Cyberbullying — Damage in a Digital Age
See attached white paper for more additional resources ...
1 in 3 kids say they’ve been cyberbullied
40% via instant messenger
30% on social networking site
29% playing online games
Several early studies about the impact of cyberbullying on kids show troubling results:
• Young people who were harassed online were significantly more likely to use alcohol or other drugs, receive school detention or suspension, skip school, or experience emotional distress than those who were not harassed.
• Young people who receive rude or nasty comments via text message are significantly more likely to report feeling unsafe at school.
• Targets of cyberbullying were eight times more likely than all other youths to report recently carrying a weapon to school.
Almost as troubling as the impact of cyberbullying is the limited understanding of how we prevent it. One in four kids (25%) report that they wouldn’t know what to do if they were bullied or harassed online.
What Parents Can Do
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• Set the rules. Explain to your kids that if they wouldn’t say something to someone’s face, they shouldn’t text it, IM it, or post it.
• Ask if they know someone who has been cyberbullied. Sometimes they will talk about others’ experiences before they’ll discuss their own.
• Establish consequences for bullying. Make sure kids know that if they aren’t responsible, you’ll take away their phone and computer privileges.
• Visit www.commonsense.org/cyberbullying-tips for more parent tips.
What Educators Can Do
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• Teach digital literacy and citizenship in K-12 schools so that all kids learn how to be responsible, respectful, and safe digital citizens.
• Establish clear rules about bullying and harassment in all forms. School is by far the most common place that youths report being cyberbullied.
• Provide professional development for all teachers and staff in how to recognize and respond to bullying.
• Implement Common Sense Media’s free middle school curriculum. Visit www.commonsense.org/educators for more information.
What Companies Can Do
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• Provide easy-to-use online resources for kids who have been cyberbullied, including better opportunities to flag and report bullies.
• Fund and facilitate local digital literacy and citizenship programs in your community.
• Support public awareness messages about the potential for cyberbullying and the impact it can have on kids.
What Government Can Do
