowly, it can be harm for specific gain, such as killing animals for fur. Diverging viewpoints are held by jurisdictions throughout the world.

Anti-social behavior

Anti-social behavior is often seen as public behavior that lacks judgement and consideration for others and may damage them or their property. It may be intentional, as with vandalism or

graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...

, or the result of negligence. Persistent anti-social behavior may be a manifestation of an

antisocial personality disorder Antisocial personality disorder (ASPD or infrequently APD) is a personality disorder characterized by a long-term pattern of disregard of, or violation of, the rights of others as well as a difficulty sustaining long-term relationships. Lack ...

. The counterpart of anti-social behavior is

pro-social behavior Prosocial behavior, or intent to benefit others, is a social behavior that "benefit other people or society as a whole", "such as helping, sharing, donating, co-operating, and volunteering". Obeying the rules and conforming to socially accepted beh ...

, namely any behavior intended to help or benefit another person, group or society.

Bullying

Bullying is repeated acts over time that involves a real or perceived imbalance of power with the more powerful individual or group attacking those who are less powerful. Bullying may consist of three basic types of abuse – verbal,

physical Physical may refer to: *Physical examination In a physical examination, medical examination, or clinical examination, a medical practitioner examines a patient for any possible medical signs or symptoms of a medical condition. It generally co ...

and

emotional Emotions are mental states brought on by neurophysiological changes, variously associated with thoughts, feelings, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or displeasure. There is currently no scientific consensus on a definition. E ...

. It typically involves subtle methods of

coercion Coercion () is compelling a party to act in an involuntary manner by the use of threats, including threats to use force against a party. It involves a set of forceful actions which violate the free will of an individual in order to induce a desi ...

such as

intimidation Intimidation is to "make timid or make fearful"; or to induce fear. This includes intentional behaviors of forcing another person to experience general discomfort such as humiliation, embarrassment, inferiority, limited freedom, etc and the victi ...

. Bullying can be defined in many different ways. Although the UK currently has no legal definition of bullying, some US states have laws against it. Bullying is usually done to coerce others by

fear Fear is an intensely unpleasant emotion in response to perceiving or recognizing a danger or threat. Fear causes physiological changes that may produce behavioral reactions such as mounting an aggressive response or fleeing the threat. Fear ...

threat A threat is a communication of intent to inflict harm or loss on another person. Intimidation is a tactic used between conflicting parties to make the other timid or psychologically insecure for coercion or control. The act of intimidation for co ...

Character assassination

Character assassination is an attempt to tarnish a person's reputation. It may involve exaggeration or manipulation of facts to present an untrue picture of the targeted person. It is a form of

defamation Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...

and can be a form of an ad hominem (to the person) argument.

Child abuse

Child abuse is the physical or psychological/emotional mistreatment of children. In the United States, the

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgi ...

(CDC) define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or other caregiver that results in harm, potential for harm, or threat of harm to a child. Most child abuse occurs in a child's home, with a smaller amount occurring in the organisations, schools or communities the child interacts with. There are four major categories of child abuse:

neglect In the context of caregiving, neglect is a form of abuse where the perpetrator, who is responsible for caring for someone who is unable to care for themselves, fails to do so. It can be a result of carelessness, indifference, or unwillingness and ...

physical abuse Physical abuse is any intentional act causing injury or trauma to another person or animal by way of bodily contact. In most cases, children are the victims of physical abuse, but adults can also be victims, as in cases of domestic violence or wo ...

, psychological/emotional abuse, and

sexual abuse Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assa ...

Parental abuse of children

:''See: Abuse#Child abuse''

Child sexual abuse

Child sexual abuse is a form of

child abuse Child abuse (also called child endangerment or child maltreatment) is physical, sexual, and/or psychological maltreatment or neglect of a child or children, especially by a parent or a caregiver. Child abuse may include any act or failure to a ...

in which an adult or older adolescent abuses a child for sexual stimulation. * Different forms of this include: asking or pressuring a child to engage in sexual activities (regardless of the outcome), some types of

indecent exposure Indecent exposure is the deliberate public exposure by a person of a portion of their body in a manner contrary to local standards of appropriate behavior. Laws and social attitudes regarding indecent exposure vary significantly in different ...

of genitalia to a child, displaying pornography to a child, actual

sexual contact Human sexual activity, human sexual practice or human sexual behaviour is the manner in which humans experience and express their Human sexuality, sexuality. People engage in a variety of sexual acts, ranging from activities done alone (e.g. ...

against a child, viewing or engaging in physical contact with the child's genitals for sexual purposes, or using a child to produce

child pornography Child pornography (also called CP, child sexual abuse material, CSAM, child porn, or kiddie porn) is pornography that unlawfully exploits children for sexual stimulation. It may be produced with the direct involvement or sexual assault of a chi ...

=Child-on-child sexual abuse

= Child-on-child sexual abuse refers to a form of

child sexual abuse Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in sexual activities with a child (whet ...

in which a prepubescent child is sexually abused by one or more other children or adolescent youths, and in which no adult is directly involved. This includes sexual activity between children that occurs without consent, without equality, or as a result of

; particularly when physical force, threats, trickery, or

emotional manipulation Emotions are mental states brought on by neurophysiological changes, variously associated with thoughts, feelings, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or displeasure. There is currently no scientific consensus on a definitio ...

are used to elicit co-operation.

Church abuse

:''See: Abuse#Spiritual abuse''

Civil rights abuse

Clandestine abuse

Clandestine abuse is

sexual Sex is the biological distinction of an organism between male and female. Sex or SEX may also refer to: Biology and behaviour *Animal sexual behaviour **Copulation (zoology) **Human sexual activity **Non-penetrative sex, or sexual outercourse ** ...

psychological Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between t ...

, or

"that is kept secret for a purpose, concealed, or underhanded."

Clerical abuse

:''See:

Catholic sex abuse cases There have been many cases of sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests, nuns, Popes and other members of religious life. In the 20th and 21st centuries, the cases have involved many allegations, investigations, trials, convictions, ack ...

Cyber abuse or cyber bullying

Cyberbullying "involves the use of information and communication technologies to support deliberate, repeated, and hostile behavior by an individual or group, that is intended to harm others." -Bill Belsey

Dating abuse or dating violence

Dating abuse is a pattern of abusive behaviour exhibited by one or both partners in a

dating Dating is a stage of romantic relationships in which two individuals engage in an activity together, most often with the intention of evaluating each other's suitability as a partner in a future intimate relationship. It falls into the categor ...

relationship. The behaviour may include, but is not limited to;

;

psychological abuse Psychological abuse, often called emotional abuse, is a form of abuse characterized by a person subjecting or exposing another person to a behavior that may result in psychological trauma, including anxiety, chronic depression, or post-traumatic ...

; and

Defamation

Defamation is the communication of a statement that makes a claim, expressly stated or implied to be factual, that may give an

individual An individual is that which exists as a distinct entity. Individuality (or self-hood) is the state or quality of being an individual; particularly (in the case of humans) of being a person unique from other people and possessing one's own Maslow ...

, business,

product Product may refer to: Business * Product (business), an item that serves as a solution to a specific consumer problem. * Product (project management), a deliverable or set of deliverables that contribute to a business solution Mathematics * Produ ...

group A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...

, government or nation a negative image. It is usually—but not always,e.g., in the case the offense of defamatory libel under the common law of

England and Wales England and Wales () is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is Eng ...

, where prior to the enactment of section 6 of the

Libel Act 1843 The Libel Act 1843, commonly known as Lord Campbell's Libel Act, was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It enacted several important codifications of and modifications to the common law tort of libel. This Act was repealed for the ...

( defense of justification for the public benefit), the truth of the defamatory statement was irrelevant, and it continues to be sufficient that it is published to the defamed person alone. a requirement that this claim be false and that the publication be communicated to someone other than the person defamed (termed the

claimant A plaintiff ( Π in legal shorthand) is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an ''action'') before a court. By doing so, the plaintiff seeks a legal remedy. If this search is successful, the court will issue judgment in favor of the ...

Detainee abuse

:''See: Abuse#Prison abuse or prisoner abuse''

Disability abuse

It has been noted that

disabled Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, mental, physical, se ...

people are disproportionately affected by disability abuse and

bullying Bullying is the use of force, coercion, hurtful teasing or threat, to abuse, aggressively dominate or intimidate. The behavior is often repeated and habitual. One essential prerequisite is the perception (by the bully or by others) of an imba ...

, and such activity has been cited as a

hate crime A hate crime (also known as a bias-motivated crime or bias crime) is a prejudice-motivated crime which occurs when a perpetrator targets a victim because of their membership (or perceived membership) of a certain social group or racial demograph ...

. The bullying is not limited to those who are visibly disabled – such as wheelchair-users or individuals with physical differences (e.g.,

cleft lip A cleft lip contains an opening in the upper lip that may extend into the nose. The opening may be on one side, both sides, or in the middle. A cleft palate occurs when the palate (the roof of the mouth) contains an opening into the nose. The te ...

) – but also those with

learning disabilities Learning disability, learning disorder, or learning difficulty (British English) is a condition in the brain that causes difficulties comprehending or processing information and can be caused by several different factors. Given the "difficult ...

autism The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...

developmental coordination disorder Developmental coordination disorder (DCD), also known as developmental motor coordination disorder, developmental dyspraxia or simply dyspraxia from the word 'praxis' meaning to do or act, is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impair ...

. In the latter case, this is linked to a poor ability in physical education, and this behaviour can be encouraged by an ignorant physical education teacher. Abuse of disabled people is not limited to schools; there are many known cases in which disabled people have been abused by staff of a "care institution", such as the case revealed in a

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

dislike {{Short pages monitor A substance use disorder is a patterned use of a drug in which the person consumes the substance in amounts or with methods which are harmful to themselves or others, and is a form of

substance-related disorder Substance-related disorders, also known as substance use disorders, can lead to large societal problems. It is found to be greatest in individuals ages 18–25, with a higher likelihood occurring in men compared to women, and urban residents comp ...

. Widely differing definitions of substance use disorder are used in public health, medical and criminal justice contexts. In some cases criminal or

anti-social behavior Antisocial behavior is a behavior that is defined as the violation of the rights of others by committing crime, such as stealing and physical attack in addition to other behaviors such as lying and manipulation. It is considered to be disrupti ...

occurs when the person is under the influence of a drug, and long term personality changes in individuals may occur as well. In addition to possible physical, social, and psychological harm, use of some drugs may also lead to criminal penalties, although these vary widely depending on the local jurisdiction.(2002). ''

Mosby's Medical, Nursing & Allied Health Dictionary ''Mosby's Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing & Health Professions'' is a dictionary of health related topics. The 8th edition, published in 2009, contains 2,240 pages and 2,400 colour illustrations. It includes some encyclopaedic definitions and 12 ap ...

''. Sixth Edition. Drug abuse definition, p. 552. Nursing diagnoses, p. 2109. .

Surveillance abuse

Surveillance abuse is the use of

surveillance Surveillance is the monitoring of behavior, many activities, or information for the purpose of information gathering, influencing, managing or directing. This can include observation from a distance by means of electronic equipment, such as c ...

methods or technology to monitor the activity of an individual or group of individuals in a way which violates the

social norm Social norms are shared standards of acceptance, acceptable behavior by groups. Social norms can both be informal understandings that govern the behavior of members of a society, as well as be codified into wikt:rule, rules and laws. Social normat ...

s or laws of a society.

Mass surveillance Mass surveillance is the intricate surveillance of an entire or a substantial fraction of a population in order to monitor that group of citizens. The surveillance is often carried out by local and federal governments or governmental organizati ...

by the state may constitute surveillance abuse if not appropriately regulated. Surveillance abuse often falls outside the scope of

lawful interception Lawful interception (LI) refers to the facilities in telecommunications and telephone networks that allow law enforcement agencies with court orders or other legal authorization to selectively wiretap individual subscribers. Most countries require ...

. It is illegal because it violates peoples'

right to privacy The right to privacy is an element of various legal traditions that intends to restrain governmental and private actions that threaten the privacy of individuals. Over 150 national constitutions mention the right to privacy. On 10 December 1948 ...

Taunting

A taunt is a

battle cry A battle cry or war cry is a yell or chant taken up in battle, usually by members of the same combatant group. Battle cries are not necessarily articulate (e.g. "Eulaliaaaa!", "Alala"..), although they often aim to invoke patriotic or religious ...

, a method in hand-to-hand combat, sarcastic remark, or

insult An insult is an expression or statement (or sometimes behavior) which is disrespectful or scornful. Insults may be intentional or accidental. An insult may be factual, but at the same time pejorative, such as the word "inbred". Jocular exc ...

intended to demoralise the recipient, or to anger them and encourage reactionary behaviours without thinking. Taunting can exist as a form of social competition to gain control of the target's

cultural capital In the field of sociology, cultural capital comprises the social assets of a person (education, intellect, style of speech, style of dress, etc.) that promote social mobility in a stratified society. Cultural capital functions as a social relat ...

(i.e.

status Status (Latin plural: ''statūs''), is a state, condition, or situation, and may refer to: * Status (law) ** City status ** Legal status, in law ** Political status, in international law ** Small entity status, in patent law ** Status conference ...

). In

sociological Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation and ...

theory, the control of the three social capitals is used to produce an advantage in the social hierarchy as to enforce one's own position in relation to others. Taunting is committed by either directly

, or indirectly encouraging others to bully the target. It is also possible to give a response of the same kind, to ensure one's own status. It can be compared to

fighting words Fighting words are written or spoken words intended to incite hatred or violence from their target. Specific definitions, freedoms, and limitations of fighting words vary by jurisdiction. The term ''fighting words'' is also used in a general sen ...

and

trash-talk Trash talk is a form of insult usually found in sports events, although it is not exclusive to sports or similarly characterized events. It is often used to intimidate the opposition and/or make them less confident in their abilities as to win ...

Teacher abuse

:''See:

Teacher abuse A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

Teasing

Teasing is a word with many meanings. In human interactions, teasing comes in two major forms, ''playful'' and ''hurtful''. In mild cases, and especially when it is reciprocal, teasing can be viewed as playful and friendly. However, teasing is often unwelcome and then it takes the form of

harassment Harassment covers a wide range of behaviors of offensive nature. It is commonly understood as behavior that demeans, humiliates or embarrasses a person, and it is characteristically identified by its unlikelihood in terms of social and moral ...

. In extreme cases, teasing may escalate to actual violence, and may even result in abuse. Children are commonly teased on such matters as their

appearance Appearance may refer to: * Visual appearance, the way in which objects reflect and transmit light * Human physical appearance, what someone looks like * ''Appearances'' (film), a 1921 film directed by Donald Crisp * Appearance (philosophy), or p ...

, weight,

behaviour Behavior (American English) or behaviour (British English) is the range of actions and mannerisms made by individuals, organisms, systems or artificial entities in some environment. These systems can include other systems or organisms as wel ...

abilities Abilities are powers an agent has to perform various actions. They include common abilities, like walking, and rare abilities, like performing a double backflip. Abilities are intelligent powers: they are guided by the person's intention and exec ...

, and clothing. This kind of teasing is often hurtful, even when the teaser believes he or she is being playful. One may also tease an animal. Some animals, such as dogs and cats, may recognise this as play; but in humans, teasing can become hurtful and take the form of

and abuse.

Telephone abuse

:''See:

Nuisance call Nuisance calls encompass any type of unwanted, unsolicited, telephone call. Common types of nuisance calls include prank calls, telemarketing calls, and silent calls. Obscene phone calls and other threatening calls are criminal acts in most jur ...

Terrorism

Terrorism is the systematic use of terror especially as a means of

. At present, there is no internationally agreed

definition of terrorism There is no universal agreement on the legal definition of terrorism, although there exists a consensus academic definition created by scholars. Various legal systems and government agencies use different definitions of terrorism, and governm ...

. Common definitions of terrorism refer only to those violent acts which are intended to create fear (terror), are perpetrated for an ideological goal (as opposed to a lone attack), and deliberately target or disregard the safety of

non-combatant Non-combatant is a term of art in the law of war and international humanitarian law to refer to civilians who are not taking a direct part in hostilities; persons, such as combat medics and military chaplains, who are members of the belligerent ...

s (e.g.,

neutral Neutral or neutrality may refer to: Mathematics and natural science Biology * Neutral organisms, in ecology, those that obey the unified neutral theory of biodiversity Chemistry and physics * Neutralization (chemistry), a chemical reaction in ...

military personnel Military personnel are members of the state's armed forces. Their roles, pay, and obligations differ according to their military branch (army, navy, marines, air force, space force, and coast guard), rank (officer, non-commissioned officer, or e ...

or civilians). It is sometimes sponsored by state policies when a country is not able to prove itself militarily to another enemy country.

Transgender abuse or trans bashing

Trans bashing is the act of

victimising Victimisation ( or victimization) is the process of being victimised or becoming a victim. The field that studies the process, rates, incidence, effects, and prevalence of victimisation is called victimology. Peer victimisation Peer victimisat ...

a person physically, sexually, or verbally because they are

transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...

transsexual Transsexual people experience a gender identity that is inconsistent with their assigned sex, and desire to permanently transition to the sex or gender with which they identify, usually seeking medical assistance (including sex reassignment ...

. Unlike

gay bashing Gay bashing is an attack, abuse, or assault committed against a person who is perceived by the aggressor to be gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT). It includes both violence against LGBT people and LGBT bullying. The term covers v ...

, it is committed because of the target's actual or perceived

gender identity Gender identity is the personal sense of one's own gender. Gender identity can correlate with a person's assigned sex or can differ from it. In most individuals, the various biological determinants of sex are congruent, and consistent with the i ...

, not

sexual orientation Sexual orientation is an enduring pattern of romantic or sexual attraction (or a combination of these) to persons of the opposite sex or gender, the same sex or gender, or to both sexes or more than one gender. These attractions are generall ...

Umpire abuse

Umpire abuse refers to the act of abuse towards an

umpire An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...

, referee, or other official in sport. The abuse can be

verbal abuse Verbal abuse (also known as verbal aggression, verbal attack, verbal violence, verbal assault, psychic aggression, or psychic violence) is a type of psychological/mental abuse that involves the use of oral, gestured, and written language direct ...

(such as

namecalling Name-calling is a form of argument in which insulting or demeaning labels are directed at an individual or group. This phenomenon is studied by a variety of academic disciplines such as anthropology, child psychology, and political science. It is ...

), or

(such as punching).

Verbal abuse or verbal attacks

Verbal abuse is a form of abusive behaviour involving the use of

language Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of met ...

. It is a form of

profanity Profanity, also known as cursing, cussing, swearing, bad language, foul language, obscenities, expletives or vulgarism, is a socially offensive use of language. Accordingly, profanity is language use that is sometimes deemed impolite, rud ...

that can occur with or without the use of expletives. While oral communication is the most common form of verbal abuse, it also includes abusive words in written form. Verbal abuse is a pattern of behaviour that can seriously interfere with one's positive emotional development and can lead to significant detriment to one's

self-esteem Self-esteem is confidence in one's own worth or abilities. Self-esteem encompasses beliefs about oneself (for example, "I am loved", "I am worthy") as well as emotional states, such as triumph, despair, pride, and shame. Smith and Mackie (2007) d ...

, emotional

well-being Well-being, or wellbeing, also known as wellness, prudential value or quality of life, refers to what is intrinsically valuable relative ''to'' someone. So the well-being of a person is what is ultimately good ''for'' this person, what is in th ...

, and physical state. It has been further described as an ongoing emotional environment organised by the abuser for the purposes of control.

Whispering campaign

A whispering campaign is a method of

persuasion Persuasion or persuasion arts is an umbrella term for Social influence, influence. Persuasion can influence a person's Belief, beliefs, Attitude (psychology), attitudes, Intention, intentions, Motivation, motivations, or Behavior, behaviours. ...

in which damaging rumours or innuendo are spread about the target, while the source of the rumours seeks to avoid being detected while spreading them (for example, a political campaign might distribute anonymous flyers attacking the other candidate).

Workplace abuse or workplace bullying

Workplace bullying, like

childhood A child (plural, : children) is a human being between the stages of childbirth, birth and puberty, or between the Development of the human body, developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers ...

, is the tendency of individuals or groups to use persistent aggressive or unreasonable behaviour against a co-worker. Workplace bullying can include such tactics as verbal,

nonverbal Nonverbal communication (NVC) is the transmission of messages or signals through a nonverbal platform such as eye contact, facial expressions, gestures, posture, and body language. It includes the use of social cues, kinesics, distance (proxemic ...

and

humiliation Humiliation is the abasement of pride, which creates mortification or leads to a state of being humbled or reduced to lowliness or submission. It is an emotion felt by a person whose social status, either by force or willingly, has just decr ...

. This type of

is particularly difficult because unlike the typical forms of

school bullying School bullying, like bullying outside the school context, refers to one or more perpetrators who have greater physical strength or more social power than their victim repeatedly by acting aggressively toward their victim. Bullying can be verb ...

, workplace bullies often operate within the established rules and policies of their organisation and their society. Bullying in the workplace is in the majority of cases reported as having been perpetrated by a manager and takes a wide variety of forms.

Characteristics and styles of abuse

Some important characteristics and styles of abuse are: * overt abuse * covert (or controlling) abuse * unpredictability * disproportional (

exaggerated Exaggeration is the representation of something as more extreme or dramatic than it really is. Exaggeration may occur intentionally or unintentionally. Exaggeration can be a rhetorical device or figure of speech. It may be used to evoke stron ...

) reactions *

dehumanisation Dehumanization is the denial of full humanness in others and the cruelty and suffering that accompanies it. A practical definition refers to it as the viewing and treatment of other persons as though they lack the mental capacities that are c ...

and

objectification In social philosophy, objectification is the act of treating a person, as an object or a thing. It is part of dehumanization, the act of disavowing the humanity of others. Sexual objectification, the act of treating a person as a mere object of sex ...

abuse of information Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other t ...

* impossible situations (

setting up to fail Setting up to fail is a phrase denoting a no-win situation designed in such a way that the person in the situation cannot succeed at the task which they have been assigned. It is considered a form of workplace bullying. There are also situation ...

) * control by proxy * ambient abuse (

gaslighting Gaslighting is a colloquialism, loosely defined as manipulating someone so as to make them question their own reality. The term derives from the title of the 1944 American film ''Gaslight'', which was based on the 1938 British theatre play ''Gas ...

)

Abusive power and control

Abusive power and control (or controlling behaviour or coercive control) is the way that abusers gain and maintain

power Power most often refers to: * Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work" ** Engine power, the power put out by an engine ** Electric power * Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events ** Abusive power Power may a ...

and control over a victim for an abusive purpose such as

, or

financial abuse Finance is the study and discipline of money, currency and capital assets. It is related to, but not synonymous with economics, the study of production, distribution, and consumption of money, assets, goods and services (the discipline of fi ...

. The abuse can be for various reasons such as personal gain, personal

gratification Gratification is the pleasurable emotional reaction of happiness in response to a fulfillment of a desire or goal. It is also identified as a response stemming from the fulfillment of social needs such as affiliation, socializing, social approv ...

psychological projection Psychological projection is the process of misinterpreting what is "inside" as coming from "outside". It forms the basis of empathy by the projection of personal experiences to understand someone else's subjective world. In its malignant forms, i ...

devaluation In macroeconomics and modern monetary policy, a devaluation is an official lowering of the value of a country's currency within a fixed exchange-rate system, in which a monetary authority formally sets a lower exchange rate of the national curren ...

envy Envy is an emotion which occurs when a person lacks another's quality, skill, achievement, or possession and either desires it or wishes that the other lacked it. Aristotle defined envy as pain at the sight of another's good fortune, stirred b ...

, or just for the sake of it as the abuser may simply enjoy exercising power and control. Controlling abusers may use multiple tactics to exert power and control over their victims. The tactics themselves are psychologically and sometimes physically abusive. Control may be helped through

economic abuse Economic abuse is a form of abuse when one intimate partner has control over the other partner's access to economic resources, which diminishes the victim's capacity to support themselves and forces them to depend on the perpetrator financially. ...

thus limiting the victim's actions as they may then lack the necessary resources to resist the abuse.''Economic abuse wheel''
Women's Domestic Abuse Helpline. Retrieved 13 December 2016. The goal of the abuser is to control and

intimidate Intimidation is to "make timid or make fearful"; or to induce fear. This includes intentional behaviors of forcing another person to experience general discomfort such as humiliation, embarrassment, inferiority, limited freedom, etc and the victi ...

the victim or to

influence Influence or influencer may refer to: *Social influence, in social psychology, influence in interpersonal relationships **Minority influence, when the minority affect the behavior or beliefs of the majority *Influencer marketing, through individu ...

them to feel that they do not have an equal voice in the relationship.Jill Cory; Karen McAndless-Davis.
When Love Hurts: A Woman's Guide to Understanding Abuse in Relationships
'. WomanKind Press; 1 January 2000. . p. 30. Manipulators and abusers control their victims with a range of tactics, including

positive reinforcement In behavioral psychology, reinforcement is a consequence applied that will strengthen an organism's future behavior whenever that behavior is preceded by a specific antecedent stimulus. This strengthening effect may be measured as a higher freq ...

(such as

praise Praise as a form of social interaction expresses recognition, reassurance or admiration. Praise is expressed verbally as well as by body language (facial expression and gestures). Verbal praise consists of a positive evaluations of another's a ...

superficial charm Superficial charm (or insincere charm) refers to the social act of saying or doing things because they are well received by others, rather than what one actually believes or wants to do. It is sometimes referred to as "telling people what they w ...

flattery Flattery (also called adulation or blandishment) is the act of giving excessive compliments, generally for the purpose of ingratiating oneself with the subject. It is also used in pick-up lines when attempting to initiate sexual or romantic cou ...

ingratiation Ingratiating is a psychological technique in which an individual attempts to influence another person by becoming more likeable to their target. This term was coined by social psychologist Edward E. Jones, who further defined ingratiating as "a cla ...

love bombing Love bombing is an attempt to influence a person by demonstrations of attention and affection. It can be used in different ways and for either positive or negative purposes. Psychologists have identified love bombing as a possible part of a cycle ...

smiling A smile is a facial expression formed primarily by flexing the muscles at the sides of the mouth. Some smiles include a contraction of the muscles at the corner of the eyes, an action known as a Duchenne smile. Among humans, a smile expresses ...

, gifts, attention),

negative reinforcement In behavioral psychology, reinforcement is a consequence applied that will strengthen an organism's future behavior whenever that behavior is preceded by a specific antecedent stimulus. This strengthening effect may be measured as a higher freq ...

, intermittent or partial reinforcement,

psychological punishment Psychological punishments are punishments that aim to cause mental pain or discomfort in order to punish an individual. Psychological punishments are usually designed to cause discomfort or pain through creating negative emotions such as humiliation ...

(such as

nagging Nagging, in interpersonal communication, is repetitious behaviour in the form of pestering, hectoring, harassing, or otherwise continuously urging an individual to complete previously discussed requests or act on advice. The word is derived from th ...

silent treatment Silent treatment is the refusal to communicate verbally and electronically with someone who is trying to communicate and elicit a response. It may range from just sulking to malevolent abusive controlling behaviour. It may be a passive-aggressi ...

swearing Profanity, also known as cursing, cussing, swearing, bad language, foul language, obscenities, expletives or vulgarism, is a socially offensive use of language. Accordingly, profanity is language use that is sometimes deemed impolite, rud ...

, threats,

emotional blackmail Emotional blackmail and FOG are terms popularized by psychotherapist Susan Forward about controlling people in relationships and the theory that fear, obligation and guilt (FOG) are the transactional dynamics at play between the controller and th ...

guilt trip A guilt trip is a feeling of guilt or responsibility, especially an unjustified one induced by someone else. Overview Creating a guilt trip in another person may be considered to be manipulation in the form of punishment for a perceived transg ...

s, inattention) and traumatic tactics (such as

explosive anger Rage (also known as frenzy or fury) is intense, uncontrolled anger that is an increased stage of hostile response to a perceived egregious injury or injustice. Etymology Rage is from c. 1300, meaning "madness, insanity; fit of frenzy; rashne ...

). The

vulnerabilities Vulnerability refers to "the quality or state of being exposed to the possibility of being attacked or harmed, either physically or emotionally." A window of vulnerability (WOV) is a time frame within which defensive measures are diminished, com ...

of the victim are exploited with those who are particularly vulnerable being most often selected as targets.

Traumatic bonding Trauma most often refers to: *Major trauma, in physical medicine, severe physical injury caused by an external source *Psychological trauma, a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a severely distressing event *Traumatic inju ...

can occur between the abuser and victim as the result of ongoing cycles of abuse in which the intermittent reinforcement of

reward Reward may refer to: Places * Reward (Shelltown, Maryland), a historic home in Shelltown Maryland * Reward, California (disambiguation) * Reward-Tilden's Farm, a historic home in Chestertown Maryland Arts, entertainment, and media * "Rewa ...

and punishment creates powerful emotional bonds that are resistant to change and a

climate of fear Culture of fear (or climate of fear) is the concept that people may incite fear in the general public to achieve political or workplace goals through emotional bias; it was developed as a sociological framework by Frank Furedi and has been mor ...

.Chrissie Sanderson.
Counselling Survivors of Domestic Abuse
'. Jessica Kingsley Publishers; 15 June 2008. An attempt may be made to normalise,

legitimise Legitimation or legitimisation is the act of providing legitimacy. Legitimation in the social sciences refers to the process whereby an act, process, or ideology becomes legitimate by its attachment to norms and values within a given society. ...

, rationalise, deny, or minimise the abusive behaviour, or blame the victim for it. Isolation,

mind games Playing mind games (also power games or head games) is the largely conscious struggle for psychological one-upmanship, often employing passive–aggressive behavior to specifically demoralize or dis-empower the thinking subject, making the a ...

lying A lie is an assertion that is believed to be false, typically used with the purpose of deception, deceiving or Deception, misleading someone. The practice of communicating lies is called lying. A person who communicates a lie may be termed a l ...

disinformation Disinformation is false information deliberately spread to deceive people. It is sometimes confused with misinformation, which is false information but is not deliberate. The English word ''disinformation'' comes from the application of the L ...

, propaganda,

destabilisation The word destabilisation can be applied to a wide variety of contexts such as attempts to undermine political, military or economic power. Psychology In a psychological context it is used as a technique in brainwashing and abuse to disorient a ...

brainwashing Brainwashing (also known as mind control, menticide, coercive persuasion, thought control, thought reform, and forced re-education) is the concept that the human mind can be altered or controlled by certain psychological techniques. Brainwash ...

and

divide and rule Divide and rule policy ( la, divide et impera), or divide and conquer, in politics and sociology is gaining and maintaining power divisively. Historically, this strategy was used in many different ways by empires seeking to expand their terr ...

are other strategies that are often used. The victim may be plied with alcohol or drugs or deprived of sleep to help disorientate them. Certain personality types feel particularly compelled to control other people.

Psychological characteristics of abusers

In their review of data from the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study (a longitudinal birth cohort study; n = 941) Moffitt et al. report that while men exhibit more aggression overall, gender is not a reliable predictor of interpersonal aggression, including psychological aggression. The study found that whether male or female, aggressive people share a cluster of traits, including high rates of suspicion and jealousy; sudden and drastic mood swings; poor self-control; and higher than average rates of approval of violence and aggression (in American society, females are, on average, excused when violent against males). Moffitt et al. also argue that

antisocial Antisocial may refer to: Sociology, psychiatry and psychology *Anti-social behaviour *Antisocial personality disorder *Psychopathy *Conduct disorder Law *Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 *Anti-Social Behaviour Order *Crime and Disorder Act 1998 * ...

men exhibit two distinct types of interpersonal aggression (one against strangers, the other against intimate female partners), while antisocial women are rarely aggressive against anyone other than intimate male partners. Male and female perpetrators of emotional and physical abuse exhibit high rates of

personality disorder Personality disorders (PD) are a class of mental disorders characterized by enduring maladaptive patterns of behavior, cognition, and inner experience, exhibited across many contexts and deviating from those accepted by the individual's culture ...

s. Rates of personality disorder in the general population are roughly 15%–20%, while roughly 80% of abusive men in court-ordered treatment programmes have personality disorders. Female perpetrators have been found to possess personality disorders revolving around narcissistic and compulsive behaviors. in the data gathering procedure. The only statistics available are the reports on child maltreatment, which show that mothers use physical discipline on children more often than fathers, while severe injury and sexual abuse are more often perpetrated by men. Abusers may aim to avoid household chores or exercise total control of family finances. Abusers can be very manipulative, often recruiting friends, law officers and court officials, even the victim's family to their side, while shifting blame to the victim.

Effects of abuse on victims

English et al. report that children whose families are characterised by interpersonal violence, including psychological aggression and verbal aggression, may exhibit a range of serious disorders, including

chronic depression Dysthymia ( ), also known as persistent depressive disorder (PDD), is a mental and behavioral disorder, specifically a disorder primarily of mood, consisting of similar cognitive and physical problems as major depressive disorder, but with lon ...

anxiety Anxiety is an emotion which is characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil and includes feelings of dread over anticipated events. Anxiety is different than fear in that the former is defined as the anticipation of a future threat wh ...

post-traumatic stress disorder Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental and behavioral disorder that can develop because of exposure to a traumatic event, such as sexual assault, warfare, traffic collisions, child abuse, domestic violence, or other threats on ...

dissociation Dissociation, in the wide sense of the word, is an act of disuniting or separating a complex object into parts. Dissociation may also refer to: * Dissociation (chemistry), general process in which molecules or ionic compounds (complexes, or salts) ...

and

anger Anger, also known as wrath or rage, is an intense emotional state involving a strong uncomfortable and non-cooperative response to a perceived provocation, hurt or threat. A person experiencing anger will often experience physical effects, su ...

. Additionally, English et al. report that the impact of emotional abuse "did not differ significantly" from that of physical abuse. Johnson et al. report that, in a survey of female patients (n = 825), 24% suffered emotional abuse, and this group experienced higher rates of gynaecological problems. In their study of men emotionally abused by a wife/partner (n = 116), Hines and Malley-Morrison report that victims exhibit high rates of post-traumatic stress disorder and alcoholism. Namie's studyNamie, G. (October 2000). ''U.S. Hostile Workplace Survey 2000''. Paper presented at the New England Conference on Workplace Bullying, Suffolk University Law School, Boston. of

workplace bullying Workplace bullying is a persistent pattern of mistreatment from others in the workplace that causes either physical or emotional harm. It can include such tactics as verbal, nonverbal, psychological, and physical abuse, as well as humiliation. T ...

found that 31% of women and 21% of men who reported workplace bullying exhibited three key symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (

hypervigilance Hypervigilance (more accurately understood as Hyper-awareness) is a condition in which the nervous system is filtering sensory information and the individual is in an enhanced state of sensory sensitivity or sensory domination. The name itself is ...

, intrusive imagery, and avoidance behaviours). A 1998 study of male college students (n = 70) by Simonelli & Ingram found that men who were emotionally abused by their female partners exhibited higher rates of

than the general population. A study of college students (n = 80) by Goldsmith and Freyd report that many who have experienced emotional abuse do not characterise the mistreatment as abusive. Additionally, Goldsmith and Freyd show that these people also tend to exhibit higher than average rates of

alexithymia Alexithymia is a personality trait characterized by the inability to identify and describe emotions experienced by oneself. The core characteristic of alexithymia is marked dysfunction in emotional awareness, social attachment, and interpersonal ...

(difficulty identifying and processing their own emotions). Jacobson et al. found that women report markedly higher rates of fear during marital conflicts. However, a rejoinder argued that Jacobson's results were invalid due to men and women's drastically differing interpretations of questionnaires. Coker et al. found that the effects of mental abuse were similar whether the victim was male or female. Pimlott-Kubiak and Cortina found that severity and duration of abuse were the only accurate predictors of aftereffects of abuse; sex of perpetrator or victim were not reliable predictors. Analysis of a large survey (n = 25,876) by LaRoche found that women abused by men were slightly more likely to seek psychological help than were men abused by women (63% vs. 62%). In a 2007 study, Laurent, et al., report that psychological aggression in young couples (n = 47) is associated with decreased satisfaction for both partners: "psychological aggression may serve as an impediment to couples development because it reflects less mature coercive tactics and an inability to balance self/other needs effectively." A 2008 study by Walsh and Shulman reports that psychological aggression by females is more likely to be associated with relationship dissatisfaction for both partners, while withdrawal by men is more likely to be associated with relationship dissatisfaction for both partners.

Notes

References

External links

* {{Authority control

Types and contexts of abuse

Abuse of authority

Abuse of corpse

Abuse of discretion

Abuse of dominance

Abuse of indulgences

Abuse of information

Abuse of power

Abuse of process

Abuse of rank

Abuse of statistics

Abuse of the system

Abuse of trust

Abusive supervision

Academic abuse

Adolescent abuse

Adult abuse

Alcohol use disorder

Animal abuse

Anti-social behavior

Bullying

Character assassination

Child abuse

Parental abuse of children

Child sexual abuse

=Child-on-child sexual abuse

Church abuse

Civil rights abuse

Clandestine abuse

Clerical abuse

Cyber abuse or cyber bullying

Dating abuse or dating violence

Defamation

Detainee abuse

Disability abuse

Discriminatory abuse

Doctor abuse

Domestic abuse or domestic violence

Drug abuse

Economic abuse

Elder abuse

Emotional abuse

Employee abuse

False accusations

Financial abuse

Flag abuse

Gaming the system

Gaslighting

Gay abuse or gay bashing

Harassment

Hate crimes

Hazing

Human rights abuse

Humiliation

Incivility

Institutional abuse

Insult

Intimidation

Legal abuse

Lesbian abuse

Malpractice

Market abuse

Material abuse

Medical abuse

Mental abuse

Military abuse

Mind abuse or mind control

Misconduct

Mobbing

Narcissistic abuse

Neglect

Negligence

Nurse abuse or nursing abuse

Online abuse

Parental abuse by children

Passive–aggressive behaviour

Patient abuse

Peer abuse

Persecution

Personal abuse or personal attacks