The use of digital devices has increased greatly in recent years. For most young people it is a very important part of their daily life and is a means commonly used by them to socialize and communicate. This has brought multiple other benefits, however, it also implies risks of suffering harassment with negative or hateful comments that can affect our children.

Cyberbullying is considered to be harassment that occurs on digital devices such as cell phones, computers, tablets and video games where content is shared through applications, social networks or video games. Some of the actions that cyberbullying includes are sending, posting or sharing negative, harmful or false content about someone with the purpose of humiliating or damaging someone's reputation. Sometimes cyberbullying can lead to illegal behavior that leads to it being considered a crime.

Unfortunately, cyberbullying is still common and studies indicate that approximately 15% of students between the ages of 12 and 18 have been harassed online or via text messages. Therefore, it is very important that, although we cannot see all the online activity that our children carry out, we can at least implement actions that help us prevent it and protect them from this harmful digital behavior.

Some of the recommendations from the stopbullying.gov organization to prevent cyberbullying are:

  • Monitor children's social media accounts, apps, and activity history on their devices.
  • Review the location and privacy settings of your devices.
  • Monitor and follow up on your social media accounts.
  • Find out about new trends in the use of applications, platforms and even digital vocabulary or jargon (slangs) used by young people. It is also important to learn about viral trends on social media that motivate children to carry out dangerous challenges.
  • Know the accounts and passwords that our children use in different applications.
  • Establish rules for appropriate digital behavior and content sharing.

It is vital to monitor our children's online activities and observe some signs that indicate that they may be suffering from cyberbullying. Some of the behaviors to observe when using their devices are: changes in the amount of time using digital devices, observing emotional reactions (laughter, anger, crying) while online, hiding screens that show what they are doing, avoiding or losing interest in activities or people they previously enjoyed.

As parents we seek to foster the confidence of our children and it is critical that we discuss these issues and clarify that our goal is to protect their physical and mental well-being. Therefore, it is important to establish rules that help minimize the risks of cyberbullying, including:

  • Establish clear expectations of appropriate digital behavior and reputation care.
  • Educate our children about possible negative effects of bad behavior online, as well as avoid sharing inappropriate images of themselves or others.
  • Be clear about the type of content that can be viewed or shared.
  • Define which applications are appropriate for them and which are not.
  • Set rules for the amount of time and schedules for using your devices.
  • Model appropriate digital behavior with the use of our own devices.

Finally, it must be clarified that to prevent the spread of this bad behavior, action must be taken, not only when it is detected that our children are victims or perpetrators of cyberbullying, but also when they participate as a spectator. Document incidents through screenshots or other types of records and seek to report them to digital platforms, which mostly have policies and guidelines for appropriate behavior. You should also report to the educational institution involved or even to the police when there are cases of threats of physical violence or when cyberbullying becomes considered a crime.

The damage to a person who is cyberbullied can have very large and even devastating repercussions. To the extent possible, this type of behavior should be publicly rejected and efforts should be made to restore the good reputation of the victim. In some cases the severity of the effects is so profound that specialized help is required. If you or your children have been victims of cyberbullying, do not hesitate to contact a mental health professional.

 

With information from