Cyberbullying : A New Concept

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.

Rebecca Sedwick, a 12-year-old girl, committed suicide after being repeatedly cyberbullied by 15 girls for many months. Once again, cyberbullying through social media has led to the suicide of a child. (“Phillips, Suzanne”) Social media allows hundreds of ways to communicate with others with electronic devices. Sometimes communicating with strangers, and sometimes unanimous. This idea of constant messages, notifications, and texts can be very dangerous when it comes to cyberbullying because the victim feels like they have no way out, or nowhere to hide. Social media for kids and teens ultimately has only negative effects because it leads to cyberbullying, a decrease in education, and suicide.

This type of bullying can take place 24 hours a day and is brought into the student’s home where it was once considered safe. Cyber-bullying has changed the world's view on this age-old subject, meanwhile the media suggests that bullying is an epidemic by reporting on tragedies that happen among our youth shedding light on the problem. One thing everyone can agree on is that the internet has provided a non-stop opportunity to bully. Nicole Edgington was celebrating her 17th birthday at a concert when it would be turned upside down by cyber-bullying. A senior in California was wrongly accused of turning some students in for coming to school intoxicated. Because the students assumed she had turned them in, they began a barrage of social media attacks along with text message threats. Nicole wrote an article, the girl who got even: A true cyber bullying story, explaining how she rose above the threats and daily negative texts. It takes courage to stand up and face your fears especially when you feel isolated. Nicole’s mom started to speak out on cyberbullying and found that teens wanted to hear other teens. Nicole would face her bully’s by speaking out about the behavior. The media has suggested that bullying is an epidemic, reporting on tragedies that happen among our youth shedding light on an age-old problem. When bullying moves to the internet it becomes more

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.

“Statistics on cyberbullying include: Nearly 43% of kids have been bullied online; seventy percent of students’ report seeing frequent bullying online; sixty-eight percent of teens agree that cyberbullying is a serious problem; eighty-one percent of young people believe bullying online is easier to get away with than bullying in person; ninety percent of teens who have seen social-media bullying say they have ignored it; only one in 10 victims will inform a parent or trusted adult of their abuse; girls are about twice as likely as boys to be victims and perpetrators of cyberbullying; nearly 58% of kids admit someone has said mean or hurtful things to them online; bullying victims are two to nine times more likely to consider committing suicide; furthermore about 75% of students admit they have visited a website bashing another

In order to understand the importance and consequences of cyberbullying, the main idea of cyberbullying must be expressed. Suzanne Phillips states that “cyberbullying like any form of bullying is relational aggression. It is intended to make the victim feel frightened, humiliated, helpless and too often—hopeless. What makes cyber bullying particularly harmful and in the case of too many young people who have committed suicide, so deadly, is the nature and virulent reach of electronic medium” (Phillips 1). Students are put in danger everyday due to the relevance of cyberbullying that surrounds them. The effects are detrimental to their health and have major impacts on the society. Justin Patchin explains that teens have unhealthy ideas when he states that “cyberbullied youth also report having suicidal thoughts, and there have been a number of examples in the United States and abroad where youth who were victimized ended up taking their own lives” (Patchin 1). Average teenagers express everyday that the effects of cyberbullying are harmful to their well being and self esteem. This causes most teens to feel worthless and makes them believe that their lives are not meaningful. Justin W. Patchin also shows the many outcomes of cyberbullying and displays that at “first, many targets report feeling depressed, sad, angry, and frustrated.

With the increase of children having their own cell phones, tablets, and other internet-accessible technology, so increases the rates of cyberbullying. In the foreword of Cyberbullying: Bullying of the Digital Age., a letter written by the father of a teen who committed suicide after months of being cyberbullied shows how unpredictable and heart-wrenching the effects of cyberbullying can be. In an excerpt from the letter. John Halligan, father of bullied teen Ryan Halligan, says “October 7, 2003 will always be the day that divides my life. Before that day, my son Ryan was alive. A sweet, gentle, and lanky 13-year old fumbling his way through early adolescence and trying to establish his place in the often confusing and difficult social world of middle school. After that day, my son would be gone forever. A death by suicide. Some would call it bullycide or even cyberbullycide. I just call it a huge hole in my heart that will never heal.” The main article expresses pathos for victims of cyberbullying- who are not just the targeted victim but the family left behind struggling to cope with the loss and their attempts to change the way the cyberbullying is dealt with.

Being in one of the first generations to deal with the roaring wave of social media has had a huge impact on my life. I have been personally affected by the most common form of bullying in 2015; cyberbullying. Cyberbullying is an underrated and, I think, the most effective and harmful way for someone to bully another. Those that have not been affected believe that someone can just “turn the screen off”. It’s not that easy, and I know from first hand experiences. Almost my entire childhood was filled with bullying on Facebook. Now, I see it everywhere on sites like Twitter on a daily basis. Cyberbullying can lead to self-harm, depression, or worse. As a survivor of serious bullying, I know the cost that it can have on someone. Person-to-person

“Amanda Todd, a young and beautiful girl, was 15 years old when she committed suicide. This happened because she was blackmailed, bullied, and physically assaulted on social media” (NoBullying). Suicide is a very serious issue that seems to happen frequently. “Suicide is responsible for nearly 4,500 deaths of kids every year” (Cyberbullyhotline). It is also ranked 3rd for what causes the most deaths in the U.S. About 20% of teens will have the thought of suicide, but 1 in 10 usually attempt it” (Cyberbullyhotline). The kids get put down so much on the internet that they feel like there is just no possible way for them to be helped. They think that there isn’t a single solution to their problem because it is drilled into their head that they can’t be helped or that help isn’t even an option. But in reality, there are lots of ways for kids in this situation to be helped. Kids getting bullied happens because people decide that making someone else’s life miserable to the point that they don’t even want to live is fun. Social media has an influence that can cause bad mental health.

In other generations, bullying simply stopped when school lets out or the work shift ended; however, today, with the increased use of the Internet, people are being bullied in all locations, at all times. When children, and many adults for that matter, are not talking to someone face-to-face, they are less likely to feel the implications of what they are really saying. It is too easy to say something you would not say to someone if they were standing right in front of you. In addition, it can be difficult to portray tone and intent in written words [9]. This means something can easily be taken the wrong way. Another challenge with cyber bullying is that it is near impossible to escape from. The increase in bullying on social media and other online platforms has caused the instances of teen suicide to rise dramatically; actually, it is one of the top 3 reasons for suicide. Can you imagine a life in their shoes when that is the only way for things to be

Cyber bullying is becoming a bigger and bigger problem on social networking sites. There have been quite a few teenage suicides in which cyber bullying seems to have played a role. In at least one case, the suicide of Alexis Pilkington, the bullying kept going on her tribute page even after her death. (Glor) “Cyber-Bullying can cause the victim to become chronically depressed and to experience a complete loss of self-esteem. A short exposure to Cyber-Bullying can have long term effects. It can result in Cyber-Bullying Suicides.” (Cyber-Bullying Suicides - Cyber Bullycide Victims ) It has many forms such as degradation, harassment, cyber stalking, impersonation, flaming (using vulgar and angry language to start fights with the victim), password theft and hacking accounts, posting photos or videos, among several others. (Cyber-Bullying Suicides - Cyber Bullycide Victims ) Bullying has been around way before the internet, but now that it is online, rumors, pictures or other forms of cyber bullying make their way around the community much faster so it is easier to humiliate someone in front of more people. “In the Internet era, it appears there are more people interested in spewing hate than in countering it. On the social networking sites and on YouTube, inflammatory, hate-filled content overwhelms the limited efforts to

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

More than 1 and 3 teens have experienced cyberbullying in some way. Bullying among teens in the United States had become an increased problem since the invention of the Internet only several decades ago. Teens use their access to the internet to target other teens that might have emotional struggles already. Bullies use social networking sites, such as Twitter, to send off bad messages about their peers for everyone acquainted with the bully to see. The harsh comments eventually come out at school, making it an environment the victim can’t learn in. Schools should be able to get involved with cyberbullying problems because of the harm being done to the victims. Cyberbullying should be a criminal offense because cyberbullying alone can be even more traumatizing than traditional forms of bullying. Cyberbullying is often overlooked just because it isn't physical. This act of bullying causes and provokes an emotional issues and self harm.

With the internet being so popular today, many people may not have recognized the issue of cyberbullying and how it has affected many individuals throughout the world. Cyberbullying is the act of sending harassing and threatening messages to another individual through the internet. It has impacted a lot of people and is known to lead to fear, intolerable anxiety, depression, and has also lead to suicide. Since things are communicated and advertised on the internet a lot, the issue of cyberbullying can reoccur since nothing is accurately taken down. Individuals who bully do it because they want to feel better about themselves and sometimes are just looking for a good laugh. “Adapting to these new models of communication, cyberbullying has emerged as a new and real danger to students” (Stauffer, 2011, p.2). Cyberbullying is an issue that is only going to keep getting worse if nothing is being done to prevent it. Throughout this paper, I will be explaining the discrimination throughout cyberbullying, the impact it has on kids and teenagers, and how it can be prevented with better parental as well as school administration supervision.

In 2012, one of the biggest stories about cyberbullying broke out when a student named Amanda Todd hanged herself. Amanda was in the sixth grade and began using a chat to meet new people online, and one day a boy convinced her to show her breasts to him in this chat. When she did, he took a screenshot of her and posted it all over Facebook and other social media accounts. She eventually moved schools because of the bullying she received from this picture, however, the bully kept adding her from anonymous accounts and posting the picture over and over again(NoBullying.com, 2016.) This is case represents how bullying can turn into cyberbullying because the internet is everywhere, and the fact this person was stalking Amanda online and posting her pictures on Facebook caused her to be bullied in school. Eventually, Amanda posted a video on YouTube to talk about bullying which received over 17 million views, and eventually she hanger herself because she couldn’t handle the bullying and cyberbullying she was receiving