Social media expert shares tips on how to combat cyberbullying
Generation Z, children born between 1997 and 2012, are the first digital natives. They are the first group who have been exposed to the internet since their youth.
According to a study conducted by Digimune in 2020, which surveyed 200 parents, 51.1% of the children have been cyberbullied.
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What is cyberbullying?
According to StopBullying.gov, "Cyberbullying is bullying that takes place over digital devices like cell phones, computers, and tablets. Cyberbullying can occur through SMS, Text, and apps, or online in social media, forums, or gaming where people can view, participate in, or share content. Cyberbullying includes sending, posting, or sharing negative, harmful, false, or mean content about someone else. It can include sharing personal or private information about someone else causing embarrassment or humiliation. Some cyberbullying crosses the line into unlawful or criminal behavior."
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Cyberbullying can take place on email, social media including TikTok, Facebook, etc., online gaming communities, chat rooms, online forums, such as Reddit, text messaging or any form of instant messaging or direct messaging.
Advances in technology have helped the human race in more ways than one, but like all things, there are the positives and there are the negatives that come with it.
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The children of today are not only dealing with pandemic trauma and the struggles of everyday life that most of the older generations also grew up with, but they are also facing a whole bunch of new challenges.
Ever so often now you are likely to come across truly tragic and disturbing stories that involve some form of cyberbullying.
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But what can we, as individuals, do to help combat this issue?
Magriet Groenewald is a social media educator and we felt it was necessary to have a serious conversation with her about the threat that cyberbullying is posing to all children and teenagers.
Take a listen and find out what advice she has to offer.
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Main image courtesy of iStock/asiandelight