The Pros And Consequences Of Cyberbullying

Keith Hansford

Mrs. Thillman

Honors Sophomore English 7

7 December 2015

“People say that sticks and stones can break your bones, but names can never hurt you. But I have come to realization that the statement does not apply to the majority of teenagers. Verbal abuse hurts." This startling statement by a sixteen year old girl, shows how a common believed adage has now been twisted by social media, technology, and society as a whole.

This example is just one of millions of people that have been affected by cyberbullying. According to the Cyberbullying Research Center, cyberbullying is the “willful and repeated harm inflicted through the use of computers, cell phones, and other electronic devices.” When people hear these stories, often they feel

Parents must be aware of what their children are doing at home by making rules that enforce good technology use online. When at school, the teachers and counselors must be responsible for them by setting up policies that foster good decision making and consequences for incorrect use. Two studies that were listed on the Cyberbullying Research Center’s website, show the change of affected students of cyberbullying over time.

The first study, which was conducted by the Crimes Against Children Research Center at the University of New Hampshire showed an increase in cyberbullying between 2000, 2005 and 2010. The numbers escalated from 6% to 9% to 11% respectively.

Secondly, a survey distributed by the School Crime Supplement and the National Crime Victimization Survey also showed an increase of cyberbullying during the years 2009 and 2011. The rise was from 6.2% to 9%.

While these number show an increase in the cyberbullying issue, Dr. Patchin is quick to point out that with limited studies and data points, it is hard to draw a conclusion of whether cyberbullying has been getting a lot worse or just staying relatively