CYBERBULLYING

1. CYBERBULLYING What Parents/Students Need to Know Kenneth Hanson

2. What is Cyberbullying? • Cyber bullying is when a child or teenager is tormented, harassed, humiliated, embarrassed, or otherwise targeted by another child or teenager using the Internet, interactive and digital technologies, or cell phones. (www.stopcyberbullying.org) • Cyber bullying is the willful and repeated harm inflicted through the use of computers, cell phones, and other electronic devices. (Hinduga and Patchin (2009))

3. Why Should YOU Care (The Pew Internet and American Life Project 2007) • 97 % of youth use the Internet and more than half use it daily • Nearly 20% of middle school students have been cyberbullied in the last 2-3 months (Kowalski & Limber 2007) • The greatest change in online activity is between the 6th and 7th grade (Be Prepared Ahead of Time) • Almost 50 % of youth have cell phones (increasing!!) • 75 % of youth use text-messaging daily • 25% of social networking sites belong to minors • 61 % have a personal profile • ½ include a picture (often provocative)

4. Cyber Bullies Weapons and Sources • Social Networking Sites (MySpace, Facebook, etc…) • Chat rooms • Text-messaging (cell phones) • Personal Websites • E-mails • Pictures sent through cell phones and posted to the web

5. Examples of Cyberbullying • Sending mean, vulgar, or threatening messages or images • Posting sensitive, private information about another person • Pretending to be someone else in order to make that person look bad • Intentionally excluding from an online group (stopbullynow.hrsa.gov)

6. Examples Cont'd (Bloomenfield and Cooper 2008) • People sending hurtful, cruel, and threatening messages • People stealing other people’s screen names and sending inflammatory messages to other people using their identity. • People creating online “polling booth” to rate a school’s girls as “hottest,”, “ugliest,” or “most boring.” (Harmon, 2004) • Individuals taking pictures of others in the locker rooms with digital phone cameras and sending those pictures to others or posting them on the Internet.

7. DIFFERENCES Bullying Cyberbullying • Direct • Occurs on school property • Poor relationships with teachers • Fear retribution • Physical: Hitting, Punching & Shoving Verbal: Teasing, Name calling & Gossip Nonverbal: Use of gestures & Exclusion • Anonymous • Occurs off school property • Good relationships with teachers • Fear loss of technology privileges • Further under the radar than bullying • Emotional reactions cannot be determined {McKenna & Bargh, 2004; Ybarra & Mitchell, 2004}

8. Cyberbullying Categories • “Inadvertent” • Role-play • Responding • May not realize it’s cyber bullying • “Vengeful Angel” • Righting wrongs • Protecting themselves • “Mean Girls” • Bored; Entertainment • Ego based; promote own social status • Often do in a group • Intimidate on and off line • Need others to bully; if isolated, stop “Power-Hungry” • Want reaction • Controlling with fear “Revenge of the Nerds” (“Subset of Power-Hungry”) • Often Victims of school-yard bullies • Throw ‘cyber-weight’ around • Not school-yard bullies like Power-Hungry & Mean Girls {Parry Aftab. Esq., Executive Director, WiredSafety.org}

9. Effects on Young People • Increased school absenteeism • School difficulties • Perpetrators of school violence • Increased risk of alcohol and drug use • Linked to serious mental health problems: • Depression • Anxiety Disorders • Fear and Withdrawal • Low Self Esteem • Substance Abuse Blumenfield & Cooper 2008

10. Cyberbullying Statistics (Parry Aftab) • Typically starts around age 9 and ends after 14 years of age • 65 % of students between 8 – 14 have been involved directly or indirectly in a cyber bullying incident as the victim or friend • 50% had heard of a website bashing of another student • 15% of parents polled knew what cyber bullying was.

11. Statistics Cont'd (i-Safe.org) • 42% of kids have been bullied while online. 1 in 4 have had it happen more than once. • 35% of kids have been threatened online. Nearly 1 in 5 have had it happen more than once. • 21% of kids have received mean or threatening e-mail or other messages. • 58% of kids admit someone has said mean or hurtful things to them online. More than 4 out of 10 say it has happened more than once. • 53% of kids admit having said something mean or hurtful to another person online. More than 1 in 3 have done it more than once. • 58% have not told their parents or an adult about something mean or hurtful that happened to them online.Based on 2004 i-SAFE survey of 1,500 students grades 4-8

12. *Taken from an i-SAFE America survey of students nationwide.

13. *Taken from an i-SAFE America survey of students nationwide.

14. Peru 5th & 6th Grade Statistics • 85 % have access to the internet outside of school • 40% of students claim parents do not always know when they are on the internet • Approximately 50% of 5th graders and 60% of 6th graders have used MySpace or other social networking site. • 20% claim they share personal information over the internet • 55% own a cell phone and over ½ use text messaging • 35 % HAVE RECEIVED THREATS OVER THE INTERNET OR CELL PHONE

15. Parents Role in Preventing Cyberbullying • Keep your home computer in easily viewable places • Talk regularly with your child about on-line activities • Specifically about cyber bullying and encourage child to inform you immediately • Encourage child to inform you of other victims they might know • Explain cyber bullying is harmful and unacceptable behavior • Consider installing parental control filtering software • Stay involved in your child’s life • Report immediately any concerns of cyber bullying www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov

16. Warning Signs (www.cyberbullying.us) A child may be a victim of cyberbullying if he or she… • unexpectedly stops using the computer • appears nervous or jumpy when an Instant Message, text message, or Email appears • appears uneasy about going to school or outside in general • appears to be angry, depressed, or frustrated after using the computer • avoids discussions about what they are doing on the computer • becomes abnormally withdrawn from usual friends and family members A child may be cyberbullying others if he or she… • quickly switches screens or closes programs when you walk by • uses the computer at all hours of the night • •gets unusually upset if he/she cannot use the computer • laughs excessively while using the computer • avoids discussions about what they are doing on the computer • uses multiple online accounts or using an account that is not their own

17. Tips for Students (i-Safe.org) • Tell a trusted adult about the bullying • Don’t open or read messages from cyber bullies • Tell your school if it is school related • Don’t erase the messages- they may be needed to take action • Protect yourself – never agree to meet with the person or with anyone you meet online • If you are threatened with harm, inform local law enforcement

18. http://www.stopcyberbullying.org/ http://www.netsmartz.org/ http://www.staysafe.org/ Helpful Resources and Websites