Intellectual Bullying and Harassment of Students by Lecturers/Supervisors

Academic institution can be a hostile place when lecturers/supervisors mistreat and bully students. Bullying occurs in all stages of life and the university is not an exception. The fact that most cases of bullying in universities are usually shut down and rarely discussed, does not mean it is not happening. The paper examined the prevalence of lecturer/supervisor bullying among students and how it wreaks havoc on students’ sense of self – worth and self – confidence. Given the impact that this bullying can have on students, characteristics of a bully and its effects were explored. Ways by which students could have proper documentation and evidences of the occurrence were also highlighted. Recommendations on how these could be curbed were also made.

Keywords: Harassment, intellectual bullying, lecturers, students, supervisors