Bullying and cyber-bullying are quite different

By Liz Lockhart

When comparing bullying with cyber-bullying, researchers find that that the dynamics of cyber-bullying are quite different. It is, therefore, necessary for anti-bullying organisations and programmes to have specific and different interventions when dealing with these two problems.

The research was conducted by the University of British Columbia (UBC). ‘There are currently many programmes aimed at reducing bullying in schools and I think there is an assumption that these programmes deal with cyber-bullying as well,’ says Jennifer Shapka of UBC. Shapka, an associate professor in the Faculty of Education at UBC, add ‘What we’re seeing is that kids don’t equate cyber-bullying with traditional forms of schoolyard bullying. As such, we shouldn’t assume that existing interventions will be relevant to aggression that is happing online.’

Shapka’s study involved 17,000 students from Vancouver all of whom are in Grades 8-12. A follow-up study involved 733 Vancouver students aged between 10 and 18.

The study results suggest that around 25-30% of young people report that they have experienced or taken part in cyber-bullying. This compares to 12% who report experiencing or taking part in schoolyard bullying. ‘Youth say that 95% of what happens online was intended as a joke and only 5% was intended to harm. It is clear that youth are underestimating the level of harm associated with cyber-bullying,’ Shapka says.

The study further suggests that adolescents involved in cyber-bullying play different roles – bullies, victims and witnesses. Shapka says ‘They downplay the impact of it, which means that existing education and prevention programmes are not going to get through to them. Students need to be educated that this ‘just joking’ behaviour has serious implications.’

Shapka also suggests that being victimised online can have consequences for a person’s mental health, developmental well-being and academic achievement. She adds that in extreme cases, there have been reports of suicide.

There are three main characteristics which are associated with schoolyard or traditional bullying. These are:

Proactive targeting of a victim
On-going aggression
A power differential between bully and victim

These three characteristics are not necessarily involved in cyber-bullying, Shapka says. It has been found that power differentials such as size or popularity, do not necessarily apply online. It would also appear that there is a blurring between the roles which young people play online. It is common for individuals to act in all three capacities, as bullies, victims and witnesses.

It has been shown, through previous work conducted by Shapka and colleagues, that another difference between traditional bullying and cyber-bullying is that cyber-bullying is rarely associated with planned targeting of a victim.

Shapka concludes ‘An open and honest relationship between parents and children is one of the best ways to protect teenagers from online risks related to cyber-bullying, internet addiction and privacy concerns related to disclosing personal information online.’