Cyber-Bullying In Australia

Is cyberbullying an old problem with a new disguise? Bullying in the real world has been around for a seemingly endless amount of time. Due to the rise of technology in society today, bullying in the cyber world, also known as cyberbullying, has erupted. Cyberbullying can be defined as using technology, such as the Internet, social media, and text messages, to harass, threaten, embarrass, or target another person (Hirsch). According to 11 Facts About Cyberbullying, nearly eighty-three percent of teens believe bullying online is easier to get away with than bullying in person. This shows that cyberbullies use online networks to camouflage themselves from reality. Cyberbullying is emotionally abusive to the victim’s mental health because the scars imprinted from the cruel remarks sent through text messages and posted throughout social media are bound to forever impact one's life.

There are many discrepancies with Australia’s Cyberbullying laws that has triggered issues nationwide. Cyberbullying happens across all ages however it is mostly seen with Australia’s youth, where 1 in 5 teenagers have experienced Cyberbullying in their life. Cyberbullying is where a person uses the internet or an electronic device to harass, discriminate, stalk, threats, intimidate, defame or to encourage suicide (Legalaid, 2017). Cyberbullying has become a legal issue as it has resulted in depression within young Australians and in even more serious cases, where the bullying is intense, it has resulted in the receiver committing suicide. Cyberbullying in youth is a difficult situation as it could be difficult to determine an appropriate sentence for juveniles and challenging to decipher the element of intent.

Many believe that the way to decline the, number of kids cyberbullied, is to limit their speech and rights. The Cyberbullying Research Center recorded that in 30 days that 36 girls have been cyberbullied. That is 1 in 4 girls every day. (Document A) Students are not the only targets for cyber bullying, teachers are as well. According to a Teacher Support Network in the UK. It has found that Pupil’s (Students) are the largest amount of perpetrator’s. (Document B) Cyber Bullying can affect people in several different ways. In Document C, K.K a girl who made a

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.

Technology is rapidly advancing at a dizzying rate which has seen many amazing feats but has also introduced and increased the act of Cyberbullying. Cyber bullying can be defined as targeting someone using any form of technology (this includes social media) to tease, stalk or humiliate someone online (Dictionary.com, 2016). Cyberbullying is so detrimental because it encourages the targeting of an individual; It is often done in secret with the bully hiding who they are by creating false profiles or names, or sending anonymous messages. It is difficult to remove as it is shared online so it can be recorded and saved in different places. Cyberbullying has such a negative impact that research shows that there is a correlation between the violent

Cyberbullying is the use of electronic communication to bully a person, typically by sending messages in an threatening nature or tearing down an individuals character based on religion, gender, ethnicity, or disability. In terms of effects overall, cyberbullying has increased the use of communication via technology and has become more common among teenagers (Cabral 3). Technology has made it easy for bullies to find individuals via social media in the privacy of their on own homes., which has allowed them to express how they feel anonomously. This has become an issue that is occurring more and more in High Schools and Middle Schools across America. One of the biggest discussions when dealing with bullying and cyber-bullying would be how do we stop this epidemic to save the soul of our youth? Education is key, we have to educate one another on the effects of bullying to know that this is real and affects so many people to this day. Much of cyberbullying is the

“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

Journalists describes the youth of Australia as violent ruthless teasers who pick on little kids around them, the facts have been proved that teenagers bully others in person or online. If kids keep on terrorising and threatening others around them they will become feared and they may use the power that they have badly and gossip will start to spread rapidly across the grade and the humiliation to the target of all the bullying. 19% of youngsters between the ages of 14 and 17 confess to being teased or tormented online in the 12 months to June. The numbers likewise appeared around 30% of youngsters saw the digital tormenting of other individuals on the web, while not as much as half of all adolescents and pre-teenagers made a move in the wake

Bullying can be found almost everywhere; in homes, on the internet, and especially in schools. Students of lesser abilities or non-conformists can essentially be main targets; however, anyone is vulnerable to a bully’s wrath. Although the common lunch thief threat has been the general association with the word bully, that term has unfortunately evolved and become apart of the violent side of our culture today. All too often students feel the need to “disappear” or escape leading to destructive decisions such as suicide, substance abuse, or depression (Kowalski 6). Today the causes of bullying are involved with social differences such as sexual orientation, physical appearance, ethnicity, or insecurities. For the past few years bullying has gradually increased in the US, and of course worldwide because of the internet’s growing diverse locations and servers. Statistics show that “A total of 29.9% of the sample reported moderate or frequent involvement in bullying, as a bully (13.3%), one who was bullied (10.6%), or both (6.3%)” (NIH Public Access). Forms of bullying include through a computer screen also known as cyberbullying and through physical confrontation leading students to experience symptoms of depression which could also provoke deeper personal issues. Cyberbullying has come across society through social media sites as well as personal opinion. Children are now breaking the norm of traditional confrontation and dunking heads in toilets

Laws against bullying and cyberbullying were created to regulate and prevent them; before this society changed drastically on American urban high schools. During that lapse time, numerous amount of students, started to use superior strength or influence to intimidate people who were considered weak and unable to fight back; typically to make the victim do what the bully wants. With time the act of bullying did not only become worse but it grew to have a different branch of bullying. This new kind of bullying is called cyberbullying, it was much worse than the traditional bullying because the victim was more affected and damaged. With the progression of time, laws were also created to prevent cyberbullying

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

While social media and electronic means for communication have been around the better part of fifteen years, the past ten years have overall shown increases in cyberbullying. Although bullying in general over the past decade has been at a consistent rate, or in some cases even declining, cyberbullying on the average has been rising over the past decade. Statistics regarding

With today’s technology bullying has become easier then ever; the children and youth of this generation do not even need to have personal confrontation. Cyber bullying can be defined as any communication posted or sent by a minor online, by instant messenger, e-mail, website, diary site, online profile, interactive game, handheld device, cell phone or other interactive device that is intended to frighten, embarrass, harass or otherwise target another minor. Cyber bullying is disturbingly common among Canadian teens. Cyber-Bullying: Our Kids’ New Reality is a survey that was conducted from December 2006 – January 2007 by the members of Kids Help Phone that had over 2500 respondents. More than 70 per cent of

I am writing this essay as I have been extremely moved by the recent suicide of a teenage girl in Ireland. Erin Gallagher a 13 year old girl from Donegal took her own life because of vicious online bullying. Her recent suicide adds to the growing number of teenage suicides not just in Ireland but worldwide that have been caused by bullying and cyber bullying or a combination of both. The issue of cyber bullying is something that needs to be addressed immediately both in the home and in schools. UNICEF carried out a study on bullying in Ireland and the results were staggering to say the least. 55% of children questioned admitted to being bullied in one form or another (Changing the Future, 2010). This

For such a long time, physical bullying has been the largest problem schools and parents had to face with their children, but now another form of bullying has arisen; cyber bullying. In society today, teens are drawn cell phones, laptops, and other technological advancements. Social media is a way for many teens and adolescents to interact with one another and share countless happenings of their personal lives. Cyber bullying occurs when individuals use the internet to send or comment cruel and unnecessary messages to another. In its various forms cyber bullying includes, indirect and direct harassment, posting inappropriate pictures, impersonating another being, or just being plain cruel. Although anyone can become a victim of cyber bullying, improper use of the internet can further induce harassment, due to the adolescents desire to use modern day technologies. The harassers could be classmates, online “friends’’, or anonymous users. One barrier that is difficult to overcome is determining who is responsible for the attacks online, because many bullies hide behind fake usernames or profiles to protect their real identity, which is commonly known as “hiding behind a screen”. (Bonanno 2013). The motives for a cyber-bully are never clear, some might say