RALEIGH — It’s a lucky child who sails through the school years unscathed by bullying. The scourge of the schoolyard, today’s bullies still engage in time-tested tactics of domination such as name-calling and physical aggression. But increasingly, modern meanies are turning to the virtual schoolyard, tormenting their victims online. Emboldened by a cyber-cloak of anonymity, adolescent spite is finding its outlet all over the Internet — on social networking sites, through instant messaging, in chat rooms — and in cell phone text messages.
Cyberbullying, defined by the Cyberbullying Research Center as occurring “when someone repeatedly harasses, mistreats, or makes fun of another person online or while using cell phones or other electronic devices,” is relatively common. CRC’s 2010 study of 4,000 12-to-18-year-olds found 20 percent had been cyberbullied. Data from the National Crime Prevention Council put the incidence of cyberbullying much higher — around 43 percent of middle and high schoolers. Girls are at much greater risk than boys.
Nationwide, policing this virtual schoolyard is raising thorny legal and ethical issues for educators and lawmakers. Though mean-spirited, much of what constitutes cyberbullying is not criminal. But some of it surely is.
In April, 15-year-old Ashley Rogers of Kernersville committed suicide just days after harassing text messages from male classmates. Her tragic death gives credence to growing worry over the perils of cyberbullying — concern already fueled by the suicides of several girls bullied online on the sites MySpace, Facebook, and Formspring.
Reports indicate that some or all of these girls suffered from depression. But that doesn’t nullify cyberbullying’s harmful psychological aftereffects. New data from researchers Sameer Hinduja and Justin Patchin show cyberbullied middle schoolers are twice as likely to have attempted suicide as their nonbullied peers.
Given statistics showing sizable numbers of depressed youth — Charlotte-Mecklenburg’s most recent survey of middle schoolers found 20 percent had thought seriously about suicide — there’s ample reason to pay attention.
How can we protect vulnerable children? Some say the laws aren’t tough enough. In the wake of 13-year-old Megan Meier’s 2006 MySpace-related suicide, Missouri lawmakers expanded harassment and stalking legislation to include online and text communication. Numerous other states have passed cyberbullying laws.
In 2009 North Carolina legislators criminalized certain cyberbullying acts, though the law excluded text messages — such as those received by Ashley Rogers. Her parents have said they will work to change the law.
Critics of North Carolina’s current law claim it is ambiguous and possibly unconstitutional. They may be right. If true, however, such criticisms should serve to spur lawmakers on to craft a more precise legal instrument addressing extreme cases of cyberbullying.
Meanwhile, schools and parents remain on the front lines. How do schools get savvy about tackling cyberbullying? CRC offers school officials an up-to-date “report card” to evaluate the efficacy of cyberbullying policies.
Administrators also must take reports of cyberbullying seriously, working closely with law enforcement officials when warranted. And they must grapple with the fact that kids’ mobile communications and recreational Internet use don’t stop for school. Texting during class is routine, and National Crime Prevention Council data show that more than half of 13-to-17-year-olds surf the Web at school.
Parents might want to double up on vigilance. Paradoxically, during the very years cyberbullying peaks (ages 15 and 16), NCPC data show parental rules on Internet use take a nosedive. Expert advice to parents is steeped in common sense: keep computers out of kids’ bedrooms, and closely monitor Internet and cell phone use.
Our timely intervention is essential. Today’s virtual schoolyard — vast as it is — is strangely devoid of caring adults. Surely we can change that. We must.
Kristen Blair is a North Carolina Education Alliance Fellow.