If Suicide Happens: Social Media Can Cause Bullying

Bullying is one of the leading causes in teen suicide today. People bullied in the past or present have been studied and it has shown that they have a lower quality of life. Though they have a lower quality of life, the have better physical and mental health. (“Seaman” 1). Studies have shown that most bullying happens in middle school and high school. There is bullying in elementary school but it is minimal and less serious (“Bullying Statistics” 1). Most kids refuse to speak up while being bullied in fear that the bully will just taunt them more (“Cyber-Safety Act” 2). Bullying has become a very serious issue regarding our society today.

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.

A young boy was once sitting on his computer when he saw an email from one of his peers. He opened the email, and soon enough realized he was being bullied. However, the young boy let the cyber-bullying get out of control. His parents told the school about it, but there was nothing they could do. The boy had to go to a new school where he wouldn’t be bullied. There are many problems like this that get out of hand, so much that the school can do nothing to help. Many people blame the school for not helping, when there is nothing they can do about it. Therefore, schools do not have the responsibility to respond to and protect students from the challenge of cyber-bullying, even if it’s off campus.

Similar to other forms of bullying, cyberbullying can cause a victim to loss of focus on activities, school, family and friends,and can even lead to suicide. According to statistics reported by ABC News “nearly 30 percent of students are either bullies or victims of bullying in some way, and 160,000 kids stay home from school every day because of fear of bullying”(Webster). Due to the fear of going to school, teenagers lose focus on activities important to them and can even lose focus on their future, such as college. According to statistics about bullying in general, “Suicide is the third leading cause of death among young people, resulting in about 4,400 deaths per year, according to the CDC. For every suicide among young people, there are at least 100 suicide attempts. Over 14 percent of high school students have considered suicide, and almost 7 percent have attempted it”(Webster). Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem; however, being bullied in any way can lead to the feeling of loneliness and hopelessness and the laws set in place does not help victims hurt feelings go away. Cyberbullying is not a victimless crime and with these statistics multiple laws have been set into place to prevent bullying; however, there are minimal laws to protect victims of

Document A shows that nearly twenty percent of students are cyberbullies, and more than twenty percent of students have been cyberbullied. According to Document B, cyberbullying affects one in ten teachers personally. Cyberbullying affects the privacy, confidence, productivity of teachers and students alike. It is as large a problem as actual bullying, and the quick spreading of everything posted online amplifies the effects of cyberbullying. Schools everywhere concentrate so much of their effort to combat on-campus bullying, they have no excuse to overlook cyberbullying, which affects as many people, and as at least as dangerous as actual

According to Bulent Dilmac, “bullying is defined as aggression with the intention of hurting (Kepenekci & Çınkır, 2003) and is an anti-social form of behavior that produces negative consequences (Taylor, 2006).” “Cyberbullying is defined as the repetitive use of information and communication technologies by an individual or a group in order to hurt other individuals. (Akbaba & Eroǧlu, 2013).” There have been several cases where cyberbullying causes teenagers to take their own life’s (commit suicide). It can cause individuals to suppress negative emotions within them. Lowering their self-esteem and looking at life with a sense of hopelessness. Jessica Laney was a victim of cyberbullying when she was insulted on social media.

In 2014, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) did a study on bullying and the found that 19.4% of all the students interviewed had been bullied at school. This may not seem very surprising, bullying has been going on for decades. Generations of men and women have come to fear the people who walk the halls, stealing lunch money from those weaker than them. However, it is interesting to note that 14.8% of that 19.4% had reported being cyber bullied. Unlike the standard physical bullying, cyberbullying is a slightly more recent development, but it has evolved to become much more deadly. It gives bullies a better tool for creating more widespread pain. The awareness for cyber bullying needs to increase and ultimately, cyberbullying needs to be abolished completely due to its destructive capabilities.

This problem has become more pressing and has been a greater focus in the media. Social media has also brought the issue to the forefront in the last several years and, itself, plays a role in today’s age of bullying, cyber bullying. The Matt Epling Safe School Law (2011/2014) was amended in 2014 to add a section specifically directed at cyberbullying. The legislation identifies bullying as anything that is composed, spoken, acted out, or conveyed electronically. These acts are said to disrupt educational opportunity, impart emotional disturbances, influence physical and mental health, and/or impact the daily functioning of the educational institution (Matt Epling Safe School Law, 2011/2014). These definitions demonstrate the severity of the social problem,

In “Cyberbullying Is Serious but Not an Epidemic” Larry Magid argues that there is a problem with cyber bullying, but maybe we shouldn’t make such a big about it. He states that cyber bullying is an aspect that leads adolescents to suicide, but there are also other factors as well. Some factors could include existing depression, issues at home, or issues with self-esteem. Magid goes on to say that bullying isn’t as harmful as we all make it out to be. We should take action when it comes to children being bullied but maybe not overreact like we tend to.

Bullying is an undesirable, antagonistic conduct among not only school aged children but also adults. People who are bullied may have serious and long-term problems. Bullying has become more prominent throughout the years, increasing the suicide rate in the U.S. to 24.5% since 2003. (Hey U.G.L.Y, 2006) This results in approximately 160,000 individuals stay home from school or work each day because they are afraid or feel threatened by bullies. (Hey U.G.L.Y, 2006) Approximately 4,400 lives are lost each year due to bullying. (Hey U.G.L.Y, 2006) A nationwide survey was done throughout public schools and private schools in 2014 to find out how many students actually considered suicide due to bullying. (Hey U.G.L.Y, 2006) 15% of students reported

Bullying is on the rise across the nation. According to the National Center for Educational Statistics, 30 percent of students of students were bullied during the 2010-2011 school year. Whether verbal or physical, bullying has a negative effect on the victims. Students who are bullied often experience depression, loneliness, anxiety, and isolation. The common types of bullying in a school setting are physical and verbal. With the rise in the use of social media, cyberbullying has become a big problem among children. Children who bully others are often bullied at home by a parental figure. This is why it is very important to incorporate moral instruction into the curriculum, teaching students about respect and caring for others, instead of bullying them. Schools have started to take extra precautions to eliminate bullying by implementing prevention programs. As educators, it is our responsibilities to prevent bullying from happening in our schools and protect our students. It is important that we model moral and ethical behavior for students to follow. It’s also important that we take precautions and investigate all forms of bullying, instead of only taking action when we witness physical aggression.

Social media can be a platform where you interact and have fun with friends,or get picked on and stalked by adults. Bullying is a serious problem in the U.S.Because of social media people do not have to be face to face to talk. They feel they can say anything and get away with it.This is called cyber bullying when you bully someone over the internet (Social). If you put abusive posts on someones pictures that can be looked at as bullying (Social).

Studies show that victims of cyberbullying are more likely to skip school, get involved with illegal substances, have low self-esteem, have health problems, and in extreme cases, commit suicide. The reason why the effects are so serious is because it is nearly impossible to escape cyberbullying. It can go on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. A victim can receive negative messages and comments when he or she is alone and has no one to turn to for help. Another bad thing about online bullying is that once something is posted on the internet, it is there forever; and even if it is deleted, odds are many people already saw it and maybe even saved it (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services,

Fahy et al. (2016) showed that adolescents bullied through social media are likely to suffer psychologically. Therefore, an additional step to take may be to encourage positive interactions with others on social media. Encourage them to add genuine friends on social media and delete dramatic or those searching to cause trouble to form more positive connections to potentially prevent this issue from occurring.

While cyberbullying affects each child differently, there has been a clear correlation between victims and non-victims and their self-esteem. In one study, bullied victims had less self-esteem than those who were not bullied online. Additionally, it was reported that victims of cyberbullying were thirty percent more likely to think about committing suicide (Cyberbullying Research Center, 2012). With the lack of parent supervision, it was found that those who spent more than three hours per school day on social networks were 110% more at risk to be a cyberbully victim as compared those who do not spend as much time online (Gilkerson, 2012). What may be worse is the fact that majority of those bullied online do not tell their parents or an adult about what occurred. Despite the fact that most adolescents state that bullying occurs more offline then online, cyberbullying is still a real and large threat to the youth of America (Lenhart, 2007).