Research from DCU’s Anti-Bullying Research Centre (ABC) that reveals 1 in 10 children face cyber bullying, possibly even before joining social media, was highlighted this week in light of Safer Internet Day, an EU wide initiative to reduce online risks.
Written by the Director of the ABC, Dr. James O’Higgins Norman, and Lian McGuire, the research suggests that children as young as 6 are engaged in social media and the internet and therefore face cyberbullying before this, due to the popularity of online-enabled mobile games.
Approximately 27% of children from the ages 6-8 can access the internet on their own devices, while 22% can install software by themselves. This gives rise to fears that parents cannot efficiently monitor their children, as only 18% of parents monitor social media use, despite 64% monitoring their other media consumption at home.
Liam Challenor, the lead researcher for school and cyber-bullying in the ABC said children can be targeted in unexpected ways, such as through popular online games such as Minecraft.
“Children may experience cyber bullying on many platforms such as minecraft, snapchat etc., before they turn 13 and begin to use more social media. However from a younger age negative experiences may occur online or through games which would not fall under the criteria for cyber-bullying”, Challenor said.
A more comprehensive report is expected to follow later this year, which Challenor said is a “meta analysis of all traditional bullying and cyber-bullying research within Ireland and Northern Ireland focusing prevalence, the psychological correlates of those involved and a review of intervention strategies available”.
Safer Internet Day, which began in 2004, encourages active discussion and initiatives within each European country to address the issue of increasingly younger people using the internet.
“One of the most effective methods to prevent and deal with cyber bullying is by providing internet users with the preventative tools online and offline to address cyber-bullying before it occurs”, Challenor said.
The study also noted that when parents are monitoring their children online, they often simply rely on their word.
To contribute to the event, the ABC released a video from children to their parents about how to protect them from online threats.
By Conor O’Doherty
Image Credit: Conor O’Doherty
The Irish Newsroom 