Threats Among the “Always-On” Generation: Cyberbully Identification in a Secondary School in the United Kingdom

The current study adds to the growing research into the modern phenomenon of cyberbullying, which can threaten the psychological, psychosocial, and physical health of children and young people. The relationship between traditional bullying and cyberbullying was examined by means of self and peer report measures. The sample consisted of 239 adolescents aged between 11 and 16 years, attending a secondary school in the UK. Participants completed an online questionnaire regarding their involvement and their peers’ perceived involvement in both traditional bullying and cyberbullying. Correlational analysis showed a moderate/strong correspondence between peer nominations of young people identified as traditional bullies and cyberbullies. A strong relationship was found between self-report of cyberbullying and selfreport of cyber-victimization, suggesting that victims of cyberbullying are also likely to be perpetrators. This parallels research into traditional bullying and indicates a transfer of the traditional bully/victim category into the cyberworld. Age and gender differences were analyzed usingMANOVA. Younger participants were rated by peers as being more involved in traditional bullying than older participants, yet no age differences were found in involvement in cyberbullying. With regard to gender, peer nomination indicated that males were more likely to be engaged in traditional bullying and cyberbullying than females. Agreement between individuals and peers regarding who was involved in both bullying and victimization (traditional and cyber) was weak/moderate. This suggests that cautions should operate and sole reliance on student self-report measures in the identification of cyberbullies should be avoided.

"there was a weak correlation between self-reports of traditional bullying and self-reports of cyberbullying. One explanation is that this may be due to the stigma associated with being labeled or considering oneself as a bully (traditional or cyber). Additionally, it could have to do with different personal beliefs as to what constitutes bullying behavior, with the possibility that students regard cyberbullying differently to traditional bullying.... Peer nomination of traditional bullying reported a moderate/strong correlation with peer nomination of cyberbullying.... Data analysis reported a strong correlation between peer nomination of victims of traditional bullying and peer nomination of cyber-victims... Strong correlations were also found between self-reports of cyberbullying and self-reports of cyber-victimization....Strong correlations were also found between self-reports of cyberbullying and self-reports of cyber-victimization." (Gallagher and Dunsmuir, 2014: 6).