Cyber bullies and victims show mental, physical problems

 

[caption id="attachment_9741" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Bullying - wikimedia commons"][/caption]

Carol Forsloff - Both victims and perpetrators of cyber-bullying evidence psychiatric and physical symptoms a report in the Archives of General Psychiatry maintains.

Cyberbullying takes place on the Internet, with cell phones and other forms of electronic devices that are used in an aggressive, intentional and repeated way to hurt those who cannot defend themselves.

12 percent of young people between the ages of 10 and 17 report being aggressive online or with electronic devices.

 "There are several special features regarding cyberbullying when compared with traditional physical, verbal or indirect bullying such as the difficulty of escaping from it, the breadth of the potential audience and the anonymity of the perpetrator," the authors of the research write. 

The research was done using a series of questionnaires distributed to 2,438 young people ranging from seventh to ninth grade.

Being a cybervictim only was associated with living in a family with other than two biological parents; perceived difficulties in emotions, concentration, behavior, or getting along with other people; headache; recurrent abdominal pain; sleeping difficulties and not feeling safe at school. 

Being a cyberbully only was associated with perceived difficulties in emotions, concentration, behavior, or getting along with other people; hyperactivity; conduct problems; infrequent helping behaviors; frequently smoking or getting drunk; headache and not feeling safe at school. Being both cyberbully and cybervictim was associated with all of these conditions.

"Of those who had been victimized, one in four reported that it had resulted in fear for their safety," the authors write. "The feeling of being unsafe is probably worse in cyberbullying compared with traditional bullying. Traditional bullying typically occurs on school grounds, so victims are safe at least within their homes. With cyberbullying, victims are accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week."

The results show how cyberbullying can hurt both the aggressor and the victim, the authors maintain.

 "There is a need to create cyberenvironments and supervision that provide clear and consistent norms for healthy cyberbehavior. Clinicians working in child and adolescent health services should be aware that cyberbullying is potentially traumatizing," they conclude. 

"Policy makers, educators, parents and adolescents themselves should be aware of the potentially harmful effects of cyberbullying."