Although passion and widespread sympathy for bullying victims is natural and admirable, those who want to stop bullying abuse need to act in ways that reflect good science and proven research if they want to contribute to a culture that does not condone this behavior, according to the director of the University at Buffalo’s anti-bullying center.
“There is such a tension right now around the issue of bullying. A lot of people have passion and want to make a difference,” says Amanda B. Nickerson, the director of UB’s Dr. Jean Alberti Center for the Prevention of Bullying Abuse and School Violence in the Graduate School of Education.
“But I’m worried that passion is not coupled with good science and theory behind it,” Nickerson says. “So one of the things the Alberti Center can do is conduct research and also look closely at what we know about the research to guide the efforts.”
National attention and concern with bullying continues to be one of the most discussed and debated social issues of the year. Most recently, singer Lady Gaga started a new nonprofit foundation to promote “self-confidence and anti-bullying.” The entertainer has often cited the suicide of 14-year-old Williamsville high school student Jamey Rodemeyer. Her new “Born This Way” foundation came about after she recently met with President Obama to discuss ways to combat youth bullying.
Given the attention and outcry over this tragedy — and the steady stream of media attention to the implications of Rodemeyer’s death — Nickerson addressed related topics, from the tell-tale signs your child is being bullied to Nickerson’s mission at UB’s Alberti Center.
The American Psychological Association has launched a video series highlighting some of the most intriguing psychological research being published today. These videos, produced by the American Psychological Association, are hosted by APA Chief Executive Officer Norman B. Anderson, PhD. Trained as a practitioner and as a scientist, Dr. Anderson was appointed CEO in 2002.
The first video in this series looks at the issue of bullying. The problem of bullying has received a great deal of media attention recently, and for good reason. Bullying can lead to lasting psychological problems, including lowered self-esteem, depression, anxiety and even thoughts of suicide. Curious? Continue reading
Illustration on digital bullying by Annlaug Auestad
At Thursday’s White House Conference for Bullying Prevention in Washington, D.C., Facebook is announcing a new suite of tools to protect users from bullying, foster a stronger sense of community in the social network, and “create a culture of respect” among Facebook users.
U.S. President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle popped up on Facebook to deliver the message about cyber-bullying. The video, exclusive to Facebook, serves as a promo and curtain-raiser for the White House Conference on Bullying Prevention, which takes place Thursday. In the video, President Obama jokes about not bugging the viewer for a friend request but instead bringing to light the upcoming conference. “This isn’t an issue that makes headlines every day, but it affects every single young person in our country,” he says in the video.
Facebook’s changes boil down to two main aspects: an improved safety center with more multimedia resources, and better, more social tools for reporting offensive or bullying content.
In addition to reporting harassing or TOS-violating content directly to Facebook, users now have two important options that are more social and more community-centric. Within the reporting options interface, the targeted user can choose to privately message the user who posted the stressful or offensive content. If the user wishes to report the content to Facebook, he or she can also choose to include a trusted authority figure, such as a teacher or parent, as a contact in that incident report.
As for the Safety Center upgrades, Facebook will be bringing “new educational videos, external resources from renowned experts, downloadable materials for people to share and discuss” and more resources within the coming weeks. The company is also asking teens to contribute feedback on smart, safe uses of technology.
Cyber bullying is an emerging phenomenon that is becoming increasingly common among teenagers. Research by the University of Valencia (UV), based on a study carried out in the region, shows that between 25% and 29% of all teenagers have been bullied via their mobile phone or the internet over the past year. [continue reading…]
