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Cyberbullying

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Cyberbullying

Traditionally, bullying refers to an intensified and intentional behavior directed towards

individuals, sustained over time, and aimed at hurting the victims because of the relative inability

to defend themselves (Kowalski, Giumetti, Schroeder, & Lattanner, 2014). However, the

development of mobile technology, increased internet penetration, and digital age continues to

transform the forms of bullying into a collective electronic mode – commonly termed as

cyberbullying. Smith et al. (2008) defined cyberbullying as, "an aggressive, intentional act

carried by a group or individuals, using electronic forms of contact, repeatedly and over time

against a victim who cannot easily defend him or herself," (p. 376). That is, cyberbullying hurts

the victims socially, psychologically, and physically. The various forms of cyberbullying include

abusive texts and emails, hurtful texts and imitating others c=sarcastically in social media.

Demeaning videos, images, online exclusion and humiliation and libelous online gossip or char

would also pass as cyberbullying. Slonje, Smith, & Frisén (2013) emphasize that analysis of

cyberbullying diversity should concentrate on the media used (mobile phones and internet) and

forms (email, social media, texts, and charts), and behavior fueling it (threats, exclusion, and

flaming).

Prevalence

Cyberbullying is a complex problem because its victims feel helpless. With over 87% of

the Canadian households and 40% of the globe connected to the internet, cyberbullying crawls

into the living rooms, at work, public domain, and schools (Cira.ca, 2014). The prevalence of

cyberbullying cases could be higher because no specific tracking of such cases exists except for

victimization surveys done periodically and people do not often report the cases unless the levels

are severe. Patchin (2016) indicated that about 34% of the students who participated in the US

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national survey reported cyberbullying in their lifetimes. Another 22.5% and 20.1% cited hurtful

comments and rumors as the most common forms cyberbullying they experienced. Surprisingly,

the students confirmed that they experienced cyberbullying two or more times within the last 30

days before the survey. Again, 12% of students interviewed admitted to having cyberbullied

others through posting hurtful comments online over the last 30 days preceding the survey.

Adolescent girls are more likely to become victims of cyberbullying at 36.7% compared to

30.5% boys (Patchin, 2016).

According to nobullying.com (2015), 2% - 8% of Canadian middle school and high

school students admitted to having experienced bullying at least, once every week while another

4% -10% of those surveyed admitted to being the bullies. Again, 73% of the victims attributed

their bullying to aggressive texts, instant messaging, and emails. Just as (Patchin, 2016),

nobullying.com (2015) affirmed that girls are more vulnerable to cyberbullying that boys.

McAfee (2014) also indicated that 87% of the US teens and preteens had suffered cyberbullying

in their lifetime. The above figures confirm that statistics about cyberbullying is not exact

because no single entity in the world dedicates its resources to tracking cyberbullying evidence

over the web. Therefore, people relying on regular surveys. It confirms that problem of

cyberbullying could be bigger than reported and that makes it a social pandemic that might

explode anytime.

Characteristics of Victims and Perpetrators of Cyberbullying

In most cases, victims of cyberbullying show characteristics because of the stress related

their hurtful experience. The victims show signs of depression, reluctance to attend school, and

poor progress in education. Additionally, cyberbully victims exhibit moodiness, anxiety, high

aggression levels, and avoidance of online activity such as Facebook or Twitter. In other words,

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the victims react by limiting their engagement in online platforms despite active partition before

cyberbullying event. Children experiencing cyberbully may show nervousness when receiving

instant messages or text notifications.

On the other hand, bullies or perpetrators of cyberbullying show obsession with being

online all the times as a way of sustaining their attacks on victims. Children who use their

computers or smartphones in secrecy or switches screen whenever another person in the family

approaches are mostly cyber bullies. Similarly, cyberbullies may have a second account of

Facebook, email or Twitter to hide their real identity from their victims and laugh excessively

when using their computers of phones. Children with low self-esteem, cowards, signs of

delinquency, feel extreme aggression, and engage in substance abuse are more likely to be

cyberbullies than others. Lastly, perpetrators of cyberbully come from dysfunctional families

where parents ignore affairs of children or take less time interacting them.

Criminology Theories

Cyberbullying falls under criminal or civil law depending on the situation at hand. It can

result in crimes such as defamation, social exclusion, creating an unsafe environment, and

harassment. The fact that cyberbullying can amount to prison begs the question as to what

criminology theories can apply to it. The behavioral theory of criminology suggests that all

human behavior – whether violate or not – is a result of continuous social learning (Nicholson, &

Higgins, 2016). In other words, behavioral theorists would argue that no one is born with violate

character, but they learn to think and act that way depending on the people or activity around

them. People learn behaviors through observation and experiences one goes through when

interacting with friends or family members. Apply behavioral theory to cyberbullying; no one is

a cyberbully by design. However, perpetrators of cyberbullying learn their crime through

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interaction with people who does the same (Li, Holt, Bossler, & May, 2015). For instance, a

female student who participates in a gossip group may end up a cyberbully when the group

sustains the gossip for a longer time. Similarly, a young boy who observes his brother cyberbully

others over the phone or social media is more likely to engage in the same act. Parents who

engage in violence more often can encourage their kids to develop aggressive behavior, which

enhances chances of acting aggressively towards others through online socialization platforms.

Therefore, understanding the reason for individuals becoming cyberbullies starts with knowing

their social background.

Apart from behavioral theories, one can understand the concept of cyberbullying through

routine activities theory of criminology. According to routine activity theory, the sequence or

rather organization of events in a particular society develops avenues for crime (Branic, 2015).

That is, everyday activities of individuals – such as work, means of social engagement, school,

groups of socialization, and ways of travel – significantly determine the frequency, where, how,

and to whom the crime happens. Since opportunities vary in time, space, and among different

people, the degree of committing a crime varies as well. Therefore, routine activity theory

advocates for analysis of societal structure and existing opportunities in reducing crimes.

When applied to cyberbullying, routine activity theorist would argue that individuals

engage in cyberbullying because they have structures that facilitate the vice. For example, teens

and preteens with access to smartphones and the internet are more likely to engage in teasing

each other. The same way, the pop culture rules most of the youths in this digital era thus making

structures in the society to facilitate cyberbullying. Routine activity theory points at three

facilitators of crime: offender, possible target, and incapable guardian (Holt, & Bossler, 2008). In

the case of cyberbullying, the perpetrators (offenders) can have a target in different forms. For

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instance, the kid in the neighborhood pisses him or her off, the fellow student in class who does

something that offends, and many others. Most of the parents are busy in their jobs and have

limited time to interact with their children, which creates a perfect environment for a cyberbully

to thrive. In short, routine activity theory would best explain the concept of cyberbullying.

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References

Branic, N. (2015). Routine Activities Theory. The Encyclopedia of Crime and Punishment, 1-3.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/9781118519639.wbecpx059

CIRA | Canadian Internet Registration Authority - FACTBOOK 2014 | The Canadian Internet.

(2014). Cira.ca. Retrieved 3 April 2017, from https://cira.ca/factbook/2014/the-canadian-

internet.html

Cyber Bullying Statistics in Canada|NoBullying|. (2015). Nobullying.com. Retrieved 3 April

2017, from https://nobullying.com/cyber-bullying-statistics-in-canada/

Holt, T., & Bossler, A. (2008). Examining the Applicability of Lifestyle-Routine Activities

Theory for Cybercrime Victimization. Deviant Behavior, 30(1), 1-25.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01639620701876577

Kowalski, R., Giumetti, G., Schroeder, A., & Lattanner, M. (2014). Bullying in the digital age: A

critical review and meta-analysis of cyberbullying research among youth. Psychological

Bulletin, 140(4), 1073-1137. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0035618

Li, C., Holt, T., Bossler, A., & May, D. (2015). Examining the Mediating Effects of Social

Learning on the Low Self-Control—Cyberbullying Relationship in a Youth

Sample. Deviant Behavior, 37(2), 126-138.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01639625.2014.1004023

McAfee,. (2014). Cyberbullying Triples According to New McAfee "2014 Teens and the Screen

study" | McAfee Press Release. Mcafee.com. Retrieved 3 April 2017, from

https://www.mcafee.com/us/about/news/2014/q2/20140603-01.aspx

Slonje, R., Smith, P. K., & Frisén, A. (2013). The nature of cyberbullying, and strategies for

prevention. Computers in Human Behavior, 29(1), 26-32. doi:10.1016/j.chb.2012.05.024

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Nicholson, J., & Higgins, G. (2016). Social Structure Social Learning Theory: Preventing Crime

and Violence. Preventing Crime And Violence, 11-20. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-

44124-5_2

Patchin, J. (2016). 2016 Cyberbullying Data - Cyberbullying Research Center. Cyberbullying

Research Center. Retrieved 3 April 2017, from http://cyberbullying.org/2016-

cyberbullying-data

Smith, P., Mahdavi, J., Carvalho, M., Fisher, S., Russell, S., & Tippett, N. (2008).

Cyberbullying: its nature and impact in secondary school pupils. Journal of Child

Psychology and Psychiatry, 49(4), 376-385. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-

7610.2007.01846.x

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