Hazing generally includes mistreatment of students or other persons (pledges or plebes) in a ritualistic or tradition-based way that must be endured by the prospective members to gain admission to a group, club, or organization. The members doing the hazing often attempt to justify these hazing practices by referring to them as a rite of passage or rationalizing that all current members had to endure it and new prospective members should as well.

Hazing can take many forms, including:

• Requiring victims to act as a personal servant to senior (older) group members

• Forcing victims to binge drink or consume large amounts of alcohol or drugs

• Requiring victims to engage in embarrassing acts, such as wearing a costume or sign around their neck in public

• Depriving victims of sleep, food, or the ability to use the restroom

• Prohibiting victims from associating with family, friends, or other persons

• Swearing or yelling insults at victims.

Most schools have policies against hazing and in many states hazing may be prosecuted as a criminal offense if it results in bodily injury.

In South Carolina, hazing is addressed under state law in the South Carolina Code of Laws. Specifically, Section 16-3-510 prohibits hazing at educational institutions, defining it as any activity expected of someone joining or participating in a group that humiliates, degrades, abuses, or endangers them, regardless of the person's willingness to participate. The law covers a range of potential hazing activities, including those mentioned in the description such as servitude, forced consumption of alcohol or drugs, and sleep deprivation. Violations of this law can result in misdemeanor charges, with penalties that may include fines, imprisonment, or both. Additionally, educational institutions in South Carolina typically have their own policies and disciplinary procedures to address hazing, which can result in sanctions independent of any criminal proceedings. It's important for individuals and organizations to understand that justifying hazing as a tradition or rite of passage does not exempt them from legal consequences.