Bullying has always affected teens and children in some form or another, but in modern times, with the advent of the internet and social networking, we have the first generations of young people facing a much more insidious assailment: cyberbullying. It is one much stronger than what traditional bullying once was, and poses problems of greater magnitude. For victims, this fairly new entity of social aggression has them facing substantially greater intimidation and emotional harm. Several issues even arise in protecting these victims. First, the inherent element of cyberbullying is that it’s everywhere. It’s so widespread, it is present to the victim in a completely different way than physical or verbal abuse. The heavy reliance …show more content…
If adults are not aware of basically anything going on they obviously can’t be there to intervene. It’s a completely different situation from the typical school-scene confrontation where adults can hear and see the mistreatment, intervene, parents are notified, and discipline occurs. In the grand scheme, cyberbullying is what comes to be in a way a silent plague of long-lasting harm
From the bully’s standpoint, the internet’s nature also comes into play to make things worse. It’s so much easier for them to pick up a smart phone or access a computer to be mean and hostile to other kids because they can hide behind a screen. Before this advantage, bullies really had to have some sort of social or physical dominance over another, but now most anyone can be the bully because of the anonymity. Sometimes people don’t even have to be necessarily anonymous. Just the security of being behind a screen makes a false sense of dominance and control, and makes the bully even less afraid to say what he or she wants. The spectrum of who can become the bully broadens tremendously because of this advantage of the internet, and now their harmful actions and their impacts extend far beyond what limits bullies were previously confined prior to modern technology (Todd). When things are online, adults are less likely to notice anything because these social media are so youth-oriented. Adults are seldom aware of basically anything going on, so they obviously can’t be there to
To continue, when people see cyberbullying many people don’t report it. Though it is online, and many people see it. According to “What is cyberbullying”, it states “With cyberbullying, the aggression remains present online and can be viewed by anyone with access to the web.” This shows that cyberbullying can be seen and reported at any time, and many people are doing nothing to stop
Typically, the person that is doing the cyberbullying is generally a victim of bullying themselves. How is cyberbullying done? Normally, the use of electronic devices to send messages that tend to emotional hurt someone feelings. Social media can lead to many negative outcomes when communicating to others. For example, if a teenage boy responds on a girl’s photo stating she is “ugly” is considered online bullying. One popular social media site is Facebook that over millions of people use for communicating. Facebook can be a positive source to communicate with family and friends that you may not see often. Also, it can be a very negative source that a lot of people use to criticize one another. Therefore, cyberbullying occurs nationwide
Michael M. Honda states that “everyone in America likely has a bullying story, whether as a victim, bully, or as a witness.” Cyberbullying has become a major epidemic in the modern day world because everyone has access to the internet in some way. By taking an in depth look at cyberbullying, one can see just how urgent it is to stop it, because not only can it strike anywhere at any time, cyberbullying can also lead to suicide and cause serious mental health issues.
Cyberbullying is different than the other forms of bullying because it can happen day and night, the victim gets bullied in person and online, and the victim has a hard time getting away from the behavior
Not to mention with everyone being connected throughout social media makes it easier for the word to get around faster and make it worse for that person. Cyberbullying might not involve physical abuse and the words said will not make it hurt any less, but the posts someone puts up will be there for anybody to see and might not ever go away. Cyberbullying is no better than bullying because it can still lead to psychological or emotional problems many kids have to face. In some serious cases it can lead to depression or even worse suicide. It can be prevented by social media websites censoring any harsh or mean comments before the posts are even posted. Although it is not their fault, that is how the problem starts and continues.
Cyberbullying has been a big problem for teens and adults around the world. Cyberbullying is the use of electronic communication to bully a person, typically by sending messages of an intimidating or threatening nature. For most cyberbullying isn’t anything serious it’s just a person just joking around or just speaking their mind but its more than that its feelings being involved families being broken even hearts.
“Cyberbullying is reported as an aggressive, intentional act distributed by an individual or group, using contact in an electronic medium, continuously and relentlessly against someone who cannot stand up for himself or herself easily”(Davison & Stein, 2014) With social media being so popular, bullies now have many avenues in which they can attack their victims, research shows that adolescents spend up to 17 hours a week on the internet, some children even up to 40hrs a week. (Davison & Stein, 2014) This is an
To prevent cyberbullying, we need to go beyond responding to harm once an incident has occurred and practice healthy mindsets and relationships. In her article, Cyberbullying, Jennifer Holladay defines the form of bullying as an act of repeated harassment and humiliation with the use of technology. Also, unlike traditional bullying, it comes with a much wider audience. Bullies generally bully because of issues at home and their lack of coping skills. According to Stomp Out Bullying, bullies might be detached, have poor self-esteem, need an outlet, or just don’t understand how to socialize. This leads to the display of name calling, put downs, physical abuse, and manipulation. In terms of Cyberbullying it could be because they feel more in control when being anonymous. Bullies might have adult role models who themselves are bullies causing them to learn from those behaviors. This defines the lack of healthy relationship skills, empathy, compassion and the lack of a healthy mindset.
The Ophelia Project describes cyberbullying as “willful and repeated harm inflicted through the use of computers, cell phones, and other electronic devices.” Cyberbullying can reach a broader audience because bullies don't even need to know the people they're hurting. Only “84% of cyberbullies report to know their target,” (The Ophelia Project). Cyberbullies are often more ruthless because they don't immediately see the damage their bullying is inflicting, so they continue. Sometimes they assume it's just a joke, which is certainly not how the victim feels.
Cyberbullying takes place on the Internet, through the use of cell phones, social media and video game systems; the intent is to either embarrass or emotionally hurt another person, the Office of Justice explains. The Office of Justice reports that about twenty percent of teens had a cyberbully
Internet usage in children and adolescents has been increasing in a steadily fashion in the past number of years and with the increase in internet usage, a new form of bullying has developed – Cyber bullying. Cyber bullying can be defined as “the electronic posting of mean-spirited messages about a person,” (Merriam-Webster, 2012). This form of bullying can come through various mediums including but not limited to text messages, emails, videos, and social networking sites. There is an overwhelming amount of information that defines cyber bullying, identifies the demographics of bullies and victims of cyber bullying, and identifies the outcomes of cyber bullying on victims. More focus needs to be placed on who the perpetrators
Social Networking has taken bullying to the extreme. Before advanced technology, children and teenagers were troubled by school bullies. Today, they are targeted by bullies via internet. Most people undergo some form of bullying in life. Growing up, I experienced the typical name calling and spiteful comments. I also dealt with minor cases of virtual bullies. These bullies are known as cyber bullies. I find this topic compelling because it’s a matter that has spiraled out of control.
The big bad bully on the playground who takes lunch money and threatens kids after school is no longer the bully kids are most worried about. The common idea of bully has been redefined. It could be the scrawny boy with glasses, or the shy girl in English class. The advent of the internet allows anyone to play the role of the bully. Bullying is a whole new experience for kids in school today. Advancements made in technology have advanced the method bullies use to harass, threaten, and humiliate their victims. The use of the internet to attack others is sweeping through schools and homes with devastating consequences. Cyber bullying is more harmful than traditional bullying because of the anonymity factor, easier access to victims, and it has greater consequences.
Bullying has been around since the beginning of time. Parents may remember when they were kids and the bully would pick on them or their friends by stealing lunch money or just getting beat up, and that was the end of it. The victims remember the hurt, frustration, and sadness it caused. However, these days, bullying is not just happening on the playground or at the bus stop, it is happening on the Internet and on cell phones, making it possible to bully a child 24 hours a day with multiple bullies and thousands of kids watching. Cyberbullying follows children nonstop and into the safety of their house. Sometimes kids are afraid to inform their parents about the cyberbullying that they will think its there fault. Or that their parents will call the bullies parents or other parents, making the bullying worse. However, the effect and pain that comes from cyberbullying is real. People underestimate cyberbullying, just because it is happening online and not in person. Cyberbullying can lead to many different factors like drinking, and drugs, poor grades, depression, eating disorders. Many students have even taken their own lives because of another student saying something to them online. Cyberbullying has been taking place a lot more in middle and high schools because of the increased usage of social media networks and technology. Cyberbullying is worse and more harmful than traditional bullying.
The methods and causes used by the young people to cyberbully can depend on the technology they have access to. Boys may tend to bully by sending text messages that are sexual in nature or what is generally called “sexting” or messages that threaten the physical harm. Girls commonly cyberbully by spreading lies and rumors or exposing one’s secrets on electronic communication. Cyberbullying is very easy to joining and a child or a teen can easily change their roles from being a victim at one point and cyberbully another person. One can be targeted due to their skin color, sexual orientation, religion, and clothing or for no reason at all as some bullies just want to feel superior.