Factors That Contribute to Cyberbullying

Kids can go too far taunting others online.

Cyberbullying is bullying done through computers and cell phones. According to the U.S. government website StopBullying.gov, cyberbullying is mostly done by children toward the end middle school and the beginning of high school. It can have serious consequences: Young people who were victims of cyberbullying have committed suicide, including students in college, high school, middle school, and even elementary school.

Cloak of Anonymity

The Internet has innumerable uses and one of those is as an outlet to vent. People who are frustrated or irritated may use the Internet to direct their anger at someone else. These people make fake accounts on social networking sites and use them to cyberbully. They may start confrontations or may use the fake accounts to spread others' personal information.

Sharing Personal Information Online

People who share their personal information online are giving cyberbullies ammunition on a silver platter. This information can include personal phone numbers, your home address or photos. If there is any photo of yourself you would not wish your parents to see, it is better not posted online. Cyberbullies sometimes steal harmless photos to digitally manipulate before spreading them, so your privacy settings on social networking sites should always be high. Some people also tend to over-share in Facebook statuses or Tweets, and cyberbullies are often watching, waiting to use this information later.

Eliminating the Need for Physical Strength

Bullies who harass others in person do so because they have an advantage in age, physical size or popularity. Those children who are bullied in school may be the ones doing the cyberbullying online. If they lack physical strength in real life, they can turn to the Internet to find other ways to retaliate.

Parents Are Unaware

A study published in September 2008 by "The Journal of School Health" found that about 72 percent of teens in an online survey had been cyberbullied, but only one in 10 had reported the problem to adults. Children are often afraid that if they ask their parents for help, they'll be restricted from using the Internet. Instead, they try to deal with the problem on their own. With no adults involved, the problem often grows.

References

• "The New York Times"; Confronting Bullies Who Wound With Words, Marcelle S. Fischler; October 16, 2005
• ABC Good Morning America; "Cyber Bullying" on the Rise, Say Experts; January 2005
• "The New York Times"; Parents Often Unaware of Cyber-Bullying; Tara Parker-Pope; October 2008
• Wiley Online Library; "Journal of School Health"; Extending the School Grounds?---Bullying Experiences in Cyberspace; Jaana Juvonen PhD et al.; 2008

Resources

• Stopbullying.gov: Cyberbullying