Cyberbullying: The Downside of New Media Technology
Today's kids have access to a variety of new media technology, including cell phones, PDAs, and computers connected to the Internet. According to a study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, more than 80 percent of adolescents in the United States own at least one of these gadgets. They are using this technology to send text and instant messages, email, blog, chat, and access social networking websites. Kids are connecting with one another and with family, making new friends, and learning about a broad range of topics. But with no one watching, electronic freedom of expression has given rise to a new form of bullying, called cyberbullying.
What Is Cyberbullying?
Cyberbullies are children who use the Internet or another interactive digital technology to harass, humiliate, or threaten another child. A wide range of methods are used, limited only by the kids' imagination and access to technology. As kids fight back, cyberbullies often change roles with their victims, going from bully to victim and back again.
It's clear from the research that victims of cyberbullying experience psychosocial difficulties and present risk factors. Studies in the Journal of Adolescent Health (JAH) demonstrate an association between electronic aggression victimization and emotional distress (including anxiety and depression), school conduct problems, weapon-carrying at school, low connectedness between caregivers and adolescents, and sexual solicitation.
Unfortunately, cyberbullying occasionally spirals out of control, with credible threats of bodily harm or death. In extreme but rare cases, hurtful cyberbullying incidents can even lead to attempted murder or suicide. In one bizarre and well-publicized case, Lori Drew, the mother of a teenaged girl who had a falling out with 13-year-old Megan Meier, allegedly got involved with teenagers in cyberbullying Megan. Megan hanged herself at her Missouri home in October 2006, after receiving a dozen or more cruel messages. Lori Drew was indicted in May 2008 for her alleged role in the incident.
Types of Cyberbullying
StopCyberbullying.org has identified two kinds of cyberbullying: direct attacks (messages sent directly to your child) and cyberbullying by proxy (using others to attack the victim, with or without his or her knowledge). Direct attacks can take the following forms:
- Instant messages/text messages – launching a direct verbal assault.
- Blogs – posting mean, private, or false information about the victim.
- Chat rooms – posing as the victim to his friends and posting messages that are hateful, to damage the victim's reputation.
- Password theft – locking the victim out of an account; hacking into the victim's computer; posing as the victim.
- Photos – sending nude or embarrassing pictures through email and cell phones.
- Internet polls – creating a mean poll in which the victim's name is included ("Which of the following kids is the fattest?").
- Websites – creating a site to post hateful, embarrassing, or untrue information about the victim.
- Malware – sending malicious code to corrupt the victim's computer.
- Spam – sending porn and other junk email.
In the typical by-proxy attack, the cyberbully gets control of the victim's account and sends out hateful or rude messages to everyone on the victim's buddy list. Kids may also click on the Warning or Notify buttons on their IM, email, or chat screens, and alert the service provider that the victim has done something that violates the rules. If the victim receives enough warnings or notifications, the account may be closed and the parents may be notified, punishing the innocent victim.
Because cyberbullying by proxy often gets adults involved in the harassment, it can be much more dangerous. It becomes much more serious when, for example, the cyberbully posts offline or online contact information about the victim in hate group or child molester chat rooms. In cases like these, the victim has been placed in serious danger, and the police should be contacted immediately.
What Can Be Done About Cyberbullying?
Studies done for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have found that cyberbullies are in the minority of young Internet users – experts gives estimates ranging from 4% to 21%. However, the number of victims has been steadily growing: From 2000 to 2005, there was a 50% increase in the number of victims. Research says cyberbully victims could be up to 34% of young Internet users. This alarming trend has led state and federal legislators and school officials to pass new laws or modify and enforce existing laws. School districts in Florida, South Carolina, Utah, and Oregon are creating new policies to deal with cyberbullying. New York City is now enforcing a law that bans communication devices in school buildings. And the state of Washington has passed a law requiring the inclusion of cyberbullying in school district harassment prevention policies.
Unfortunately, schools' efforts to discipline students who are cyberbullies are often hampered by the fact that much of the harassment takes place off-campus and outside of school hours. School officials may even be sued for exceeding their authority and violating the student's right to free speech.
StopCyberbullying,org suggests that schools add a provision to their acceptable use policy, reserving the right to discipline a student for actions taken off-campus if they are intended to have an effect on another student or if they adversely affect the safety and well-being of a student while in school. This makes the issue contractual, rather than constitutional, and prevents others from charging school officials with exceeding their legal authority for off-campus cyberbullying actions.
Parents need to do more, as well. A JAH study reported that 40% of adolescents say their parents do not impose rules around Internet use and are unaware of what their children do on the Internet. Parents need to monitor and be highly aware of their kids' use of new technology, and they should encourage discussion and awareness of electronic aggression. Keep the lines of communication open so your child won't hesitate to tell you about a cyberbullying problem. Don't overreact, but don't dismiss your child's anxiety.
Many parents seek criminal charges when their child is harassed. Cyberbullying can result in a misdemeanor charge for "cyberharassment," though younger children may only be charged with juvenile delinquency. More typically, cyberbullying results in a child losing his or her ISP or IM accounts, due to violating the terms of service agreement. If hacking, password theft, and/or identity theft are involved, however, it can be considered a serious criminal matter under state and federal law.
In addition, parents and schools should work together. The CDC's Division of Violence Prevention and Division of Adolescent and School Health recommend that school-parent collaborative teams be formed to develop a plan to address electronic aggression. Such teams should regularly meet to evaluate needs and assess the effectiveness of the plan, implement monitoring practices, educate students and teachers on cyberethics and the law, and support both the reporting of incidents and actions taken by school staff and parents in response to those incidents.
If Your Child Is Threatened . . .
Your child may or may not confide in you about cyberbullying. But if you suspect that something is going on with your child, you may want to contact your school's guidance counselor and ask that he or she watch for any in-school bullying involving your child. If the situation worsens and your child appears increasingly distressed, consider seeking the support of your pediatrician or clergy, or contact a family counselor. It's important to take the situation seriously.
StopCyberbullying.org urges parents to escalate their actions as the threat and hurt to their child escalates, especially if the child is at risk of physical harm or assault. If your child's personal contact information has been posted online or any threats have been made, immediately contact your local law enforcement agency (not the FBI). Trained cyber-harassment volunteers at WiredSafety.org will work with local law enforcement at no charge, to help them find the cyberbully offline and to evaluate the case. You should also contact your Internet Service Provider and request that all electronic evidence be preserved, to allow the perpetrator to be traced. The police or volunteers at WiredSafety.org can advise you how to do that quickly.
Forewarned is forearmed. You can keep your kids safe online by being vigilant about their electronic activities, and by having frank and open discussions.
