Cyber BullyingKerrville ISD

Micah Wrase, LSSP

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59kniHIw4uY

Similarities/DifferencesBULLYING

• DIRECT (face to face)

• Occurs on school property

• Poor relationships with teachers

Reaction:• Fear retribution

Physical: Hitting, Punching & ShovingVerbal: Teasing, Name calling & GossipNonverbal: Use of gestures & Exclusion

CYBERBULLYING

• ANONYMOUS

• Immediate

• Not limited to physical locale • Good relationships with teachers

Reaction:• Fear loss of technology privileges

• Further under the radar than bullying

• Harder to prove

• Emotional reactions cannot be determined

Computers

Cell Phones

Mobile DevicesE-mail, IM, Social Networking Sites (Facebook,

MySpace, Twitter), Websites (hate sites, Bulletin Boards, Chatrooms), text messaging, voicemail

81.4%

22%84%

Center on Media and Child Health, 2007

What technology is used?

Statistics: i-Safe survey

58% of kids admit someone has said mean or hurtful things to them online

53% of kids admit having said something mean or hurtful things to another online

42% of kids have been bullied while online

Hate Sites50% had seen or heard of a hate site

bashing of another student

75% had visited a hate site

450 – 500: # of “hard core” hate sites on the internet right now.

Prevalence of Cyber Bullying

• Cyber bullying typically starts at about 9 years of age and usually ends after 14 years of age; after 14, it becomes cyber or sexual harassment due to nature of acts and age of actors (Aftab)

• Affects 65-85% of kids directly or indirectly through close friends and family (Aftab)

True ExamplesElementary School in Fairfax, Va. last

year:

6th grade students conducted an online poll to determine the

ugliest classmate, school officials say.

Canadian teenager David Knight’s life became hell when a group of his school mates established a “Hate David Knight” website and posted disparaging pictures and abuse and invited the global community to join in the hate campaign.

True Examples

When Joanne had a fight with a longtime friend last year, she had no idea it would spill into cyberspace. But what started as a spat at a teenage sleepover swiftly escalated

into a three-month harangue of threatening e-mails and defacement of her weblog. "It was a non-stop nightmare," says Joanne, 14, a freshman at a private high school in Southern California. "I dreaded going on my computer."

Effects of Cyber Bullying

Psychological, physical, and emotional• depression, anxiety, anger• increased isolation and self-

destructive behavior• school failure, school

avoidance, school violence, and suicide

Effects of Cyber Bullying

Legal consequences for school and families (slander, defamation, terroristic threats, sexual exploitation, hate crime.

Family Complications (trust issues, privacy issues)

Very difficult to take back once it begins.

CYBER BULLY PROFILES

“Inadvertent” Role-play Responding May not realize it’s cyber bullying

“Vengeful Angel” Righting wrongs Protecting themselves

“Mean Girls” Bored; Entertainment Ego based; promote own social

status Often do in a group Intimidate on and off line Need others to bully; if isolated,

stop

“Power-Hungry” Want reaction Controlling with fear

“Revenge of the Nerds” (“Subset of Power-Hungry”)

Often Victims of school-yard bullies

Throw ‘cyber-weight’ around Not school-yard bullies like

Power-Hungry & Mean Girls

{Parry Aftab. Esq., Executive Director, WiredSafety.org}

Prevention for Parents/StudentsBuild your own “SafetyNET”

Keep mobile device in a place easy to monitorFamily plan (from Sprint, AT&T, etc)

Use monitoring software and/or blocking/filtering(internetsafety.com)

Work with the school, authorities, and ISP

Building a “SafetyNET”

Get tech literate (Community Ed, wiredsafety.org)

Communicate with children about the issue (isafe.org , stopcyberbullying.org)

Support the victimsDon’t blame the victimDon’t freak out

Response for Parents

Ensure your child feels safe, secure

THOROUGHLY investigate situation

Refrain from immediate banning

Contact parents of Cyberbully

Response for Parents

Talk to other parents (build own network)

Apply firm but realistic consequences

Talk to your child about the problem - educate

What We Can ALL Do …

From ‘Demystifying and De-escalating Cyber Bullying’ by Barbara Trolley, Ph.D. CRC, Connie Hanel, i.ehow.com/.../5734355/bully-main_Full.jpg