Cyber Bullying : Experienced Cyber Threats Online And On Social Media

The internet has created an entirely new world of social communications particularly for youths. There are no more barriers. Family, friends, young and old may now stay in touch with just about everyone, anywhere in the world through the use of email, text messaging, web chat, and instant messaging. Although, most interactions are friendly and in good nature, there are some that are not. The use of technology as a tool to antagonize, torment and intimidate others is now a widespread problem. Sadly, this form of bullying like all others is most common among children and young adults. Research done by Cox Communications on children between 13 thru 18 year-olds, 25 percent said they were cyber-bullied whether online or by cell phone (Cox Com. 2009). Also in 2007, the National Crime Prevention Council reported cyber-bullying as a problem that affected approximately half of all American teens. Since it is popular among this group of American teens, then it is safe look at some of possible reason cyber bullies of this age group are encouraged to take part in such activity.

Cyberbullying is a relatively new threat, and it is very similar to traditional bullying. Despite the fact that cyberbullying and traditional bullying both share the common goal of harassment, cyberbullying differs from traditional bullying in that it does not stop at the schoolyard, and can continue when the victim is far away from the aggressor. It is just as devastating as common bullying, and sometimes is even more damaging. Professors Sameer Hinduja and Justin W. Patchin note in their journal, “Cyberbullying Creates Dangerous Stress and Anxiety”, that cyberbullying affects anywhere between 10-40% of students (contingent on their age group) (par. 1). J.D. Kelly A. Albin, in her article “Bullies in a Wired World”, defines cyberbullying as “…the ‘willful and repeated harm inflicted through use of computers, cell phones, and other electronic devices’” (157). It is caused by the fact that children feel their actions are mitigated when they use social media, as it creates the illusion of indirectness, and its effects range anywhere from mild depression to suicide.

Bullying is all over the world. Each year there is over 3.2 million victims being bullied. Approximately 160,000 teens skip school every day because of bullying.17% of American students report being bullied 2 to 3 times a month in a year. To many within a school semester. Since 2002, fighting behaviour has increased, especially in grades six to eight. Boys are more likely to start bullying because of being bullied in their past. Girls are most likely to cyberbully. Nearly 43% of kids have been bullied online. According to Gale, cyberbullying is the use of the Internet, smartphones, or other electronic communication devices to spread harmful or embarrassing information about another person, such as talking about people, telling other people’s

With simple access to the internet, a lot of teens have begun using cyber space as an open space for bullying. As additional teens have resorted to using mobiles and social networks to correspond, cyber bullying has turn out to be a key concern. At the moment, "cyber bullying is increasing rapidly as a result of social networks where information can reach the world in a matter of few seconds" (Sutton & Smith, 1999).

Have you ever been cyber bullied? Do you know someone who has been cyber bullied? Do you understand how being cyber bullied feels? Can you imagine the amount of agony teenagers go through when they’re being cyber bullied? If you do, then you know that cyber bullying must be stopped! Cyber bullying can diminish a teen’s self-esteem, bring teens into depression, and worst of all cyber bullying can lead to teenagers committing suicide.

Everyday millions of preteens and young adults log on to the internet to complete various amounts of tasks. With the new age of technology many young adults have easier access to the web and social media than their past generations. “Over 80 percent of teens use a cell phone regularly, making it the most popular form of technology and a common medium for cyber bullying” (Cyberbullying Research Center, 2010). The World Wide Web and social media have opens up a black hole to psychological and emotional stress for some young adults. Cyber bullying is defined as a form of teen violence, torment and harassing via the use of technology to bully another person. One out of five young adults has experienced cyber bullying to the extreme (Hackett, 2013). Cyber bullying may not seem like it is a problem in the young community but it is a huge problem. Cyber bullying can have a huge effect on a person it can led to a numerous amount of outcomes such as depression, anxiety, low self-esteem and even suicide.

With the use of technology becoming increasingly, students who use it to bully others ends up taking it to a whole another level by bullying outside of the school. Cyberbullying is defined as the use of technology such as e-mail, cell phones, and the internet by an individual or group of students who uses very bad behavior to harm another student (Bauman, 2008). Through cyberbullying, students will use verbal abuse to harass their peers and it is more common today than it was a couple of years ago. Since cyberbullying happens mostly outside of the school, students that are being bullied can still report the incident to a teacher, school counselor, parent, and the principal’s office. Since the use of cyberbullying is increasing, it seems that no one is doing enough to keep this from happening. For instance, students that are being cyberbullied are still feeling neglected due to the lack amount of help that they are receiving. Also, suicide rates for bullied students continue to keep going up as well.

For decades, physical bullying has been a consistent problem for young people attending school. Yet the growth of the Internet has redefined how students pick on one another. Cyber-bullying has become one of the most difficult issues to resolve in our society. Cyber-bullying can come in many forms. Cyber harassment, for example, refers to repeated hurtful emails, text messages or instant messages. Another form of cyberbullying is impersonation, in which cyber-bullies pretend to be their victims online in order to sully their victims ' reputations. Cyber denigration occurs when a cyber-bully spreads derogatory or untrue information about someone online, or digitally posts an embarrassing or altered photo or video of that person. (Prosecuting Cyberbullies) The bully can remain anonymous while behind a computer screen because many social media websites allow people to make up fake user ids and many bullies tend to give false information while registering for these sites. About 20% of more than 4,400 11–18-year-olds surveyed by the Cyberbullying Research Center in 2010 reported having been cyberbullied at some point in their lives. About 20% also admitted to having cyberbullied someone else. The survey found that cyber-bullying is a growing problem because of the increasing frequency with which students use the Internet and cell phones to do homework and socialize. (Prosecuting Cyberbullies) The person being bullied will feel alone, powerless, different,

In today’s world young people easily access to the entire world through the use of computers, cell phones, and other electronic devices. Cyberbullying is defined as any form of repeated harassment to a person using electronic devices and the internet. It is a growing issue that youth are facing today. Studies have shown that one third of students have faced cyber bullying in their life. According to Cyber bullying statistics from the i-SAFE foundation, over half of adolescents and teens have been bullied online and repeatedly through their cellphones or the Internet. Also, more than 1 in 3 young people have experienced cyber threats online. Cyberbullies often say things that they do not have the courage to say face-to-face because technology makes them feel anonymous, insulated and detached from the situation. Anonymous is very power because online bullying is mean and cruel, in the article “Cyber Bullying Statistics.” Cyberbullying happens frequently and about 15% of high school students (grades 9–12) were electronically bullied. Bullying never stop no matter what unless someone stands up.

Twenty percent of high school students admit to being a victim and/or participating in cyberbullying (“Cyberbullying”). This form of bullying that takes place on the Internet, is beginning to become a major problem in our society. Cyber bullying must be terminated in order to prevent teenage depression, fights breaking out in schools, and adolescences growing up to become criminals.

Today with social medias popularity, cyber bullying has become increasingly popular, with 80% of high school students having reported being witness to, or being involved in cyber bullying (School Bullying Statistics, 2015). Due to the increase in technology and a multitude of apps, bullying can be done on phones, computers, and other forms of technology (Issurdatt, 2010). Text messages, emails, and posting pictures have become a major problem and easier for students to join in on the bullying behaviors (Issurdatt, 2010). This can make it difficult for schools to get involved because of the amount of bullying that continues outside of school.

Cyber bullying is any form of bullying that takes place over the internet, whether via texts, twitter or other forms of social media. Approximately 52% of children have reported being cyber bullied at one point, or another*. While this number may not seem catastrophic, this statistic is based only on the instances of cyber bullying that have been reported. The reality is that there are many more children who have been cyber bullied, and did not tell anyone that it was happening to them. Another likelihood is that some victims have simply overlooked the bullying projected towards them via the internet. Given the amount of time that children spend texting, on Facebook, or on other social media websites, the likelihood of children experiencing cyber bullying, reported or not, is high.

Cyber bullying is a form of bullying that uses electronic technology as a ‘weapon’ to inflict emotional distress to its victims. Electronic technology refers to equipment such as computers, tablets and phones. Interactive communication networks such as Facebook and Twitter, texting, websites and chat rooms are all included in this technological pool of cyber bullying tools. Examples of cyber bullying can range from insulting texts from smart phones to derogatory postings on social networking sites. According to the website stopcyberbullying.org (1) the methods used are ‘limited only by the child’s imagination and access to technology.’ It is important to note that cyber bullying by definition can only be instigated by a minor against another minor. Once adults become involved, it is defined as cyber-harassment or cyber stalking (Huffingtonpost.com) (2). There are two types of cyber bullying: direct attacks (messages sent to victims directly) or cyber bullying by proxy (without the victim’s knowledge).

With the easy access to various forms of technology, young people are using the internet and social networks more than ever before. They view the internet and even more so their mobile phones as a positive aspect of our society. These devices play a crucial role in our daily lives and development of identities. However, these devices are often used negatively. With the increased usage of advanced communication technology, a new type of bullying, cyberbullying, has emerged. Cyberbullying allows individuals to target victims either openly or anonymously via the internet. Research shows cyberbullying is detrimental because victims develop psychological disorders, experience a decreased in academic achievement, have an increase in health complaints.

Studies indicate that cyber-bullying incidents have quadrupled in past five years (Ross). Cyber-bullying has become a huge issue recently. Every time you turn on the news there is another bullying, or a suicide related to bullying, incident being reported. “Love is louder” has been a common phrase among celebrities and influential figures lately. They are trying to send out a message to their followers saying that bullying is not right and should not be tolerated. The expansion of communication technologies is widening the way bully’s can torture their victims. The fact of the matter is, technology is not going anywhere, so we need to figure out a way to put an end to cyber-bullies. Cyber-bullying is becoming a major problem and we all