22:00 25.11.2011, The
Kid's Doctor Staff,  bullying,
texting,
your
child, The
Kid's Doctor: Your Partner in Parenting
For many children,
text messaging has become the number one way they communicate with
their
friends. A new study shows that a growing number of these
kids are
reporting being harassed via text messaging.
Of more than 1,100
middle school and high school students surveyed in 2008, 24 percent
said they
had ever been harassed by texting. That was up from about 14 percent in
a
survey of the same kids the year before.
On the other hand,
actual bullying was down a little.
In 2008, about eight
percent of kids said they’d ever been bullied via text,
versus just over six
percent the year before.
Though similar,
harassment and bullying are not the same. Researchers determined that
harassment meant that peers had spread untrue rumors, made rude or mean
comments, or threatened a peer. Bullying was defined as being
repeatedly picked
on.
Parents need to pay
attention to their child’s text messaging, researchers say,
but they don’t
believe parents should be alarmed by the study’s results.
“This is not a reason
to become distressed or take kids’ cell phones
away,” said lead researcher
Michele L. Ybarra, of Internet Solutions for Kids, Inc., in San
Clemente,
California.
“The majority of kids
seem to be navigating these new technologies pretty
healthfully,” she told
Reuters Health.
The study included
1,588 10- to 15-year-olds who were surveyed online for the first time
in 2006.
The survey was repeated in 2007 and 2008, with about three-quarters of
the
original group taking part in all three.
When it came to
Internet-based harassment, there was little change over time. By 2008,
39
percent of students said they’d ever been harassed online,
with most saying it
had happened “a few times.” Less than 15 percent
said they’d ever been
cyber-bullied.
And even when kids
were picked on, most seemed to take it in stride.
Of those who said
they’d been harassed online in 2008, 20 percent reported
being “very or
extremely upset” by the most serious incident. That was down
a bit from 25
percent in 2006. (The study did not ask about distress over
text-message
harassment.)
“I don’t think it
makes sense for parents to get anxious about every new technology, or
every new
study,” said David Finkelhor, who directs the Crimes Against
Children Research
Center at the University of New Hampshire in Durham.
“A lot of the old
parenting messages still hold true, like teaching your kids the
‘golden rule,’”
Finkelhor said. “These are discussions that aren’t
specific to the Internet or
cell phones.”
And despite concerns
that technology has made teasing and taunting easier, Finkelhor said
there’s
evidence that overall, kids are doing less of it these days.
“Bullying and
victimization are down over the period that Internet use has gone up.
It’s
improving,” he said.
Finkelhor credited
greater awareness of the problem, among schools and parents, for that
decline.
One way that the
anti-bullying and harassment message is getting out is through a school
program
called Rachel’s
Challenge.
Rachel Scott was the first person killed at Columbine High School on
April 20,
1999. The program was inspired by Rachel’s acts of kindness
and compassion.
According to the
Rachel’s Challenge website, the programs exists to stand
alongside education
professionals at every level to inspire, equip and empower students
from K-12 to
make a positive difference in their world.
Rachel’s Challenge
list their objectives for schools as:
- Create a safe learning environment for all
students by re-establishing civility and delivering proactive antidotes
to school violence and bullying.
- Improve academic achievement by engaging
students’ hearts, heads and hands in the learning process.
- Provide students with social/emotional
education that is both colorblind and culturally relevant.
- Train adults to inspire, equip and empower
students to affect permanent positive change.
Rachel’s Challenge is
just one program that schools are looking at to help students
understand and
stop harassment and bullying. Researchers say that parents still play
the most
important role in helping children navigate through life’s
sometimes hard and
cruel maze. One suggestion is for parents to become more familiar with
current
technology. Other
ideas from online support groups are:
- Encourage your kids to get together with
friends that help build their confidence.
- Help them meet other kids by joining clubs or
sports programs.
- Find activities that can help a child feel
confident and strong. Maybe it’s a self-defense class like
karate or a movement or other gym class.
The study’s findings
were reported in the journal Pediatrics.
|
