Paste yoCyber Bullying
Any harassment that occurs via the internet, cell phones or other devices is known as Cyber Bullying. Commonly, communication technology is used in order to intentionally harmful others through hostile behavior such as sending weird or rude text messages including posting ugly comments on the internet (1). While, according to the National Crime Prevention Council, cyber bullying is defined as ‘the process of using the Internet, cell phones or other devices to send or post text or images intended to hurt or embarrass another person.’Youth these days have fully embraced the Internet as both an environment and anequipment for socializing (2). Through the Internet and other technologies, they send e-mails, create their own Web sites, post intimated personal news in blogs (online interactive journals), and post to discussion boards, send text messages including images via cell phone, chat in chat rooms, contact each other through Instant Messages, and seek out new friends in teen sites. Unfortunately, there have been increment in reports of teenagers (sometimes providing younger children) using these technologies posingrude text or imaging to bully their peers or engage in other aggressive behavior (2). Apart from posting damaging text messages and images, there are also growing reports of teens posting stuffs which raise concerns that they are considering an act of violence toward others or themselves (2). In other words, cyber bullying could be limited to postgossips or rumors about an individual in the internet bringing about hatred in other’s minds, or it may go to the extent of personally identifying victims and publishing materials severely humiliating and defaming them.It is widely known that face-to-face bullying can be a result in long-term psychological harm to target which includes low self-esteem, depression, anger, school failure and avoidance, and, in some cases, school violence or suicide. Cyber bullying is nonetheless than traditional bullying. It has some serious effects on people which is from feeling low and sorrow, to mentally ill which sometimes lead to self-harm and then suicide.
To create self-esteem in children is an ongoing process and starts very early. Self-esteem is defined in many ways by various scholars. The self-concept is what we think about the self, while self-esteem is the positive or negative evaluations of the self, as in how we feel about it (3). In other words, it is an attitude toward the self and a judgment of an individual. So, praising children when they do something good and encourage them in a positive way help increase self-esteem in them. On the other hand, actions like cyber bullying decrease the level of self-esteem and increase feelings of sadness and loneliness.Low self-esteem further leads to pessimism, heavy self-criticism, perfectionism and other emotional effects (4). These also include change in personality and changes in sleep and eating patterns as well. The victims of cyber bullying are found to be having regular mood swings with anger, depression and crying which sometimes cause of skip sleeping and eating. This is mainly because of the thought that he or she is not good and does not fit in the society in which he or she is living due to dragging down self-esteem of oneself. That person started to think whether he is useful in anyway or not. More and more thinking leads to depression and if not controllable, to self-harm.Self-harm is a wide term that can mean to beat oneself to the extent of committing suicide. Since the Internet came and other technologies that fancies young children and teens, cyber bullying began and led to many young people committing suicide or at least tried to harm themselves. Recently, 5% reported self-harm and 3% reported an attempt of suicide as a direct result of cyber bullying (7). For example, there was a 14 year old girl who was bullied online where her email was hacked, her Facebook account was created and got bullied, so she committed suicide (5). Another example is about a 15 year old girl who committed suicide because of cyber bullying in which she only received comments on her appearance and weight, yet traumatized her (6). Cyber bullying is cause of various impacts on human including socioeconomic condition as well.
Mental health issues caused by the action of cyber-bullying not only include lowering self-esteem and self-harm, but also increasing loneliness as well as desire to isolate themselves. Such victims usually make withdrawal from family and friends but spend a lot of time alone. They find excuses to stay away from school or work including school refusal. As a result, friends start disappearing or the victim being excluded from social events. As a person is being isolated, his thought process changes and actions as well. He starts to behave improperly and hesitates among others when going out. He evaluates himself more regularly than before. When being alone, normal people often think about themselves, their present and future as well as the situations and circumstances. Similarly, cyberbullying victims, when alone and mostly all the time, think about themselves in a negative way like they have no future, they are not fitting in the society, they are not belong to their families and evaluate themselves in perspectives of others according to the bullies they received. Only a small comment (or bully) can harm a person to this level, no one could have imagined, but it is true and happening. Furthermore, some cyber bullying victims find the solution to all their problems in alcohol and drugs.
At first, the effects of cyber bullying may not be noticeable, but the stress factor builds up over time. Many young people experiencing cyber bullying feel alone and scared. However elders find their solutions in alcohol and drugs. Not that only elders are consuming alcohol, but young people were also found consuming alcohol and drugs lately due to cyber bullying which is very shocking.First of all, using drugs and alcohol are not the answers to the problems. They might make one feel better for a while but sooner or later he will have to face his fears and anxieties. Many people learn the hard way that drugs and alcohol will only make your problems worse (9). Alcohol and drugs are dangerous to human health. For the centuries, they have proved to be dangerous to death. Regardless of what you think, drugs and alcohol do nothing but add more problems. Secondly, avoiding fears and problems are not the answers. Eventually, a person will have no choice but to confront fears and stresses. When he decides to face his fears, he will begin to learn how to manage fears (9). As time goes on, he will become better in dealing with anxieties. With some patience, it will only be a matter of time before he finds the answers to the problems.The ensuring way to overcoming own fears and anxieties is in finding the source of fears and being able to manage it.A person can find the source of his or her own fears by doing some self-evaluation and also by talking to a professional. Asking yourself questions such as: ‘Why am I afraid’ or ‘What is causing my anxiety’ will lead to the right direction in finding the source of fears (9). Once the true source of fears is found, the next step is to find the solutions that will solve the problem.
Further, we have talked about the negative impacts of cyber bullying. But what if people start to think the other way around. For example, when a person is posting a rude message for you, what you can do is take it lightly, and be confident towards your own self-esteem and ignore. Another example is when someone is trying to bully you, be strong enough to handle the situation and report it to the police. People are all taught since childhood that judging others without knowing the whole facts is not right at all, and should not be done. In the same way, judging a person on his behavior of bullying is not right. However, it is not to be encouraged as the results of this crime has shown to be disastrous. But as technology increasing and developing, more people have access to internet and so more chances of cyber bullying is there. Therefore, if each person can be confident and take bullies lightly, he can prevent so many bad happenings in the world. There is saying that if you are throwing garbage on other’s doors and he is accepting your behavior with a smile, then very soon you will realize that you are wrong and should not do this. Similarly, if people start to less react upon the bullies, they will gradually discontinue this crime. In this way, you help yourself as well as others.
Cyber bullying affects people in any age or walk of life, including children, teens and adults whofeel very distressed and alone when being bullied online. Cyber bullying can make you feel totally overwhelmed which can result in many feelings which embarrassed that they are going through such a devastating time, and not knowing what support is available to them. Many children feel unable to confide in an adult because they feel ashamed and wonder whether they will be judged, told to ignore it or close their account which they might not want to do. For many cyber bullying affects their everyday lives and is a constant source of distress and worry. With mobile technology being so freely available it is an ongoing issue and one that is relentless. Not only does it go on after school, college or work has finished, but it then carries through into the next day and the cycle continues. It has been well documented that cyber bullying has resulted in tragic events including suicide, and self-harm and clearly, more needs to be done in order to protect vulnerable children and adults from online bullying (7). Therefore, a crime like cyber bullying is very necessary to be prevented and the prevention has to start from home by parents teaching their kids, teachers in school guide students about what is good and what is bad, what to encouraged and what not. Some of the examples that can be done to the victims of cyber bullying are reinforcing that no one deserves to be treated in this way and, they have done nothing wrong, ensuringwhich they knowing there is help available to them, encouraging them to talk to a teacher that they trust so, they feel as they have somewhere safe at school to go to and encouraging them to talk to their parents or guardians (7).
Inconclusion, cyber bullying is a huge serious and crucial matter not to be ignored.Cyberbullying is the use of technology to harass, threaten, embarrass, or target of another person. By definition, it occurs among young people. When an adult is involved, it may meet the definition of cyber-harassment or cyber-talking, a crime that can have legal consequence and involve imprisonment (8).Recent studies about cyberbullying rates have found that about 1 in 4 teens have been the victims of cyberbullying, and about 1 in 6 admit to having cyberbullied someone. In some studies, more than half of the teens surveyed said that they've experienced abuse through social and digital media (8). Severe, long-term, or frequent cyberbullying can leave both victims and bullies at greater risk for anxiety, depression, and other stress-related disorders. In some rare but highly publicized cases, some children have turned to suicide. Experts say that children who are bullied and the bullies themselves are at a higher risk for suicidal thoughts, attempts, and completed suicides. Furthermore, as it has been discussed earlier in this essay, there are so many effects for cyber bullying that have direct impacts on mental health and physical health. It needs prevention strongly, and everyone has to take care of each other but of oneself first.
References
1. 2017. Cyber Bullying Law and Legal Definition. Retrieved March 25, 2017, from Psi Phi:https://definitions.uslegal.com/c/cyber-bullying/
2. Common Sense Media. July, 2010. Thailand: Cyberbullying ‘
Damage in a Digital Age. Retrieved March 25, 2017, from Psi Phi: http://njbullying.org/documents/cyberbullyingpaper.pdf
3. Fiachra ” Cionnaith. October 29, 2012. Third suicide in weeks linked to cyberbullying. Retrieved March 25, 2017, from Psi Phi: http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/third-suicide-in-weeks-linked-to-cyberbullying-212271.html
4. Thegrio. March6, 2015. Mother says cyber bullying drove 14-year-old daughter to suicide. Retrieved March 25, 2017, from Psi Phi: http://thegrio.com/2015/03/06/mother-bullying-online-teen-suicide
5. Effects of cyber bullying. Retrieved March 25, 2017, from Psi Phi: http://www.bullying.co.uk/cyberbullying/effects-of-cyberbullying.
6. What Is Cyberbullying. Retrieved March 25, 2017, from Psi Phi: http://kidshealth.org/en/parents/cyberbullying.html
7. Nancy Willard, M.S., J.D. April, 2007.Educator’s Guide to Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats. Retrieved March 25, 2017, from Psi Phi:https://web.archive.org/web/20110410181159/http://csriu.org/cyberbully/docs/cbcteducator.pdf
8. Smith, E. R.; Mackie, D. M. (2007). Social Psychology (Third ed.). Hove: Psychology Press. ISBN 978-1-84169-408-5.
9. Jos”-Vicente Bonet. S” amigo de ti mismo: manual de autoestima. 1997. Ed. Sal Terrae. Malia”o (Cantabria, Espa”a). ISBN 978-84-293-1133-4.
10. December 22,2015. Drugs And Alcohol Are Not The Answers To Your Problems. Retrieved March 25, 2017, from Psi Phi: https://nobullying.com/drugs-and-alcohol/
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