Protecting Your Child from Cyberbullying
Childhood should be a time of relative innocence, where children play, learn, and explore their own identities. Unfortunately, far too many children have a very different experience during those formative years, thanks to the cyberbullying phenomenon. Yes, technology has greatly improved many areas of life, but it has also created new ways for children to abuse one another.
Cyberbullying can have lasting consequences for the victim and impact their lives in dramatic ways.
As a parent, it is vital to do all that you can to protect your child from cyberbullying. These important tips can help you and your child combat this insidious new form of peer abuse.
Understand the Danger
It is vital to understand how cyberbullying can occur so that you can rapidly identify it and take whatever action is needed. This type of bullying can take many forms, including:
Harassment: Many cyberbullies use social media, email, and texts to send offensive material or threats to their victims. Often, this type of bullying is combined with cyberstalking.
Exclusion: Children place great value on their social interactions and status within their groups. Cyberbullies often work to isolate their victims from those groups by blocking them from group chats or other online venues.
Divulging secrets, or “outing” the victim. Information spreads rapidly across the internet. Bullies know this and will often post private information about their victims designed to cause embarrassment and humiliation.
Talk to Your Children
Be prepared to have detailed conversations with your children about their online activities. This should start as soon as you give them access to the internet or cellphone technology. However, it is important to approach this subject in a way that promotes discussion and avoids secrecy and shame.
Ask your children about their online activities. Be sure to let them know that you’re not going to be upset about those activities, and that you just want to help them stay safe.
Educate your children about child pornography. Many children today send obscene photos of one another through their cell phones and online accounts. Remind them that this activity is a crime and could lead to prosecution and jail.
Be alert to signs that your child is being evasive about those online and phone activities.
Know the Signs
Watch for warning signs that could indicate bullying. For example, sleeplessness, sudden weight changes, or a withdrawal from social groups can all be signs that your child is enduring bullying. If you see any of those signs, be sure to investigate immediately.
Limit Access to the Technology
Since it is the technology that makes cyberbullying possible, you may also want to restrict access for your children. You could consider parental blocks on computers to prevent your children from accessing potentially risky sites, including chat rooms. You should place some limitations on the amount of time your children can spend using computers and other technology. It is also wise to avoid giving a child a phone until somewhere around high school – and even then, you may want to provide only a basic cellphone that can be used for calls.
Finally, educate your children. Teach them the basics about how to manage their online activities in a safe way. Make sure that they know that they should only communicate with people they know. Most importantly, let them know that they should immediately tell you when they feel bullied or encounter an uncomfortable situation online. That’s critical for ensuring that you have a timely opportunity to address the issue with their bully’s parents, the school, or law enforcement.