I remember a young boy, barely into his teens, absently rubbing the fresh scars on his wrists. His mother and father were locked in a bitter divorce battle, and each was demanding total loyalty and commitment from the child. Emotional abuse can be active. I'm ashamed you're my son. And it may be a combination of the two, which increases the negative effects geometrically.
Emotional abuse can be verbal or behavioral, active or passive, frequent or occasional.
Regardless, it is often as painful as physical assault. And, with rare exceptions, the pain lasts much longer. The other children are quick to imitate their parents. And so the cycle continues. Emotional abuse is both the most pervasive and the least understood form of child maltreatment.