Bullies take sticks and stones from playground to internet (1 Viewer)

[Lazarus]

Hi all -

I'd very much appreciate your comments and feedback on the following and whether bullying is prevalent in these forums (and if so, to what extent).

Bullies take sticks and stones from playground to internet

By Hannah Edwards
April 23, 2006

BULLYING has moved out of the school yard and into cyberspace, with the internet and mobile phones now the major tools of student bullies.

A major Australia-wide survey of 13,000 girls found that 42 per cent of respondents had experienced some form of cyber-bullying - a worrying result, says adolescence psychologist and spokesman for the National Coalition Against Bullying Michael Carr-Gregg.

"The interesting thing about this survey is that it shows we have got a new, really major public health issue for our young people," Dr Carr-Gregg said.

He said a "whole new lexicon" of bullying had evolved with the shift into cyberspace, with terms such as "masquerading" - where one student steals another's passwords and sends out inflammatory messages under their name - and "flaming" - where students send streams of abuse in a public, online arena - now common.

The survey found that 39 per cent had occasionally been flamed and 41 per cent had at one time had someone masquerade as them on the internet.

But parents are typically ignorant of these potentially devastating new bullying methods, Dr Carr-Gregg said.

"One thing parents don't understand is that the length of a person's Buddy List [the contact list in one online chat program] is a social indicator of your social status," Dr Carr-Gregg said.

Use of new technology is prevalent among young people, the Girlfriend magazine-run study found, with 97 per cent of respondents able to access the internet at home and 69 per cent cent using a mobile phone at school.

Dr Carr-Gregg said cyber-bullying was a new phenomenon, referring to a study by the University of New Hampshire in 2004 where just 7 per cent of respondents said that they had been bullied online.

The new style of bullying can have a devastating effect on young people.

"At school, if you are bullied you can tell a teacher but in this environment there is no one to talk to," Dr Carr-Gregg said. "It is more damaging than normal school bullying."

A combination of the technologies is also being used for bullying, such as students using their mobile phone to take photos of another student and uploading it to a public website.

He said parents and internet service providers need to get active against cyber-bullying.

"My one plea to parents is to do something about children's computers in their bedroom. Put it out into the main part of the house.

"[I am also] challenging internet service providers to take note of these results and start being proactive. They need to show a civic responsibility and educate kids about what's acceptable and what's not."

http://www.smh.com.au/news/technolo...d-stones-online/2006/04/22/1145344321883.html

 

[mr_brightside]

Of course there is Laz!

Havent you seen some of the trolling/flaming spree's? A lot of the time it can be seen as a joke but i guess some people (particularly those newer to the forum) might take it seriously.

Cause the internet is serious business (y)

 

[Kabeio]

Lol (wanted to know if bullying goes on these forums)


Not really, very friendly environment

 

[stazi]

I see bullying as unavoidable in everything that we do, however, I don't think its a particular problem as it's quite controlled. If a member calls me a "dickhead with no friends", whilst it may be offensive, its not something I'd be concerned about.
People have disagreements all the time, and I doubt that many people go home after them (home is used in jest) and feel bullied.

 

[hiphophooray123]

i think it can have serious effects on early teens (13-17) because they usually have similar experiences with social and high school life and that blends with teh intranet now. They get ranked even on the internet which is sad but oh well. Amongst young adults i don't see it as a problem, and if a young adult allows himself to be bullied over the net (ie, get really offended and emotional) then that's just sad

 

[loquasagacious]

I agree with the sentiments expressed, bullying is part and parcel of human nature. I would take this further and say it is unavoidable in any instances of human contact and that it can not be stopped only pushed into other methods and mediums. I think it is largely a case of peoplehaving to accept this and grow a thicker skin and I think the vast majority of people do this.

Also it must be remembered that just as 'nigga' can be used as a term indicating comraderie among african americans that brogans threats of e-rape and the like are similar expressions. It is a case of use of otherwise offensive language being used to seperate a group from general society and form a kind of common language that may well appear insulting and depraved to outsiders.

Also the internet has one feature that other mediums of bullying do not - you can avoid it and ignore it. It is far more of a choice to be bullied online than offline as it is far harder to not hear or feel something than to not read something. Easier to avoid a bully among millions of pages of content than on a school bus.

And finally if it comes to that the banning of a serial bully is far more effective than a lunchtime detention at school.

Having said all this I have found the general level of flaming on BoS to be quite low and the environment a very friendly one compared to other forums I have been a member of in the past where debates have commonly boiled over into flame wars (which i don't incidently regard as bullying).

EDIT: Oh and as a small note the title 'Bullies take sticks and stones from playground to internet' is interesting in that it is derived from the saying 'sticks and stones may break my bones but words may never hurt me' and on the internet you are immune from literal sticks and stones and the saying establishes that words may never hurt therefore the internet is almost the ultimate safety haven. A place to socialise without the risks of broken bones.

 

[Generator]

Cause the internet is serious business (y)

Much like the playground/whatever high school kids call it.

I think that it's an issue within the social/non-school forums, and it's one that isn't really helped by the fact that the forum at large is frequented by people from varying age groups - some members seem to ignore this difference and act as though they are conversing with people of the same age. That there are varying degrees of maturity and intelligence (neither of which are necessarily linked to the other or age, of course) also add more than a bit of fuel to the mix.

Unlike the others, I don't think that it's right to think that it's 'sad' if an older member of the forum feels bullied or that one can simply avoid it by turning off the PC or leaving the forum. Given that the net is, by and large, faceless for most, it's hard to properly determine the way in which different people respond to any actual or perceived acts of bullying. I don't think that it's right to assume that we are all capable of realising that this is 'just' the net, because that it is to assume that we all treat the net as a meaningless attachment to, rather than an integral part of, our lives.

In short, I think that it's an issue of some concern within the social forums, if only because a number of members fail to realise that each of us have our own connection to both the internet and the forum, with some of these connections being far more serious than others.

Edit: I should point out that I'm not trying to suggest that we all walk on eggshells at all times, but rather I'm saying that we should all be mindful of the the way in which we interact with other members of the forum, especially those who are an unknown quantity and/or aren't a part of the BOS crowd of the moment.

 

[kami]

It seems to me, that one of the larger issues in restricting bullying is interpretation of exactly what bullying is - regardles of whether its in the playground or on the net. Teachers may not always recognise some of the things kids accept as a given in behaviour and this given is always changing due to cultural shifts and so on. This effect is magnified on the internet where things can be interpreted in sooo many ways, and people can express themselves so easily. Given this, it makes me wonder if there is a real solution to internet bullying since you don't know how the person is reacting on the other end or what the original person intended.

However it does exist on here, there are members who are more than willing to mess with someone gullible and its usually those kind of people who would feel bullied. Its just a matter of deciding if the recipient should grow a thicker skin or not.

 

[towny]

it's all well and good to say "oh, it's okay, they're just a person on the net" but if the meet-up thread in NS is anything to go by (and personal experience 2) many people on BoS have met, or are even good friends with the people on these forums, which is both a positive and a negative as well. BoS has this amazing ability to transcend the internet, which means some flaming can be taken very seriously. for instance, i've had a very public disagreement with Pwar, Stas and Brogan. Now, i have met both Stas and Pwar, as such, its hard to consider comments from them (and i cant speak for them, but i presume that perhaps my comments carry the same weight) as just words on a screen.

however, i also suspect that those who know each other on BoS in real life are a small clique of the general population

 

[nwatts]

I have no problems with bullying in your case townie.

 

[xeuyrawp]

Cause the internet is serious business (y)

My sentiments exactly.

All the bullying is kept in NS because it's the cesspool. People in there should learn that they're swimming in the pool and that they're going to come across monsters, and, most importantly, learn that this is a great way to meet people, but it should be fun.

I've never come across any real bullying in the important parts of the site, but I'd say that I've never been successfully bullied in my entire life. In NS, you find the people who are bullied are those that love to play the victim - they'll be bullied all their lives, no matter where they are.

 

[stazi]

I think the point is that even though a member may be getting bullied on these forums, they can just switch off the computer, or close the browser's window and the bullying disappears. Sure, there are cases where people know each other in real life, but I doubt that anyone will really be extremelly affected by what is said on these forums.

 

[Lazarus]

I have no problems with bullying in your case townie.

Is this perhaps a prime example... ?

It's very easy to say that they're "just words on a screen" and that you shouldn't take offence.

But how often do people actually have a choice in the matter? You're either offended, or you're not. If you're offended, the damage has been done.

Even if you usually don't take offence very easily, the cumulative effect of negative remarks can be quite devastating. I agree that if it only happens once or twice, or sporadically, then most people would probably be able to shrug it off and not attach any particular significance to it.

However, in most cases, it seems to happen again and again and again. For some users, every single time they post, a derogatory remark is thrown back at them. Again. And again. And again! If you keep getting bashed with the insult hammer, it's eventually going to take its toll. Insecurities will start to creep in and life will gradually lose its glamour.

Closing the browser doesn't make it disappear. Just as walking away from someone in real life doesn't magically undo everything they've said and done. The sting of the insult remains. The memory is left in your subconscious.

Many people don't even realise when they are being bullied (or when they are bullying others).

 

[hiphophooray123]

but were not 12 years old, if you get offended over the internet and your over 17, something is wrong with you.

 

[stazi]

Yes I do agree that in some cases bullying can go too far. Some members may not feel that welcome to come back on the forum (Harlequin, Casmira, Politik). However, it seems like they became the token 'bullyable" people and didn't seem too affected by the 'bullying'.

Whilst it is noble to try and prevent bullying, I think that it does occur naturally in every possible context. If you prevent bullying over a few members, then bullying will occur over someone else.

That said, I am happy with the reduction of person-specific long-term bullying, especially if the user feels that the bullying has been taken too far and their enjoyment of BOS has been compromised.

We also have to remember that not everyone is like 'us'. There will always be individuals who are actually affected by what happens on the forum. There will be people using them with all sorts of ailments ranging from depression to schizophrenia.

The solution is quite obvious, I think. There should be a publicised thread/policy that encourages users who feel they are being bullied to seek out a mod in the contact mod forum. The service should be confidential. A mod can then warn the user in question, i.e. "After monitoring your behaviour...you are bullying... please stop....or Laz will revoke his sexytime from you".

 

[stazi]

but were not 12 years old, if you get offended over the internet and your over 17, something is wrong with you.

There are users who are as young as 15 on these forums (School Cert). Also, not everyone is 'normal': as I'm sure you would have realised by now from these forums. Numerous people do have problems ranging from depression to anxiety disorders, to even being a wheelchair.

I stand by my idea to create better support networks, but at the same time I disagree that bullying is really such a problem on these forums. The support networks would act more as a precautionary measure for any extreme forms of bullying.

 

[volition]

I don't think there's much that can be done to stop the 'bullying' that happens on here. I think it's really just "the intarweb" and that you can't really go on expecting not to find anything that could offend you.

 

[davin]

though, the issue isn't. "is bullying something one should expect", but "is it prevalent"
just because someone coming onto the internet shouldn't assume they'll never deal with bullying and the like doesn't mean that there's something wrong with trying to prevent bullying within a particular community on the internet if those in charge of it choose to do so.

 

[BronwynKate]

Shouldn't we report bullying posts to the moderators?

I have done this and they have dealt successfully with the problem.

One week I was personally attacked for saying I agreed with Scientology's stance on psychiatry with qualifications of course. I reported it and the post was deleted.

I think those who feel they are being bullied on the boards should tell someone, preferably the moderators who can do something about it.

99.9% of the people on BoredOfStudies are nice.

Thank you Stazi for standing up for people with neurological condtions who may interpret what is said on the forum differently from what a typically developing person may.

Everybody is different and everybody deserves respect.

 

[santaslayer]

Bullying on the internet can be controlled quite well. If you don't like what someone says on MSN, you can block them. If you don't like the e-persona of someone on an internet forum, you can ignore their posts. BoS has such function! The content you recieve on the internet (in terms of bullying) can be very much contained.

On the phone is easier. If someone is constantly SMS'ing or prank calling, you can start to take action against them. Such behaviour will probably be termed as harrassment if it continues.

The only form of bullying that may be unavoidable is if someone decides to make a webpage dedicated to making fun of you. Would some sort of legal remedy be available? I'm not sure since this is cyberspace.

But of course, the issue is whether all this has devastating affects on the individual. I have experienced some sort of flaming but I can honestly say that I don't take it to heart if I do not know the person. If I do know the person then you'll have to deal with the problem face to face anyway. Technology has just improved accessability, not created something totally new.