In this text I’m going to give a brief explanation of the concept of cyberbullying and some results and consequences of it.
Cyberbullying is a type of bullying that occurs on the internet. The bullies use electronic devices like phones, tablets or computers to attack people via social media apps, such as Facebook (usually in the comments or through direct messages), Instagram (same as Facebook) or even Snapchat (through mean photos or also direct messages), via sms, through phones or even email. The bullying consists on sending or sharing, sometimes even posting mean, harmful, usually false but in general negative remarks about the person that is being targeted on it has been increasing since the birth of social media in general… But we wonder, what are the consequences?
The consequences of cyberbullying have been increasing both ways, on a bad negative personal side and a good way in a justice side. A study shows 21% of students’ ages 12-18 have experienced (2015 sensor crime supplement). The intensity of cyberbullying has become so heinous that a law has been created to try and combat it, but even though it is lawfully punishable behaviour, people still don’t take it serious. Cyberbullying just like other types of bulling can impact the life, from the people whom suffer from it. It can lead to serious depression and suicide.
To conclude cyberbullying is a serious problem who tends to be ignored by our current society being even, sometimes, ridiculed by everyone.
Does cyberbullying affect self-worth?
In today's society, cyberbullying is a very hard and controversial theme to speak about, since it is a topic that involves a huge amount of people; we're talking about a society, our society.
Some people believe that cyberbullying is an overall massive issue that needs to be resolved, for it damages the quality of life of plenty of people, harming their self-worth as well as their mental health, conjuring problems such as depression, anxiety and many more. This will result in numerous cases in which people refrain from using social media or even using techology; they may even avoid it altogether, and even distance themselves from social situations and people that would otherwise maintain a relationship with them - at all costs.
On the other side, some people might have a different approach; they believe that cyberbullying is not that big of a problem and it shouldn't be dealt with with such importance, since there are "worse things to worry about". In this case, these people think that the victems of cyberbullying are simply too sensitive and paranoid, hence them not being able to deal with the issue themselves. These people regard the issue without much care or empathy and usually aren't very aware of the consequences of cyberbullying.
Overall and to conclude, in my opinion cyberbullying is a very extreme topic that should definitely mentinoned way more than once.
By: Edite Sousa
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