Cyberbullying is a type of psychological attack that people are exposed to in the online world without physical contact. While the traditional definition of bullying is “verbal or physically violent behavior”, when we say what cyberbullying is, we can say that it is a set of behaviors that occur through the use of digital technology and communication tools.
Bullying, in its most general terms, is defined as “physical, verbal, in-person and aggressive behavior”. Bullies can often continue to bully in long-term and repetitive ways. However, today, with the spread of the internet, information technologies, and especially social media, bullying has now gained an “online” dimension. In short, cyberbullying is when someone uses digital technology and platforms such as the internet, email, text messages or social media to harass, threaten or humiliate you. In other words, it is “sharing and behavior using information and communication technologies that will harm users in a technical or relational manner” (1). According to the platform called Bullying Statistics, more than half of adults and teenagers have been targeted with cyberbullying, but the same percentage of adults and teenagers have been involved in cyberbullying (2).
Physical and Online Bullying: An Overview
Some researchers call cyberbullying “the new face of peer bullying” (3). On the other hand, unlike regular bullying, cyberbullying does not require physical presence or communication. Everyone who uses social media has witnessed this bullying. Moreover, physical strength or superiority in numbers is not required to engage in cyberbullying. According to researchers’ research on “Cyber Bullying Among Secondary School Students” in Turkey in 2015, it was determined that the city with the highest level of cyberbullying and victimization was Istanbul, and the city with the lowest was Gaziantep (4).
Cyberbullying comes in different shapes and sizes. Anyone with an internet connection or a mobile phone can cyberbully another person without needing to reveal their true identity. Additionally, cyberbullying can continue 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This means it can follow you anywhere. It’s possible that thousands of people online can actively see you being bullied. It has been observed that the methods used by children and young people for cyberbullying are as diverse and creative as the technology they have access to. These methods may include sending threatening or taunting messages via email, social media, or instant messaging, hacking into your email account, hurting your online identity, or humiliating you. Some cyberbullies even create a website or social media page that targets you.
Effects of Cyberbullying
When you are bullied or cyberbullied, the consequences are similar. Research shows that people who are bullied feel hurt, angry, afraid, helpless, hopeless and ashamed. It is also known that cyberbullying increases the likelihood of psychological health problems such as depression, low self-confidence, and anxiety. On the other hand, not going to school, running away from school, and wanting to drop out of school in order to escape from bullying are frequently seen in people who have been cyberbullied. On the other hand, it is known that in many cases, cyberbullying can be even more hurtful and challenging than face-to-face bullying.
Cyberbullying can happen anytime, anywhere. You can be cyberbullied via the internet, even in places where you normally feel safe, such as your home, when you least expect to be bullied. Moreover, because they cannot see your reactions, cyberbullies often take the harassment or taunting to a much higher level than they would if they met you face to face. The more extensive cyberbullying becomes, the more challenging it can become. Finally, it is known that cyberbullying has become a serious danger, especially for children and young people, due to increasing internet use. According to a study conducted in 2014, it was observed that 95% of young people in the USA were online and 74% had access to the internet from their mobile devices (5).
How to deal with Cyber Bullying?
There is no simple solution to bullying or cyberbullying, or a foolproof way to overcome bullying. On the other hand, bullying or cyberbullying is rarely limited to one or two incidents. In other words, these behaviors tend to be repetitive and frequent. While you can protect yourself from bullying, you may have to be as ruthless in reporting the bullying as the person doing the bullying. At this point, you need to keep in mind that there is no reason to put up with bullying. On the other hand, it is important to remember that being bullied is not your fault, it does not matter what a bully says or does. The person who has a problem is not you, but the person who bullies you.
Dealing with cyberbullying is rarely easy, but there are steps you can take to deal with the problems. To start, an important step would be to re-evaluate your use of technology. Spending less time on social media or more time checking texts and emails or interacting with people can help you distance yourself from online bullies. Some researchers argue that artificial intelligence may offer important tools to solve cyberbullying. In this context, it is argued that artificial intelligence-based solutions can help detect and limit cyberbullying by classifying and analyzing volumes of data and conversations that humans cannot decipher.
Finally, in addition to seeking support, managing stress, and spending time with people and activities you love, we recommend you consider the following tips:
- Do not respond to text messages about you, no matter how hurtful or inaccurate. Responding will make the situation worse, and that’s what cyberbullies want anyway. Do not give this satisfaction to people who are waiting for a reaction from you.
- Don’t seek revenge by becoming a bully. Seeking revenge will make the problem worse and could lead to serious legal consequences for you. If you wouldn’t say something bad to someone in real life, don’t say anything online.
- Save evidence of cyberbullying, save abusive text messages or a screenshot of a web page, for example, and then report it to a trusted adult. If you don’t report incidents, cyberbullying often becomes more aggressive.
- Report threats and inappropriate messages to the police. In most cases, acts of cyberbullying must be stopped by law.
Prevent communication with cyberbullies by blocking their email addresses, and mobile numbers and deleting them from your social media accounts. Report their activities to their internet service provider (ISP) or to any social media or other websites they use that implicate you as a target. Acts of cyberbullying result in a violation of the website’s terms of service. A criminal restraining order must be issued in accordance with the laws in question.
Advice for Parents on Cyberbullying
- If your child asks for help, know that you’re in luck: Most teens don’t tell their parents about bullying they experience online or in real life. If your child can’t sleep, doesn’t want to go to school, and seems anxious when he or she is in front of the computer or on the phone, ask why this is so in a calm and understanding way. You won’t know the full story until you see it from your child’s perspective.
- Collaborate with your child: There are two good reasons to include your child in this process. First, cyberbullying often results in a loss of dignity or control over a social situation, and involving your child in finding solutions will help them regain these values. Secondly, because bullying is almost always related to school life, our children’s perspectives are key to finding solutions because they understand the situation better than their parents.
- Answer thoughtfully, not quickly: What parents have a hard time understanding is that they can make things worse when they are careless with their children. Many cyberbullies commit bullying because they think bullying makes them feel stronger or gives them status. In general, if you give an answer regarding this issue, it should be well thought out and include a solution that does not make the situation worse.
- Develop a different perspective: It’s heartfelt for your child to tell what happened, but remember that one person’s truth is not necessarily true for everyone. You need to get different perspectives and be more open-minded. Most of the time, what we see on online platforms is usually only part of the story, and it is useful to try to see the rest of the picture.
- A friend or caring adult: People who are cyberbullied say that a friend or a listening adult helped them the most. Therefore, if your children come to you asking for help, it is very important to respond thoughtfully and include them. Just by respecting and listening to your child, you can pave the way for healing.
- The ultimate goal is to be respected: The focus should be on not punishing someone through revenge or violence, but on calmly resolving the problem and helping your child heal. What your child needs most in this situation is to regain his honor and pride.
- A positive outcome: We know that humans will never completely eliminate oppression. But we also know that bullying should not be considered “normal.” In this context, it is necessary to continue working to eliminate bullying.
Resources:
1) Güvenli Web, “Siber Zorbalık”, https://www.guvenliweb.org.tr/dokuman-detay/siber-zorbalik
2) Jun Wu, “AI, Cyberbullying, and Social Media”, https://towardsdatascience.com/ai-cyberbullying-and-social-media-321d91d5b4ba
3) Ozgur Erdur-Baker, “Akran Zorbalığının Yeni Yüzü: Siber Zorbalık Cyber Bullying: A New Face of Peer Bullying”, Eurasian Journal of Educational Research, 2007.
4) Jale Balaban Salı, Bircan Ergün Başak, Emel Baştürk Akca, “Türkiye’de Ortaokul Öğrencileri Arasında Siber Zorbalık”, 2015, Anadolu Journal of Educational Sciences International
5) Sameer Hinduja, Justin W. Patchin, “Cyberbullying: Identification, Prevention and Response”, 2014, Cyberbullying Research Center, https://cyberbullying.org/Cyberbullying-Identification-Prevention-Response.pdf
https://usa.kaspersky.com/resource-center/preemptive-safety/top-10-ways-to-stop-cyberbullying
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/abuse/bullying-and-cyberbullying.htm