Cyber Bullying Is Harmful Than Traditional Bullying

Bullying is seen and unseen, noticed by others and unnoticed, it’s a problem not just in our little communities, towns, cities or states but all over our country, bullying is a worldwide problem. As the internet has roared up so has forms of bullying throughout the web. Cyber bullying has become a problem that has never been thought of before. Although it is less physical than traditional forms of bullying, it can have more devastating and longer-lasting effects. It is rapidly becoming a major problem. Now, a small physically weak child can be as much of a bully as the big brute but with more impact. Educators definitely need to understand how powerful and dangerous this new type of bullying has become as it has greatly impacted the classroom.

Cyber bullying is the new shape of bullying. The growth of information and communication technology has contributed to its growth. Cyber bullying occurs through sending of images or posts through cell phones and the internet. The aim is to hurt or embarrass the victim. Inclusive in this definition are actions of deception like posing as the casualty in an embarrassing manner, revealing confidential information, spreading rumors to chat groups to limits like death threats (Green 25). This paper discusses the nature and form of cyber bullying, as well as using a case study (Megan Meier) to demonstrate the evil consequences of cyber bullying.

With the internet and mobile phones being an everyday feature in most peoples lives this has opened the door to a new type of bulling known as cyber bullying. Children who have been bullied at school could at one time come home and get away from their tormentors but now with such technologies available there is the all too unfortunate reality of their problems coming home with them in the form of texts, emails and abuse through other websites.

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.

Traditional bullying used to be more common back when there was no texting or social media. Bullying consistently takes place in person: the common actions often include teasing, taunting, humiliating, and sometimes showing acts of violence. Cyberbullying takes place online making it more humiliating and intolerable for the victim since the information doesn’t go away. They both equally cause the victim emotional distress and significantly lower their confidence while the bully feels more authoritative and quite satisfied. While the fear of getting bullied grows in the victim, they start to feel unsafe and decide not to go to school. All the students deserve to attend school without the fear of getting humiliated, harassed, or bullied, but what are the bystanders and teachers doing about bullying?

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 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.

A study in the article “Is Cyberbully worse than Traditional Bullying” investigated the importance of medium (tradition vs. cyber), publicity (public vs. private), and bully’s anonymity (anonymous vs. not anonymous). The goal was to determine severity of hypothetical bullying scenarios among a sample of seventh and eighth graders. Participants were asked to rank a set of hypothetical bullying scenarios from the most severe to the least severe. Then, the scenarios were manipulated based on the aspect of medium and publicity, and the medium and anonymity.

Bullying is described as using strength or superiority to convince someone to do something (“Bully”). Cyberbullying is simply bullying that takes place online. Technology becomes involved because it contains the internet, which is where all cyberbullying takes place. It is very possible for the victims of bullying to suffer from trauma later in life. In Sally Kuykendall’s book, Bullying, she speaks of the symptoms victims suffer from. “Bullying victimization and perpetration have profound health, academic, and social effects on the victim, the bully, as well as the bystanders. For victims, bullying is associated with feelings of loneliness, humiliation, insecurity, loss of self esteem, and self destructive behaviors,” (Kuykendall 26). Bullying has shown to have many effect on the victims of the situation. These effects, along with many others, impact the lives of victims. Had the devices not existed for cyber bullying to occur, numerous lives would have a more positive impact. Children would not have to live with these side effects had they not been provided with the devices, the source, of the bullying. Later on in Sally Kuykendall's book, she speaks of people whose

Some of the devices and equipments that are used to propagate cyber bullying are cell phones, computers and tablets via text messages, websites, social media platforms and chats. Cyberbullying has been proven to be the most dangerous type of bullying in the 21st century. Bullies have learnt new ways to reach their target individuals. Hence, cyberbullying is determined by how easily bullies are able to reach their victims using electronic technology. Some of the social network platforms can be hacked by bullies therefore posting ill content about a person.

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.

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

Cyber bullying is a new phenomenon that even the most tech savvy wasn’t prepared for. It allows the aggressor to pick on their victim at all hours of the day. It’s not limited to the classroom anymore; it allows the bully to enter the victim’s safe zone: home. Emails, instant messaging, photo transmitting, and social media outlets are the fuel that feeds this behavior. In traditional bullying, at the end of the day you can escape the torment, but with cyber bullying, there is no escape.

We use technology in almost every aspect of our daily lives; it is how we stay connected in this fast-paced world. Technology provides many benefits, but it has the potential to destroy many people. With technology use on the rise, bullying has taken a new, more destructive form. Cyberbullying, as defined by the Cyberbullying Research Center, is the willful and repeated harm inflicted through the medium of electronic text (qtd. in Chait). Cyberbullying is a serious problem and has serious consequences.

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