Quick summary: For many young people the effects of bullying and cyberbullying do not end at the school gates but continue to shape mental health self esteem and relationships well into adulthood. Research with young adults reveals that exclusion and peer dynamics drive lasting loneliness and stress across school friendship leisure and workplace settings. These findings call for prevention strategies that extend beyond classrooms to strengthen belonging and support systems in order to protect long term well-being.
For many young people, the effects of being bullied do not end when the taunting stops or the school gates close behind them. A new study has found that bullying and cyberbullying can leave lasting scars on mental health, self-esteem and social connection, sometimes stretching well into adulthood. The findings offer a timely reminder of just how deeply peer victimisation can shape a person’s emotional wellbeing.
The research, published in Cogent Psychology, explored the experiences of 35 young adults aged between 17 and 28 from a Swedish speaking region of Finland. All had personal experience of bullying, cyberbullying, or both. Through in depth interviews, researchers examined how these experiences related to loneliness, stress and overall mental health.
The study forms part of the “Project on Young People and Bullying”, led by Jessica Hemberg, PhD, associate professor, with Miia Hästbacka as first author. Rather than treating each incident as an isolated event, Hemberg’s team frames bullying as a broader social and relational process, one capable of following young people across settings and years rather than staying confined to a single time and place.
Participants described a wide range of bullying, from verbal insults and name calling to exclusion, rumour spreading and, in some cases, physical violence. Cyberbullying featured prominently too, often taking place on social media platforms through hurtful messages, the sharing of private images without consent and being deliberately left out of online groups. Many said the anonymity of the internet made this kind of bullying particularly hard to detect and address.
Notably, the study found that bullying was not confined to the school playground. Several participants described being targeted during leisure activities or later in life at work, suggesting that the patterns of harm established in childhood can resurface in adult settings. This challenges the common assumption that bullying is purely a school based issue that fades with age.
“Peer belonging plays a central role in how bullying takes hold,” Hemberg said. Many participants described it occurring collectively, involving classmates, friends or teammates, and in some cases young people tolerated hurtful behaviour within their own friendship groups simply because their need to belong was so strong. Exclusion, being deliberately left out or ignored, emerged as a particularly powerful driver of loneliness and isolation, suggesting that bullying is as much about group dynamics as it is about conflict between individuals.
The psychological toll described by participants was significant. Many reported feelings of fear, shame, sadness and diminished self confidence, with some experiencing symptoms that lasted long after the bullying itself had ended. A number of participants also spoke about how loneliness and exclusion became closely tied to their experiences, with friendships and family relationships affected as a result.
Gender differences also emerged from the interviews. Female participants tended to describe more relational forms of bullying, such as being frozen out of friendship groups, while male participants more often reported physical aggression. The researchers suggest this may reflect broader social expectations about how boys and girls are encouraged to express conflict.
Despite the difficult subject matter, the study also uncovered signs of resilience. Some participants said that surviving bullying had ultimately made them more empathetic and better equipped to support others facing exclusion. Others described positive turning points, including former bullies later apologising for their behaviour.
The authors argue that tackling bullying effectively requires more than school based interventions alone. Because bullying can follow young people into adulthood and other areas of life, they call for a more comprehensive approach that considers the wider social and structural conditions in which bullying takes root, rather than treating each incident in isolation. “Prevention efforts need to extend into friendship groups, leisure activities and workplaces, not just classrooms,” Hemberg added. “Fostering environments where young people feel genuinely accepted may do more to prevent the loneliness bullying leaves behind than addressing incidents alone.”
With rates of cyberbullying continuing to rise, the study adds to growing calls for better support systems for young people affected by both online and offline peer victimisation.
