Spain, together with England and Italy, where cyberbullying is most present
The new times have also evolved other problems of the past. Whereas formerly bullying happened inside the classrooms or at recess, these cases now occur through social networks. A situation that has made it more difficult to act against the executioners and in favor of victims since these platforms favor anonymity.
Unfortunately in Spain this situation has become much worse in recent times. In fact, within the European Union, our country is together with England and Italy is the area where the most present is the cyber bullying. This is reflected in a study carried out jointly by the universities of Coimbra and Manchester.
Social networks, instrument of harassment
The greater presence of social networks in our lives and the expansion of profiles among young people have created a more propitious scenario for bullies. In fact, this study shows that 14% of students in Spain acknowledge having done at some point cyberbulling through these platforms consciously. Although there is also a group that did not know how to participate in one of these cases.
12% of the Spanish students that participated in this study recognized that at some point they made a comment on social networks or joined a joke against a specific person without being aware of being involved in a cyberbullying action.
As for the usual profile of cyberbullying, the 70% of these people is male. The remaining 30% are female. On the contrary, in terms of victims, there are no great differences between genders and both girls and boys suffer equally. Although it should be noted that the anonymity offered by social networks makes it more difficult to identify those who exercise bullying through new technologies.
Talk about cyberbullying
Dialogue is one of the most important tools efficient when it comes to preventing problems. Warn of these situations and create awareness about it is very important, this way you will also be able to prevent children from knowing the dangers of these activities. When dealing with cyberbullying, here are some points to try:
- Make you understand what bullying is. Children must be made aware of the dangers that may arise from these activities and the state of the victims. Clarifying the terms also helps prevent cases in which stalkers practice them without being aware of them.
- Dialog lines. Conversations about cyberbullying should not stop when the dangers of these cases become clear. Parents, schools and authorities must always be willing to listen to the students' stories and solve any doubts that may arise.
- Give example. Parents should avoid making jokes about other people's physical appearance or making fun of classmates, neighbors or relatives. This can be seen as something funny on the part of children and copied at school.
- Engage. Parents and teachers must join forces to prevent harassment both directly and on social networks. Establish joint strategies with which to make these problems a thing of the past.
- Create a good environment. The environment in which the child is raised is very important. We must bet on understanding and collaboration more than the competitive spirit among the students within the school.
Damián Montero
