‘It Hurts a Hell of a lot…’: the Effects of Indirect Aggression on Teenage Girls

This article reports on a qualitative investigation of the effects of indirect aggression from peers (e.g. spreading false stories, exclusion from the group) on teenage girls. The authors found that girls experience a range of negative psychological effects from indirect aggression, including anxiety, loss of self-esteem, & depression, the pain of which leads to a desire to escape through leaving the group or the school or even through suicide. Implications for intervention are discussed. (54 refs)