In the world today where technology advances faster than that we know of, it is hard to keep up with the possible risks that come along with it. With new technologies being developed on a nearly daily basis, it is nearly impossible for a single person or even a team of people to keep track of the happenings in the cyber world. The virtual world presents itself in a stark contrast to the older, more traditional physical world. It is more secretive, and with internet users quickly discovering their newfound capabilities, enabled by their anonymity, there are now crimes that are difficult for many to trace. This paper aims to further explain what cyber bullying is and discuss the psychological issues it brings upon its victims.
Bullying is a common issue among the youth. Traditional bullying is defined as the repeated aggressive behavior of the aggressor against a target of lower power (Nansel, Overpeck, Pilla et al. 2001). Through the years, traditional bullying has taken a modern form know as cyberbullying. There is an absence of a universal cyberbullying definition (Vandeboch & Van Cleemput, 2008) and this brings upon an issue that may lead to misunderstanding. To address this concern, researchers have taken the liberty of defining cyberbullying. According to Hinduja & Patchin (2006, in Hinduja & Patchin, 2008) cyberbullying is the willful and repeated harm inflicted through the use of computers, cell phones and other electronic devices. With this definition, the difference between traditional and cyber bullying is clearly stated.
Society and media has formed very solid images of bullies and victims in our heads. Bullies are typically the cool kids, the popular ones while bullying victims are usually depicted as nerds or outcasts in the student body. While some of these stereotypes are true for some cases, there are studies that delve deeper into the inclinations of different people towards victimization. As stated above, targets for bullying are of lower power than the aggressor. It has also been found out that social isolates are most likely to be bullied (Estell, Farmer, Irvin, Crowther, Akos & Boudah, 2009). Studies have also shown that cyberbullying victims have often been victims of traditional bullying or a perpetrator of online bullying (Sbarbaro & Smith, 2008; Raskauskas & Stoltz, 2007; Vandebosch & Van Cleemput, 2008). Most studies as stated by Nortar, Padgett & Roden (2013) reveal that victimization has inclination towards a certain gender, but the minorities say that gender is indeed a significant predictor of victimization. Tokunaga (2010) then revisits these studies and finds females more likely to be cyberbullied.
Now is the time to define the word “depression”. Depression is feeling of sadness typically felt over a period of time and is usually accompanied by feelings of hopelessness and inadequacy. Depression is typically a problem experienced by teens, bullying victims and non-bullying victims. Depression can lead to different psychological issues but it all leads down to suicide. Suicide is a growing problem worldwide. Many organizations and support groups have been established to address this issue. In relation to this paper, the results of the study conducted by Hinduja and Patchin (2010) indicate that someone who is experiencing cyberbullying and/or traditional bullying are more likely to have suicidal thoughts. In addition, cyberbullying victims are twice as likely to attempt suicide than those who were not exposed to bullying.
Cyberbullying is not the only the reason for depression. Another factor or a combination of these can also prove to trigger depression, especially in teens. One commonly cited cause of depression is the prevalence of a hostile environment at home. Problems at home come in many forms; a child could be affected deeply by the arguments of his parents, one may be unhappy with their partner’s decisions and on more serious cases, abuse could also be the cause of the stress of the household. Another commonly cited cause of depression at home is the separation of two parents, which, despite efforts by the parents to assure the sense of normalcy in their children’s lives, can affect both the parents and the children. Teens could also become depressed because of problems in school. Because of the constant need to fit society’s image of what a teenager should be, high school students feel the pressure to assure their so-called survival in their environment. This proves to be toxic to the teenagers because this suppresses many of what they feel they should be able to do. For example, the pressure to dress a certain way could make a teen feel as though he is misunderstood or that he is not being allowed to express himself. A student whose priorities are different from those of his peers could feel as though something was seriously wrong with him, though by medical standards, he could be perfectly normal.
With a majority of the population having access to the internet, the popularity of social networking sites is on the rise. These websites were made to ease communication and broaden one’s network of friends. But along with all the good things it aims to bring, it also presents risks. Bullying, harassment, identity theft and exposure to harmful content like violence and racism are just a few of those perceived risks according to the UK’s Home Office (2008). With the advancements of technology, cyberbullying can be done through different kinds of media. One can be harassed through social networking websites such as MySpace and Facebook, email (electronic mail), chat rooms, short message service (SMS)/multimedia messaging service (MMS) messaging, instant messaging and online blogs (Miller & Hufstedler, 2009; Beale & Hall, 2007 in Nortar et al., 2013). Cyberbullying occurred mostly through email, online chat rooms or social networking sites (Nortar et al., 2013). A few concrete examples of these venues are online chatrooms like Omegle, where one is paired with a stranger and it prompted to chat either exclusively through text or also with video. An unsuspecting user may be paired with a user which may have sexual and provocative intentions. One may also receive hateful messages from people online, either from comments or text posts on social media websites. One could also receive spam mail, which is a series of unwanted mail that could contain various media or even malware that could harm your computer.
The advancement of technology can’t be put into a halt. It will continue to develop and evolve through the years and it will always have its pros and cons. Our responsibility as pioneers of the technological era is to be proactive and prepare the people for these risks. As the common saying goes, prevention is a better than a cure.
References
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Hinduja, S. & Patchin, J. (2008). Cyberbullying: An Exploratory Analysis of Factors Related to Offending and Victimization, Deviant Behavior, 29:2, 129-156.
Hinduja, S. & Patchin, J (2010) Bullying, Cyberbullying, and Suicide, . Archives of Suicide Research, 14:3, 206-221
Vandebosch, H., & Van Cleemput, K. (2008).Defining cyberbullying: A qualitative research into the perceptions of youngsters. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 11(4), 499-503.
Estell, D. B., Farmer, T. W., Irvin, M. J., Crowther, A., Akos, P., & Boudah, D. J. (2009). Students with exceptionalities and the peer group context of bullying and victimization in late elementary school. Journal of Child & Family Studies, 18(2), 136-50.
Sbarbaro, V., & Smith, T. M. E. (2011). An exploratory study of bullying and cyberbullying behaviors among economically disadvantaged middle school students. American Journal of Health Studies, 26(3), 139.
Raskauskas, J., & Stoltz, A. D. (2007). Involvement in traditional and electronic bullying among adolescents. Developmental Psychology, 43(3), 564-575.
Nortar, C., Padgett, S. & Roden, J. (2013). Cyberbullying: A review of Literature. Retrieved from www.hrpub.org/download/201306/ujer.2013.010101.pdf
Tokunaga, R. S. (2010). Following you home from school: A critical review and synthesis of research on cyberbullying victimization. Computers in Human Behavior, 26(3), 277-287.
