Evening Washington
Sunday, January 17, 2021
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • latest news
  • USA News
  • World
  • Other
    • TECH
    • Health
    • Fashion
    • Sports
    • Business
No Result
View All Result
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • latest news
  • USA News
  • World
  • Other
    • TECH
    • Health
    • Fashion
    • Sports
    • Business
No Result
View All Result
Evening Washington
No Result
View All Result
Home Health

A Dangerous New Twist on Cyberbullying

admin by admin
November 9, 2017
in Health
0
0
SHARES
0
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 8, 2017 (HealthDay News) — As if the idea of teen cyberbullying isn't harrowing enough, a new study warns of a strange twist in which kids anonymously post hurtful messages — to themselves.

The worry is that this digital self-harm — like traditional self-harm — may be a harbinger for suicide down the road, the study authors said.

RELATED POSTS

Type 2 diabetes: Mindfulness shown to lower high blood sugar levels – how to practice it

Prince George’s Approves Requiring Healthy Kids’ Meals at Restaurants

In the first survey of its kind, the nationally representative group of nearly 5,600 U.S. high school students was asked about "self-cyberbullying." The kids were all between the ages of 12 and 17. And about 6 percent said they had engaged in the practice.

The risk for doing so was highest among those who had previously been victims of cyberbullying or bullying themselves.

"We define 'digital self-harm' as the anonymous online posting, sending, or otherwise sharing of hurtful content about oneself," said study lead author Sameer Hinduja.

He co-directs Florida Atlantic University's Cyberbullying Research Center, in Boca Raton.

"It is not specific to any particular online environment," Hinduja said. "It can occur through SMS [texting], email, social media, gaming consoles, web forums, virtual environments, and any other online platform yet to be conceived.

"A little more than 7 percent of boys and 5 percent of girls were found to engage in digital self-harm," he added.

While these percentages aren't large, "they do indicate a problem when extrapolated out to the millions of teens in the U.S.," Hinduja said

The pool of high school participants in the study was evenly divided between boys and girls. Nearly 350 teens said they had posted something mean about themselves online.

Boys were "significantly" more likely to have done so than girls. Race and age didn't seem to affect risk.

Kids who identified as gay were about three times more likely to say they had cyberbullied themselves or posted something unkind about themselves, the researchers found.

About half the digital self-harmers had done it just once. Over a third had done it multiple times, and 13 percent had done it many times, the study found.

Almost half offered explanations as to why they did it. The explanations included self-hate; wanting attention; wanting to appear victimized to justify cyberbullying others; feeling depressed or suicidal; trying to be funny or make fun of themselves; and boredom.

Forty percent said they'd been bullied at school at some point. Almost 17 percent were prior victims of cyberbullying. Both of these factors increased the risk for practicing digital self-harm. Previous victims of cyberbullying had 12 times the risk of causing digital self-harm, according to the study.

Similarly, those who had used illicit drugs, stolen something, seriously hurt someone physically, developed symptoms of depression, or had engaged in traditional (offline) self-harm (cutting, scratching, biting or hitting oneself), were all significantly more likely to self-cyberbully.

Parents and educators "need to make sure we are discussing this phenomenon among adolescents," he added, "so that they can understand its reality and offer support if someone in their peer group opens up to them.

"I'd encourage those adults to also encourage the kids and teens in their lives to always know that they are there to serve as a listening ear without judgment or criticism," Hinduja said, and to also be prepared to offer alternative options for addressing their emotional turmoil.

Sarah Feuerbacher, clinic director of the Southern Methodist University Center for Family Counseling in Plano, Texas, suggested that self-harm stems from a feeling of "a lack of power and control, usually over another person or an environment." She was not involved with the study.

"A child who is suffering may have a perception that there is not a trusted person in their environment in which to safely release that pain," Feuerbacher said.

That may turn the "great wide open of the internet" into an alluring outlet for pain, she added, given the control teens can exercise over its content, with the hope that someone may read their "message in a bottle."

Parents, Feuerbacher noted, can best help their children by learning to recognize signs of teen depression. Parents should also monitor online behavior and encourage mutual respect and shame-free communication.

The study was published recently in the Journal of Adolescent Health.

More information

There's more information on cyberbullying advice for parents at Cyberbullying Research Center.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

Original Article

ShareTweetPin
admin

admin

Related Posts

Type 2 diabetes: Mindfulness shown to lower high blood sugar levels – how to practice it

Type 2 diabetes: Mindfulness shown to lower high blood sugar levels – how to practice it

by admin
November 24, 2020
0

Type 2 diabetes is characterised by a battle with high blood sugar levels, which can inflict serious damage on the body. High...

Prince George’s Approves Requiring Healthy Kids’ Meals at Restaurants

Prince George’s Approves Requiring Healthy Kids’ Meals at Restaurants

by admin
November 19, 2020
0

A healthy meal and drink will soon be the required default option for kids’ meals at all restaurants in Prince...

Asian Games: Two Indonesian skateboarders secure ticket to final

by webadmin
October 11, 2020
0

When we get out of the glass bottle of our ego and when we escape like the squirrels in the...

Burkina Faso: Growing Violence Threatens Health Care

Burkina Faso: Growing Violence Threatens Health Care

by admin
September 10, 2019
0

Away from the worlds attention, Burkina Faso has been slipping into violence. In less than a year, t..

World Bank and WHO Statement on Partnership & Deployment of Financing to WHO for Ebola Response in DRC

World Bank and WHO Statement on Partnership & Deployment of Financing to WHO for Ebola Response in DRC

by admin
August 24, 2019
0

WASHINGTON, August 23, 2019—The World Bank and the World Health Organization (WHO), along with the G..

Next Post

This Explains Why You Might Cry After Sex

Surgical Residents Prime Candidates for Stress, Depression, Alcohol Abuse

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Sport

Mets retaining Luis Rojas as manager

Mets retaining Luis Rojas as manager

November 24, 2020
Nets no longer focused on James Harden trade pursuit

Nets no longer focused on James Harden trade pursuit

November 24, 2020
  • 21.5M Fans
  • 79 Followers
  • 93.2k Subscribers
  • 657 Followers
  • 22.9k Followers

MOST VIEWED

  • ‘Amphan’ may bring first flood of year in Assam: CWC

    ‘Amphan’ may bring first flood of year in Assam: CWC

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Where to buy Bitcoin in the UK and how does it work

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Goth crocs with spikes and chains exist – and the internet kind of likes them

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Russia Scores Gold In Women’s Figure Skating, Leaving USA Ladies Without Medals

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • 24 Of Genie Bouchard’s Sexiest Shots Off The Court [SLIDESHOW]

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

CATEGORY

  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Business
  • Europe
  • Fashion
  • Health
  • latest news
  • Sports
  • TECH
  • Uncategorized
  • USA News
  • World

SITE LINKS

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org
  • Landing Page
  • All Features
  • Get JNews
  • Contact

© 2020 eveningwashington.com.

No Result
View All Result
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • latest news
  • USA News
  • World
  • Other
    • TECH
    • Health
    • Fashion
    • Sports
    • Business

© 2020 eveningwashington.com.