Cyber Bullying Among Our Children

Kids and young teenagers like to use their cell phones and go online to email, video chat, watch videos, instant message, play games, and do homework. But occastionally the way they talk to one another can get scary or mean. Because so much communication is done online, and over text message it's really important for kids to acknowledge that their words can cause unintentional harm.

Ones intentions, accompanying the state of their behavior, are important factors in deciding whether or not cyberbullying occurred. Occasionally being mean is accidental, but when kids use the Internet and cell phones to purposely upset someone else over and over, that's cyberbullying.

Advice kids to establish affinity for others. Talk to your kids and explain to them that the Internet is a community that only operates well when all of its citizens are respectful and responsible. Demonstrate to them to use communication tools responsibly and respectfully.

Bullying that used to appear on the playground, where naturally a male student would pick on others who were smaller than himself, has now taken to the Internet and cellular devices, where typically girls "anonymously" pick on anyone they want. According to Kowalski et al., cyber bullying, also known as electronic bullying or online social cruelty, is defined as "bullying through e-mail, instant messages (IM), in a chat room, on a Web site, or through digital messages or images sent to a cellular phone." Although any of these venues are media through which cyber bullying can occur, research has shown that e-mail and instant messaging are the most common means of cyber bullying others and of being cyber bullied. The primary reason for this is that cyber bullying occurs most frequently among middle sch...

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...lunteers at WiredSafety.org will work with them (without charge) to help them find the cyberbully offline and to evaluate the case. It is crucial that all electronic evidence is preserved to allow the person to be traced and to take whatever action needs to be taken. The electronic evidence is at risk for being deleted by the Internet service providers unless you reach out and notify them that you need those records preserved. The police or volunteers at WiredSafety.org can advise you how to do that quickly. Using a monitoring product, like Spectorsoft, collects all electronic data necessary to report, investigate and prosecute your case (if necessary). While hopefully you will never need it, the evidence is automatically saved by the software in a form useable by law enforcement when you need it without you having to learn to log or copy header and IP information.