Effects of Bullying

    Cyberbullying and The Dark Truths About It

Today the internet is as big as ever. Whether you like it or not, you probably use the internet on a day-to-day basis. I know that I do. The same is true for kids who are still in school. They use social media to talk to their homies and browse the web every day. There are multiple forms of social media that are meant to connect kids; however, people use these platforms to be downright mean to them.

  Cyberbullying is a big issue among kids today and has a negative effect on their mental and their grades. First though, we have to know what cyber bullying is to talk about its effects. According to the article Law Enforcements Reminder: The Negative Effects of Cyberbullying, Andrea Grossman writes, “Cyberbullying is bullying that takes place using electronic technology.” The article goes on to say that cyberbullying is different to regular bullying in that the kid is still bullied even when they’re at home. It takes a real sick person to bully a kid, but that’s just what happened at one particular high school.

In the article Pennsylvania Women Accused of Using Deepfake Technology to Harass  Cheerleaders, Christina Morales talks about a story of high school cheerleaders being cyberbullied. The problem started with three cheerleaders being harassed over text. Morales goes on to talk about what was sent to the cheerleaders. “Some of the anonymous messages contained doctored images and videos that attempted to incriminate the teenagers with fake depictions showing some of them nude, drinking alcohol or vaping. At times, the text messages took an even darker turn, telling at least one girl to die by suicide.” Morales goes on to say that the incident was later reported to the police and they were eventually able to find the sicko responsible for the crime. “In an arrest affidavit, the Hilltown Township Police Department in Bucks County accused Raffaela Marie Spone, 50, of cyberbullying three teenagers she knew at the Victory Vipers cheerleading gym in Doylestown, Pa., about 35 miles north of Philadelphia.” Now I know a lot of us hate cheerleaders, but I think I’m not alone when I say that this was just wrong. Cyber bullying can also lead to negative effects on a kids attendance.

 Andrea Grossman states in her article that cyberbullying can lead to truancy for a child. For a little clarification in case you don’t know what the hell truancy is, truancy is the action of staying away from school without a good reason. However, clearly there can be good reasons! Truancy can lead to other things to suffer such as their grades. There are a lot of examples of this cyber bullying taking place in schools. However, cyberbullying can take a toll on children outside of school too.

Cyberbullying can have a negative effect on a kid’s mental. Young children and even high schoolers are not fully developed when they are given a phone with apps like Snapchat and Facebook. They are more susceptible to things such as peer pressure and depression stemming from such sites. I think we all remember from our child hood how much peer pressure blows. In the article What are the Effects of Cyber Bullying?, Eric C. Alcera talks about the multiple different side effects. Children who are being cyber bullied may “Avoid talking to friends or socializing, say things about life being meaningless or talk about suicide, and lose interest in activities that previously gave them joy.” However, some people may say that social media has its benefits and is an important way for children to connect with one another.

Many people argue that social media is an important way for children to socialize. I know I don’t wanna give up my Instagram! However, this logic is only effective when it is being monitored and used in the correct manner. In the article The Influence of Social Media on Teenagers, Suren Ramasubbu talks about this topic. “While social networking undoubtedly plays a vital role in broadening social connections and learning technical skills, its risks cannot be overlooked. The lack or difficulty in self-regulation and susceptibility to peer pressure makes adolescents vulnerable to such evils as Facebook depression, sexting, and cyberbullying, which are realistic threats.” This means parents and other guardians of the children have to make sure they are paying attention to what their kids are doing and experiencing on social media. 

As you can see, cyberbullying is a threat to today’s youth and has mental and academic effects on the children it effects. There are many examples of this with stories coming up all the time of children being bullied in by sickos and creepers in and out of school. There have also been many studies done to show the effects it has. Some people may argue social media is good for building the social skills of kids. This is true but as long as it is done with adult supervision. In any case, cyberbullying is an ever-present threat to today’s children and must be stopped!