Cyber Bullying Essay

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Cyberbullying does just as much, if not more, psychological harm to adolescents than traditional forms of bullying. Social media also plays a part in making it easier to verbally attack others anonymously through texting, social networks, and hate websites, thus, making the victim feel as if they do not have a safe place to avoid the abuse. Bullying, as defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, is “to frighten, hurt, or threaten a smaller or weaker person” or “to cause someone to do something by making threats or insults or by using force.” According to Marissa Maldonado, a blog writer for PsychCentral, cyberbullying is different in that it can happen “anytime, anywhere, and it can be done anonymously” (Maldonado). Although both forms of bullying have similar psychological effects, victims of cyberbullying have been found to have a higher increase in suicidal thoughts and tendencies than those of traditional bullying.
Victims of traditional bullying are believed to have long-lasting effects including depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, delayed growth and development and poor academic performance (Besag 137 & Maldonado). The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) has said that “stressors such as bullying place students at an increased risk of depression and in extreme cases may result in students considering self-harm or suicide” (Besag 137). A study done in 2009 by Matthew Nock, a professor at Harvard University, linked bullying to increases in suicidal thoughts and tendencies in countries across the world. He found that victims of traditional bullying were “between two and four times more likely” to have suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts (Granello 17).
Bullying has also been known throughout history...

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...rbullying has been proven to be even more detrimental to adolescents especially considering the rate of suicides. Technological advances have also played a significant role in the development of cyberbullying techniques in order to make the victim feel alone and helpless. In most cases of cyberbullying, 25% of students reported that they would not tell anyone and 47% would tell friends but not school faculty or parents in fear of consequences, such as retaliation from the bully or limited internet use at home, or belief that there was nothing that the authority figure could do to help them (Granello 18). Cyberbullying is an issue of rising concern that needs to be dealt with as soon as the warning signs become present. Laws enacted to protect those victim to cyberbullying will not only provide them with a sense of security, but help minimize the issue altogether.

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