Bullying and Cyber Bullying – from the classroom to the chatroom
Bullying is a difficult problem that far too many kids, and their parents, face. This has been with us for a long time. Nearly every child knows someone, or knows of someone, who has been bullied. With advances in communications, technology, smartphones and digital cameras, the problem has grown to be 24x7, and follows kids home. With events like Facebook’s anti-bullying campaign and well-publicized teen suicides resulting from bullying on Ask.fm, this issue has been prominent in the mainstream media. Join us for this unique discussion as we look at the psychological and technological issues surrounding modern bullying.
Web & Social Media Analytics Previous Year Question Paper.pdf
Bullying and Cyberbullying
1. Dr. Debra Huntley
Licensed Psychologist
District 196 Parent Fair
Nov. 2, 2013
Barry Caplin, Chief Information Security Officer
Fairview Health Services
http://about.me/barrycaplin, http://securityandcoffee.blogspot.com
Slides at http://www.slideshare.net/bcaplin
Handouts at http://www.bjb.org/stuff/talks/
4. What is Bullying?
Six key elements of bullying:
It is physical, verbal, or psychological attack
or intimidation
The bully is more powerful or perceived to be
more powerful than the victim
The bully intends to cause fear and/or harm
to the victim
The act is unprovoked by the victim
The act is repeated
It produces the desired effect
5. What is Cyberbullying?
Cyberbullying involves harassing, insulting,
physically threatening, socially excluding, and/or
humiliating others using electronic media such
as email, Internet sites, instant Internet
messaging, and cell phone text messages
6. How is Cyberbullying Different
from School-Ground Bullying?
Speed of distribution
Breadth of distribution
Anonymity
24/7 accessibility
Permanence
Attractive to those who lack power, popularity,
confidence, or social status
7. They Said/We Said
Teens:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Online 5 hrs/day
60% check SNS daily,
41% constantly
40.9% females use
Tumblr
29.8% males use 4chan
66% say parents don’t
need to know their
activities
Cyberbullying – 62.1%
witnessed, 23.3% targets
Parents think:
•
•
•
•
•
•
<3 hrs
48%/22%
16%
13%
33% believe teens more
tech-savvy, 23%
overwhelmed
10% believe their teens
targetted
8. Perceptions
Of kids in study:
30% had been bullied; 10% of parents
aware
15% had bullied; 5% of parents aware
*2013 Cornell University study of 465 parent/child pairs
12. Characteristics of Those Who
Bully
Age –Typically older than those they bully
Research shows that 8th graders were the most likely age to engage
in bullying
For elementary school children, lack of friends (not always true for
adolescents)
Aggressive, domineering, and hostile toward peers
Exhibit little anxiety or insecurity
Bullying has shown to be related to three parent characteristics: (a)
a negative emotional attitude such as lack of warmth and
involvement, (b) permissiveness toward aggressive childhood
behavior, and (c) the use of power-assertive parenting methods
like physical punishment. If bullying involves the abuse of power,
think about where the child first experiences the power differential
and how it is handled – between the child and the parent
13. Characteristics of Those Who
are Bullied
Age - younger students more at risk for being bullied
Children between 6 and 11 were most likely to be physically, verbally,
and emotionally bullied (i.e. teasing). However, in cyberbullying,
more likely to be middle school and first year of high school
Younger students may be more vulnerable because they have fewer
coping mechanisms/less skilled dealing with conflict
Children with ineffective coping strategies, low self-esteem, less
physical strength, perceived as different from others, less
assertiveness, lack of protective friendships, and lack of popularity
Quiet, cautious, fearful, sensitive children who may be easily moved
to tears are more likely to be bullied
Children of parents who are overprotective or sheltering; i.e. the
children are somewhat dependent and lack confidence in their own
abilities. Families are often enmeshed (e.g. lack boundaries)
Children who are cyberbullied are more likely to spend more time
online and disclose more personal information online than nonvictims
14. Effects of Bullying on Those
Who are Bullied
Thoughts of suicide and acts of suicide
Increased social support has a significant effect on
reducing suicidal ideation
Girls more likely to engage in suicidal ideation
Depression, low self-esteem, and anxiety
Psychosomatic and somatic symptoms; this
relationship seems to be especially true for younger
students
Avoidance/escape behaviors, such as not going to
school, refusing to go certain places, and running
away from home
Problems with academic performance
15.
16. Effects of Bullying on Those
Who Bully
Increased thoughts of suicide for bullies
May be ostracized by peer groups or
become victims of bullying
Bullies are at increased risk of becoming
involved in delinquency, crime, and alcohol
abuse
17. How to Deal with Those Who Bully
Must take into account severity/seriousness of the behavior. Criteria for
judging the offense might include (1) perceived harmfulness of the
action, (2) perpetrator’s history of bullying others, (3) amenability of the
bully to recognize the injustice of his or her actions and to practice more
prosocial behavior, and (4) the cooperativeness of the bully’s parents
Clearly identify the offensive behavior without condemning the child
Avoid personal abuse and instead offer student a chance to “make
things right”
Have the child learn coping behaviors when faced with conflicts or
negative emotions
Coping behaviors may be cognitive (appraising the situation, generating
other approaches) or emotional (distancing from situation, anger
management)
Parents should engage in more consistent discipline with a focus on
negotiation and less harsh discipline when resolving family conflict
REFER TO HANDOUT FOR TIPS ON HOW TO HANDLE CHILDREN
WHO BULLY
18. How to Deal With Those Who are
Bullied
Better if the victim can solve the problem themselves, if possible; greatly increases self
esteem
If possible, discover why child is being victimized: May be (1) socially unskilled, introverted,
or lacking assertiveness, (2) an emotional state (e.g. anxiety, depression) that interferes with
child’s ability to engage in appropriate social behavior, (3) being personally “different” that
in some way, draws attention from bullies, (4) being a member of a group for whom there is
considerable prejudice; e.g. race or sexual orientation, or (5) acting in a way that provokes
aggression from others
Based on possible reasons, provide access to specialized help OR help child acquire skills to
avoid being bullied (e.g. how to avoid overreacting to teasing or assertiveness training).
Important to also change the behavior of the bullies
Coping behaviors may be cognitive (confronting the situation, seeking social support,
making other plans, telling bully to stop) or emotional (distancing, control of feelings)
For 5 to 6 year olds, most successful strategies were telling a teacher or having a friend
help. Least successful was fighting back or walking away
For 12 to 13 year olds, nonchalance was more successful than counteraggression or
helplessness)
Children share more about what is happening to them if parents respond in a stable,
reassuring, and proactive manner and NOT a reactive manner
REFER TO HANDOUT FOR TIPS ON HOW TO HANDLE CHILDREN WHO ARE
BULLIED
19. How to Deal with Cyberbullying
Helpful for parents to talk with children about appropriate ways to interact online and the
family guidelines for computer use. Parents and children need to agree about the
circumstances under which the children should notify the parents if they receive negative
messages or view harmful content online
Parents should not read everything a child posts or views (invasion of privacy, trust issues)
but should let child know ahead of time that they will engage in some monitoring.
However, if there are issues of cyberbullying, parents need to monitor more closely. There
are software tools that monitor a child’s social networking sites and phone texts but they
only alert parents if certain words/terms are used so kids can still work around this
Teach children to save all bullying messages. If parents can’t tell who sent it, they can
forward it to internet service provider or in extreme cases, contact the police. Remind
children to NOT turn off the computer if they see upsetting content, but instead turn off
the monitor (so they don’t continue to see it) and alert the parents who can go back to it
and respond; parents need to instruct children to NOT respond to offensive content until
they have conferred with an adult
REFER TO HANDOUT FOR TIPS ON HOW TO HANDLE CYBERBULLYING
20. Prevention
Teach kids to solve problems without using violence and praise them when
they do.
Give children positive feedback when they behave well to help their build selfesteem. Help give them the self-confidence to stand up for what they believe
in.
Ask your children about their day and listen to them talk about school, social
events, their classmates, and any problems they have.
Take bullying seriously. Many kids are embarrassed to say they have
been bullied. You may only have one chance to step in and help.
If you see any bullying, stop it right away, even if your child is the one doing
the bullying.
Encourage your child to help others who need it.
Don't bully your children or bully others in front of them. Many times kids
who are bullied at home react by bullying other kids. If your children see you
hit, ridicule, or gossip about someone else, they are also more likely to do so
themselves.
Support bully prevention programs in your child's school.
SEE HANDOUT FOR TIPS ON HOW SCHOOLS CAN DEVELOP
PREVENTION PROGRAMS
21. Other Potential Solutions
Virtual empathy
Anti-bullying programs – do they work?
Facebook and other online campaigns w/ celebs
Pro-Hero!
{"11":"Nov, 2008\nan administrator confiscated a student cell phone "as a result of a secondary issue." \nWyoming county district attorney George Skumanick \nHe had been particularly alarmed by the case of Jessica Logan, an 18-year-old from Ohio who took her own life after pictures she sent of herself to her boyfriend ended up in the hands of fellow pupils. \nSkumanick offered the Tunkhannock pupils in question, around 20 of them, a six-month education program to learn more about the consequences of their actions - and to help them avoid a child pornography charge. \nThree girls - and their parents - refused to sign up, and are now suing Skumanick with the help of the ACLU. \nSkumanick said he thought he was being "innovative and progressive" when he offered the classes. \n"I didn't have to give them this opportunity. I could have just charged them," he said. \nHe says the recent arrest of a man in Georgia for allegedly making internet contact with one of the pupils involved in the case justifies his concern. The man has been charged with criminal solicitation and corruption of minors. \n","25":"Slides at http://www.slideshare.net/bcaplin\nHandouts at http://www.bjb.org/stuff/talks/\n","3":"http://www.buzzfeed.com/ryanhatesthis/a-ninth-teenager-since-last-september-has-committed-suicide\n9/29/12 – 9/10/13\nBullied by 2 girls, age 14 and 12 (former best friend)\nKik Messenger and Ask.fm\nBest documented from 12/12 – 2/13 (suicide)\nBegan because Rebecca had once dated the 14 y.o.’s boyfriend\n14 y.o. had history of bullying behavior\nRebecca’s mother was reluctant to take her cellphone away because she did not want to alienate her daughter and wanted her to be able to communicate with her friends\nhttp://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/16/us/felony-charges-for-2-girls-in-suicide-of-bullied-12-year-old-rebecca-sedwick.html\n","10":"The first poloroid camera was sold to the public in November, 1948. Polaroid photography was invented by Edwin Land. Land was the American inventor and physicist whose one-step process for developing and printing photographs created a revolution in photography - instant photography. You can view Edwin Land's patent for the polaroid camera on the left for the camera that allowed the photographer to remove a developing print after the picture had been snapped. Edwin Land founded the Polaroid Corporation to manufacturer his new camera.\n"}