The Effects of Cyberbullying on Kids – How Can Parents Prevent It?

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If you are a parent who thinks that your kid is safe once he arrives at home, then you are surely mistaken. This is not the era of normal bullying. The technology, smartphones, and internet access have taken this to a completely new advanced form which is cyberbullying. If you think that those smartphones are not doing any harm to them, then you are wrong. This is the era where no one is safe from digital threats.

Handing them smartphones comes with great dangers including cyberbullying. And, the effects of cyberbullying on tweens and teens are beyond normal understanding. They are already going through the tough time of their lives, and leaving them to deal with this as well is not justice. If you don’t know about how cyberbullying can affect your kid or if you think that it won’t affect your kid, let’s see some of the facts.

Facts About Cyberbullying

Some of the facts about cyberbullying that are gathered through worldwide research will make you understand how your kid can be in grave danger while you don’t know that. Here are some of the statistical facts about cyberbullying that every parent needs to know now:

  1. 60% of the youth have faced cyberbullying in their teen years and they couldn’t do anything.
  2. Most people have reported experiencing cyberbullying on Facebook, Instagram, and other related social media platforms.
  3. Only 1 in every 10 victims have been able to inform any elder person about their experience.
  4. Girls face cyberbullying more than the boys.
  5. From age 12-17, almost 37% of the youth have reported being bullied online and 30% have reported to face it repeatedly.
  6. 4 out of every 5 students are serious about this issue and they have said that they would like to interfere in these matters and save others.

With these facts and figures, every parent needs to be worried about the safety of their kids when their kid is using the internet and mobile phones. Mostly, kids are too much shy to share such things with their parents.

The Effect of Cyberbullying on Kids

Sometimes your kids might be facing this issue but they are too reluctant to share with you, so what would you do in this scenario? The worst happens when you even don’t know that they are facing any such thing. There are some prominent effects of cyberbullying on kids that can be seen and noticed easily.

You, being a parent, can easily know when something wrong going on with them. Cyberbullying affects the mental and physical health of kids. It can become so serious that they can opt for self-harming behaviors.

These are some of the common effects of cyberbullying on kids:

  • Their self-esteem keeps on reducing. They feel everything they are being said is true and they are not worthy of anything. This leads to depression as well.
  • They tend to spend more time alone and less time together with family.
  • They are avoiding school. You know your kid doesn’t do that but all of a sudden they are throwing some unusual tantrums about not going to school.
  • Their academic grades are dropping day by day. You are noticing it and scolding them but it might be one of the effects of cyberbullying they are facing.
  • They don’t want to go online anymore. They are avoiding the online time and want to be left alone.
  • They are doing different sorts of things to change their personality and appearance because they want to be accepted as the rest of the world.
  • They are shyer now and are reluctant in sharing their opinion confidently with others probably because they think their opinion is not worthy enough.
  • You are noticing some weird activities in their rooms and have found some self-harming tools there.

With these changes, teens are exploding from inside. They want to be heard and they want this issue to be gone. Some teens even move towards suicide due to the mental pressure they feel. That’s why it is fair to consider that cyberbullying is a crime.

Is Cyberbullying a Crime?

Since you are worried about your kid being dragged into this mess, you ought to see if your kid is changing into a bully. Bullies are also born in our houses and are the result of our negligence. With the worse effects of cyberbullying on kids, is cyberbullying a crime is a fair question.

To determine if cyberbullying is a crime or not, situation and circumstances matter. Here are the things that are the form of cyberbullying and are considered as a crime:

  • Committing hate crimes
  • Making death threats
  • Child pornography
  • Stalking someone
  • Sextortion
  • Sexting
  • Making violent statements
  • Taking a photo of someone somewhere you are not supposed to
  • Extortion

Since these things can lead to harmful reactions by the kids, it is alright to consider them as a crime. And, if your kid is facing any such issues, feel free to report a crime because it is their right.

How to Protect the Kids?

Every parent is worried about their kids being too much involved in social media activities because it can lead to many dangers. What you can do is to give them the authority and trust to share everything with you. They must not keep this to themselves. When they don’t ask for help, things can go worse and worse.

Other than that, you can install a parental control app to keep an eye on your kid. To stop them from being bully or the victim, you can monitor their social media accounts and manage their screen time. It is your right to know if they are connecting with the right people or they are just goofing around with the wrong type of strangers.

A good bond between parents and children can save them from a lot of dangers. So, give them the trust and value they deserve, so that they can share everything with you.