CHAPTER 3

PRESENTATION OF DATA

Cyber bullying takes place when people use technology in order to harm others. “The
terms cyberbullying and cyberbully are attributed to Canadian educator Bill Belsey, founder and
president of the Bullying.org Canada Incorporated, and leader of anti-bullying efforts”
(cyberbullying). This cyberbullying has been affecting people for a very long time and can hurt
people aging from young teens all the way to adults. “Methods of cyberbullying can include:
threats; sexual harassment; spreading lies; impersonation in order to post materials to damage
a reputation, destroy relationships, or cause other trouble; making someone the subject of
ridicule or scorn in discussion forums, chat rooms or websites; the posting of compromising
photos taken without the victim’s knowledge or permission, or the editing of photos to
embarrass or impugn, such as pasting the victim’s face on a nude body; and developing a
person’s confidence in order to trick him or her into divulging secrets or embarrassing
information.” (cyberbullying). All of these methods are examples of what is currently taking
place in today’s society.

Like traditional bullying, there are several signs that may be present when someone is being
cyberbullied. Symptoms may include: Abnormal changes in mood or behavior, such as new or
worsened depression, or heightened anxiety or mood or behavior, such as new or worsened
depression, or heightened anxiety or fear, avoidance of friends, activity, or school, sudden
aversion to using a phone or computer, nervous or ‘jumpy’ when receiving a text, extreme
sleeping behaviors

Traditional bullying forced its way onto the web in the 1990s with the advent of affordable,
personal computers. Whether in public chat rooms or private messaging platforms, classmates
and ever strangers have subjected children and teens to cyberbullying. The web’s anonymity
provided the perfect cover for a user to harass or intimidate others without much repercussion.
While several US states have enacted laws in recent years to regulate teen cyberbullying, the
wider-reaching effects can be harmful and are something we should be more aware of and take
proactive measures against.

There are many causes for Cyberbullying to occur. One cause of cyberbullying is when
students use technology to harm others. When the students use the computer they may use it
to harm another student in which this results in cyberbullying (Cyberbullying). Another cause of
cyberbullying is cyberbullying because of drama. One student might be mad about something
that happened during school and use this to get revenge on the other kid which is
cyberbullying. (Boyd) These causes need to be prevented as more and more cyberbullying takes
place and leads to some terrible effects on people.

Cyber bullying affects people from any age or walk of life, including children, teens
and adults who all feel very distressed and alone when being bullied online. Cyber bullying can
make you feel totally overwhelmed which can result in many feeling embarrassed that they are
going through such a devastating time, and not knowing what support is available to
them. Many children feel unable to confide in an adult because they feel ashamed and wonder
whether they will be judged, told to ignore it or close their account which they might not want
to do.

While young people may seem content chatting away on WhatsApp and posting their latest
pictures on Instagram, social media has a dark side. As well as experiencing bullying in the
schoolyard, today's children and teenagers also have to deal with the problem online.
Considering the ubiquity of smartphones and social media, particularly among teenagers, just
how prevalent is cyberbullying today? A recent study from Ipsos polled parents in 28 countries
to determine cyberbullying rates in 2018.

It found that nearly one in five parents worldwide say their child has experienced cyberbullying
at least once. The problem is particularly bad in India which had the highest rate of parents
confirming instances of cyberbullying. A total of 37% of parents across India said their child was
bullied online, with 14% of that total saying the bullying occurred on a regular basis. In the
United States, over a quarter of parents said their child had also experienced the problem and
that's up from just 15% in 2011.

Cyberbullying rates are much more mixed in Europe with 17% of parents in the UK confirming it
along with 14% in Italy and 9% in both Spain and France. Interestingly, the phenomenon seems
to be virtually non-existent in Russia with no parents citing instances of cyberbullying. In the
2016 study, it did exist in Russia but the rate was quite low at just 9%.

The researchers conclude to make this research study to explore HTC students' beliefs and
behaviors associated with cyberbullying by answering the questioner. Data were collected from
the student of HTC, student feel reluctant to report cyberbullying incidents to adults in school
for various reasons, which are discussed in depth.