Cyberbullying and health: what can be done to combat cyberbullying and prevent negative health consequences?

Abstract

There is a well-established interrelatedness between health and well-being on the one hand and (cyber-) bullying on the other. Victimization of (cyber) bullying leads to various health physical and psychological health problems. Moreover, children with health- and psychosocial problems are more vulnerable for involvement in (cyber-) bullying. Also involvement in “traditional†bullying, time spent online and risky Internet behavior are important risk factors. One of the most frequently investigated contextual risk factors is parental control. Parents and teachers underestimate the scale of the issue and the negative personal health aspects of cyberbullying. Awareness raising among parents and teachers is a critically important factor to enhancing their motivation to improve their mediation/coping strategies to prevent and combat cyberbullying. Not all youth who encounter cyberbullying suffer negative effects. Some are upset and experience difficulties, and some are resilient. Hence, they cope differently. However, cyberbullying has some specific characteristics. Therefore, coping strategies to effectively handle the stress and hence are positively related to health, are not always effective in cyberbullying situations. Moreover, coping strategies, which seem to be detrimental for health in traditional bullying situations, seem to be effective in cyberbullying situation. There is a host of intervention developed to prevent (cyber)bullying and/or the negative consequences. Problem is however that almost none is theoretically based and/or tested on effectiveness. Another problem is the selection of children in need for these interventions. There is still discussion on how to define and measure cyberbullying.