There are a number of cyberbullying statistics to take note of, and they are a strong indication that is becoming that is becoming something of an epidemic. It is a very serious concern and not something to be taken lightly, or that child will grow out of.
34% of academic students will experience cyberbullying during their lifetime
girls are twice as likely to be victims of cyberbullying
Victims of cyberbullying have a higher risk of depression even compared to victims of traditional bullying face to face.
Children are 7 times more likely to be cyberbullied by friends than by strangers.
Children who are bullied are 9 times more likely to be the victim of identify fraud as well.
70% of students report seeing frequent bullying bullying online
Many cyberbullies don't use the internet to find victims they use digital technology to bully people who they are already bullying elsewhere. According to a Warwick study, 99% of students would have been bullied regardless of new technology, so digitalization has only added an extra percent. What this really represents is that digital technology is not the problem by itself. but it make an existing problem far worse. Digital platforms are simply are simply a tool to reach existing victims. The statistics for adolescents that are bullied online and in-person are very similar. The most common reasons reported by students for bullying are appearance (27%), race(10%), ethnicity (7%) gender (7%) disability (4%) religion (4%) and sexual orientation (3%) as reported by the national centre for educational statistics in 2017.
Another trend that continually plays itself out is that those who are bullied typically go on to bully more people. Girls are most likely to report that they are being cyberbullied. Most commonly, cyberbullying occurs when the other person is seen as different is some way. The cultural context of the particulars school may have an influence on whether or not the is bullied.
Generally, there are 4 major types of bullying. These are social media, harassment, flaming, and exclusion. Social media bullying is all forms of bullying that take place on social media platforms, such as Facebook or twitter. Harassment is the repetition of negative threats that can occur via different channels, either in groups or alone. Flaming is the public shaming and humiliation of certain individuals, so other people can see, either online or offline. And exclusion is where the individual is ignored or not invited to social events. The victim can then be made fun of among the group without the victim knowing. Flaming is the most humiliating and can stay with the child or adolescent the longest, depending on how long it lasts. But exclusion can be the most difficult to gain evidence of and troubleshoot, as it is nearly impossible to prove. For example somebody might be deleted from a friends list or not an event, which is not exactly an offense on behalf of the child or student.
on a more positive note, while cyberbullying is on the rise, physical bullying has been on a steady decline for many years. According to the national centre for educational statistics, the number of students reporting being bullied at school has dropped from 28% in 2009 to 22% in 2019. Female students reported more instances of verbal bullying, and male students reported physical bullying.
The difficulty with cyberbullying is that it most frequently takes place on instant messaging services, such as Instagram, WhatsApp, Tiktok, Discord and snapchat because these messages are encrypted and private, there is no snapchat. Because these messages are encrypted and private, there is no real record unless you physically take the device from your child and look at the messages. Emails and public comments are much more easily recorded.
