The NEWS recently reported on an in-depth investigation into the online behaviour of teens, which revealed a growing trend of teens actively involved in child pornography.
During the investigation, the NEWS also found a number of social media pages which allowed children to anonymously post abusive comments about others.
These pages often single out a single person.
Bedfordview clinical psychologist, Ms Cristine Scolari, said bullying online can be just as harmful as face-to-face encounters.
“Bullying is an unpleasant experience for anyone to go through, even when it happens in cyberspace,” she said.
Bullying in any form has negative consequences for individuals on the receiving end.
“The problem with cyberbullying is that it appears online and spreads rapidly,” said Ms Scolari.
Victims of cyberbullies find it more difficult to defend themselves and often feel helpless when they realise how fast it spreads and how many people have seen it.
“Parents will often only hear about cyberbullying from other children or parents. It is important that parents have access to their children’s online profiles such as Facebook, where they can monitor posts,” said Ms Scolari.
She added that there can be a delicate balance between being aware of what is happening online and privacy.
Parents must be able to distinguish between a falling out with friends and someone bullying a child.
Bullying can be as simple as spreading rumours and teasing a child, or as complicated as harassing, intimidating, threatening and isolating someone.
Bullying takes various extreme forms from taunts to physical aggression.
Children who feel they are being bullied should tell a parent or any trusted adult immediately.
“Do not retaliate by posting inappropriate material or comments about the bullies. Often bullies want this reaction,” said Ms Scolari.
Parents can have meetings with the school if the cyberbullies are in the same school. Most schools will have specific policies regarding bullying and cyberbullying.
It is important to save all the evidence and alert authorities.
“Also, alert the website that is hosting forums where cyberbullying occurs,” Ms Scolari said.
Help children take a break from online activities by planning family events and outings.
Online activities for a child can sometimes be all-consuming.
“Parents need to understand and educate themselves about technology, particularly the various platforms on which their teens are active,” said Ms Scolari.
Cyberbullying, like any type of bullying, does result in psychological scars such as lowered self-esteem, depression and anxiety.
“Interestingly, overseas research has indicated that most children and adolescents are naïve about cyberbullying, often thinking that inappropriate comments that are posted are just a joke. It may also be that children are too embarrassed to bring it up or make an issue of it,” said Ms Scolari.
Adolescents often know very little about internet safety, although most would attest that they do.
“In other studies it was noted that parental involvement was low, which is not ideal as parents need to be aware of what their children are up to,” she said.
Children and adolescents need to know from an early age that they are accountable for what they do online.
They should be taught about the risks and other aspects, such as respect, when onlineand these should be reinforced regularly.
“Parents being present is always important. There needs to be an honest relationship with open communication between parents and children. With good communication, most difficulties can be resolved,” said Ms Scolari.
Removing all computers, cellular phones and so on is not a solution.
“Children and adolescents live in a technological age and harm can be done by not letting them have access to various social media. However, both parent and child need to be educated about the dangers of the various media,” she said.
