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“My friends commented on Instagram that I looked fat and need to lose weight. People are being mean to me and I can’t take it anymore.”

“Everyone in my friend group went out and posted a fun picture. I wasn’t invited.”

These are some common comments you may hear from children who are victims of cyberbullying – a form of bullying where perpetrators engage in aggressive behaviour online. They use the digital space to embarrass, threaten, sexually harass, or socially exclude others.

With easy access to the digital landscape, cyberbullying can occur anytime, and perpetrators and victims can be of any age, especially with today’s youths being raised in a technologically wired culture with platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok, as well as the internet. According to a 2022 study by the Pew Research Centre in the United States, 46% of teenagers have been victims of cyberbullying.

Recognising cyberbullying

It’s important for both kids and parents to recognise the different types of online bullying that can occur:

  • Harassment: Repeatedly sending negative or threatening messages
  • Fake Profiles: These are created to hide one’s identity and attack others anonymously
  • Flaming: Engaging in electronic messaging fights with negative or vulgar language
    Denigration: Posting or sending gossip or rumours about a person to tarnish their reputation
  • Social Exclusion: Intentionally excluding someone from online groups
  • Body Shaming: Making negative remarks intended to humiliate someone’s body shape, image, weight, or size
  • Outing and Trickery: Encouraging the sharing of sensitive information which is then revealed or forwarded to others

Cyberbullying research has shown that compared to traditional bullying, victims of cyberbullying experience more short and long-term negative outcomes. It can lead to poor academic achievement, and physical and mental health issues. Victims report high levels of depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, loneliness, and are more susceptible to emotional distress, self-harm, and suicidal ideation.

They may experience physical difficulties such as abdominal pains, headaches, poor sleep, low energy, poor focus, and a tendency to miss school, which subsequently impacts their academic achievement. Childhood sufferers may be reluctant to inform anyone about what’s happening as they may worry that it’s their fault, fear consequences of reporting, or are concerned that their online and phone access will be restricted. Some common signs of being cyberbullied include avoiding school, sudden changes in mood and emotions (e.g. depression, anger), trouble sleeping, social isolation, and withdrawal from friends
and family.

How to help

  • Children exposed to cyberbullying should not retaliate as this encourages increased harassment from the bully and others
  • They should inform or alert a responsible adult
  • Take pictures of the cyberbullying and share it with necessary professionals (e.g. school authorities, parents, police)
  • With the help and intervention of school authorities and parents, a victim can communicate with the cyberbully to request the cessation and removal of any negative content
  • Parents can educate youth on responsible digital citizenship
  • Encourage kids to immediately report incidents to adults. Together they can work together with the sufferer to create a mutually agreeable course of action to address the situation. In this situation, it’s important to consider the child’s perspective on the course of action to be taken
  • Parents can install parental control filtering software or tracking programmes
  • Consider creating a parent-child technology use contract. The terms of the contract should be discussed between the two

In Singapore, the Protection from Harassment Act (POHA) makes it a criminal offence to participate in harassing acts, whether online or in real life. This act is designed to deter cyberbullies and protect those who have become victims. It’s crucial for both kids and parents to understand this new phenomenon and its long-standing impact. Both victims and bystanders are encouraged to process the impact of these incidents with a counsellor or psychologist to reframe the narrative for themselves and develop coping strategies.


Kavitha Manokaran is a Senior Clinical Psychologist from International Medical Clinic (IMC). She specialises in therapy/counselling and psychological assessments for children and adolescents. She also provides adult therapy.

 

 

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Kavitha is available for booking at IMC Camden, IMC Children and IMC Katong

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