of the situation and making it seem insignificant to the victim or audience Threatening – When an aggressor uses words or actions against a victim that indicates if the victim does not comply with certain situations and/or actions, harm will be inflicted upon them. Name calling – The use of offensive language/names to gain something from the situation (ex: win an argument) or to probe a negative reaction out of another individual or situation; this is also used to induce rejection or condemnation without consideration of the facts in the situation. Impacts Age Children and adolescents Research shows that if a young child has been constantly verbally abused over the years they begin to develop constant feelings of mistrust, shame, doubt, guilt, and inferiority. Studies show that two out of three American children are victims of experiencing verbal aggression from their parents. This can affect their mental, social, and interpersonal development during the most critical psychological developmental years which are generally between 2 and 19 years of age. It has been found that verbally abusive behaviors in young children are generally learned through an adult role model such as a parent or caregiver. There are various ways a caregiver can use verbal communication to abuse a child: rejection of a child’s worth, isolating a child from social experiences, terrorizing a child with verbal assaults, ignoring a child’s needs, corrupting a child’s views of the world and teaching them that delinquent activity is normal, verbally assaulting a child, and over-pressuring a child to mature faster than the normal rate of maturity for the child’s age. Children who have experienced maternal verbal abuse have been more likely to develop personality disorders in their adolescent and young adult years, they have also been known to develop obsessive-compulsive characteristics and narcissistic behaviors. College Students It has been found that verbal abuse damages the self-esteem of students, places irrational blame onto themselves, and affects mental health and social interaction abilities in the students; this type of abuse in students can be projected through their peers and professors. The effects of experiencing verbal abuse as a young child – developing negative feelings and in some occurrences, mental disorders – bled onto young adulthood and when they’re moving onto higher education and becoming a young adult, they are more prone to experience more of these negative feelings, disorders, and even have an increased chance of drug use