Emotional abuse often involves repeated behaviors that threaten, intimidate, humiliate, or create a hostile environment for an individual. The information below explains what emotional abuse is and provides examples to help identify when a pattern of behavior may be a concern.

What is emotional abuse?

The use of actions, words, gestures, or other means to purposefully threaten, coerce, intimidate, harass, or humiliate an individual OR a pattern of behavior that creates a hostile environment.

What is a Pattern that Creates a Hostile Environment?

• The adding of the term Hostile Environment was not intended to change what qualifies for possible Emotional Abuse from what used to qualify for Verbal Abuse
• The phrase “or a pattern of behavior that creates a hostile environment” was added to the rule to allow for considering patterns of behavior or actions that may create a situation were an individual may feel threatened, coerced, intimidated, harassed, or humiliated as a possible MUI. Hostile Environment is not a new qualifier for what was formally called Verbal Abuse but is rather just describing an environment where an induvial may feel threatened, coerced, humiliated, or harassed.
• The important addition to the rule for Emotional Abuse is the word pattern, not the term Hostile Environment
• In these situations, each single instance of name calling or teasing may not always rise to the level of Emotional Abuse when reviewed in isolation, but the repeated pattern of behavior from the DSP or others is what creates a possible MUI

What is likely NOT a pattern creating Emotional Abuse?

• Loud talking
• Being generally rude to others
• Poor manners
• Personality Conflicts

What could become a pattern creating Emotional Abuse?

• Repeated name calling, pranks, or jokes at the individual’s expense
• Purposefully ignoring an individual’s requests or needs repeatedly

TIP: When assessing a pattern of behavior/actions from someone towards a person served for possible Emotional Abuse, it will always be specific to the individual; their reactions to the pattern; and the purpose behind the potential PPI’s behaviors/actions. There is no one size, fits all example.

Examples of patterns that can become Emotional Abuse

• A staff repeatedly makes comments to the individual, such as nobody likes them, they are ugly and will never have friends etc.
• A neighbor continually throws pebbles at the individuals’ door and calls them names.
• A staff repeatedly shuts off an individual’s nightlight to scare them knowing they are afraid of the dark

How can you learn more?

DODD is always working on additional guidance for Emotional Abuse and will be publishing this in the coming weeks or months. Summit DD will help to ensure this information is disseminated to providers once it is published.