We are very passionate about everything related to Cyber Bullying, which is why we keep a very close eye on Google Searches for the term “CyberBullying”. And because 2013 is nearing its end and it is time to locate and gather numbers related to Cyber Bullying Statistics 2014, we resorted to Google to understand what has happened to Cyberbullying awareness in the world.
To our amazement, we found out that Puerto Rico is on the top of Cyber Bullying search results according to this source:
http://www.google.com.eg/trends/explore?q=cyberbullying#q=cyberbullying&cmpt=geo&geo=PR
For the past year, there were around 240,000 Cyber Bullying related searches stemming from Puerto Rico. Meaning, more people from that region are looking for definitions and help related to Cyber Bullying.
According to a Student Code of Conduct that doesn’t focus much on Cyber Bullying.
In a more recent piece of news on Cyber Bullying in 2013, a local man was arrested for allegedly sending a threatening tweet from Puerto Rico. According to news sites, Joseph Morales was taken into custody by the FBI on a charge of cyberbullying. He threatened a gay activist through a post on Twitter and made a reference to the Boston Marathon bombing. The man threatened, Pedro Julio Serrano, claimed to not know Morales, but states that Morales may be the author of previous hate messages as well.
As for laws concerning cyber bullying, Eduardo Bhatia, minority whip of the Puerto Rican Parliament presented a bill in May 2013, roughly called “The Law for the Prevention and Management of Cyberbullying”, the bill basically calls for the punishment of “any unwanted communications done electronically with the intent to harass or harm someone”. If proven, this offence is punishable by three years of imprisonment.
According to the most recent definitions, Cyber Bullying is using the Internet, cell phones, video game systems, or other technology to send or post text or images intended to hurt or embarrass another person. It is also defined as acts of aggression through computers, cell phones, and other electronic devices” (Jackson & Cohen, 2012).
Cyber Bullying can happen across several mediums such as
Online Social Networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, MySpace and various other networks
Instant Messaging (IMs) and Text messaging
Chat rooms/ forums/blogs
Online Games
The spectrum of Cyber Bullying actions is very wide. Famous examples related to cyber bullying statistics 2014 are:
Harassment
Stalking
Rumor Spreading
Disclosure/sharing of personal information of others without their consent
Exclusion/ Ostracism
Heated Exchanges
Defaming, Belittling, or Mocking
Impersonating
Unique Features of Cyber Bullying
Remember that cyber bullying is a wider danger to teens and adults as it is not restricted to specific locations and can follow the victim 24/7.
Media attention in recent years has brought the problem of bullying into the national spotlight. Human beings are an aggressive species. Bullying probably started as soon as two humans could stand upright. One probably couldn’t stand seeing the other standing, too, and promptly knocked him down. However, humans are not doomed to being bullied. We are a species that can learn to behave with others rather than to react purely on instinct. Just as we can learn to be bullies, we can also learn not to be bullies.
Victims of bullies often feel all alone. They may not report their bully because they feel that no one would believe them or do anything to help them. According to a 2010 study done by the Regional Educational Laboratory of Northeast and Islands (REL-NEI), 40 percent of bullying incidents in schools go unreported. The study looked at 5000 more than students aged 12 to 18.
The older a person gets, the less likely they are to report their abuses. The CareerBuilder.com survey of 2012 (mentioned earlier) noted that about 50 percent of all workplace bullying goes unreported. NBC News reported that the bullying statistics related to senior citizens are on the rise in America, where one in ten seniors is either verbally or physically abused.
While we are very glad to see more searches related to cyber bullying appearing in a new country every day, we look forward to the day where cyber bullying is no longer a problem and is a mere tale of the past. Create more cyber bullying awareness in your community today!