From the Schoolyard to the Cyberyard: Bullying Enters
a New Age
Bill McHenry, PhD, LPC, NCC
Randy Thomason, BAAS, LCDC, Graduate student
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Cyberbullying can be defined as the willful and
repeated harm inflicted through the medium of
electronic communication tools (Sbarbaro,
2011).
Another definition is: when an individual or
group is bullied, embarrassed, threatened or
harassed by another individual or group using
interactive technologies.
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Reviewing some of the original cases reveals
multiple factors and possible outcomes
Client response specificity
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Credited as being the first case of cyberbullying
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBLhAm
9vW10
Cyberbullying crossed over into verbal abuse
by his peers
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujDGEor
x0uU
Illustrated that adults can be involved and
many of the other core cyberbullying concepts
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Some research indicates that victims of
cyberbullying are twice as likely to attempt
suicide than those who have not.
Cyberbullies are one and a half times as likely
to have attempted suicide.
A new term called cyberbullicide is a reference
used when cyberbullying and suicide are
found to be directly or indirectly correlated.
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Social Networks
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Gaming sites
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Xbox Live
Playstation Network
Cell phones
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Facebook
Twitter
Linkedin
Pinterest
MySpace
Text
IM
Chat rooms
Bash boards
Other web sites
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Ratemyprofessor.com
Children’s websites
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Club Penguin
KidzWorld
Webkinz
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Flaming – Sending hostile
messages in an attempt to
frighten or anger.
Harassment – Repeatedly
sending messages that are
insulting.
Vilification – Attempting to
damage someone’s
reputation by gossiping or
posting hurtful information.
Impersonation – Hacking
into someone’s account and
posing as them.
“Trolling” – Responding to
another’s post in a sarcastic
or degrading way.
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Outing and Trickery –
Sharing personal
information, secrets, photos,
etc. without their permission.
Exclusion – Leading
someone to believe that they
are a part of a group but then
intentionally excluding
them.
Cyberstalking – Watching
for the victim to be online,
repeatedly sending
intimidating messages, and
participating in other
behaviors that threaten the
person’s sense of security.
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Is often justified by the one doing it because its
not “serious.”
Can cause the individual to feel unsafe about
posting anymore.
Can lead to a pack mentality with others
joining in the behavior.
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Those who strive for
power (Power Bullies
and Mean Girls)
Those who want to
defend another (Cyber
Vigilantes)
Those who do it on
accident (Inadvertent
Cyberbully)
Those who seek
vengeance on another
because they have been
cyberbullied.
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Typically are coming
from a place of
inferiority.
Are primarily
motivated to “prove”
their superiority over
their peers.
Have the faulty belief
that this “proof” will
resolve their personal
feelings of inferiority.
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Usually focus on the
“protection” of their
peer and do not see
the harm in their
actions.
Since attention and
power are not their
primary intentions
they usually work
alone.
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Pain and impulsivity
are the primary
motivating factors
with this class.
They differ from the
“Cyber Vigilante” in
that they do not
intend to inflict pain
and do not recognize
the potential
destructiveness of
their actions.
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The perception that
someone will remain
anonymous increases
their belief they can
say and do anything.
Adds to them feeling
more powerful.
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http://www.ncpc.org/
resources/files/audio/
megan.mp3
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Usually are more
physically imposing
than their victims
Must be willing to face
their victims in the
moment
Their audience is
limited to those who
witness their act
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Will not fall into any
specific physical profile
compared to victims
Can hide behind the
cloak of the internet and
bully at any time
Their audience can
include any people with
access to the bully’s act
(can go viral).
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Age at which children
are interacting online
is decreasing
Children are having
interactions with
peers they do not
have the ability to
process
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Similar issues as to
what victims of
traditional bullying
experience
Increased social anxiety
and depression
Decreased self-esteem
and school performance
Feelings of hopelessness
and powerlessness
Lack of trust in
immediate peer group
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Know school policies
and local laws
Designate a school
“cyberbullying expert”
Take a more active
monitoring position
Educate students on the
consequences
Have a response plan in
place
Involve parents and
community members
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Develop a supportive
environment by:
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Teaching students to
respect others.
Empower students to
take a stand against
all bullying.
Enlist the help of
older students to
serve as mentors for
younger ones.
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Encourage diversity
and attempt to mix
social cliques.
Attempt to engage
students who seem
unconnected to peers.
Foster empathy by
providing
assignments that help
students recognize
how victims may feel.
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Investigate
Consult Law
Enforcement
Notify the bully’s
parents
Provide support to the
victim
Educate
Reach out
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Provide consequences
Beware the problem of
punishment (may stop
the immediate behavior
while teaching the
offender to be more
careful next time)
 Consequences could be
more prosocial
 Attempt to involve as
many of the
“bystanders”
as possible
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Group counseling
benefits according to
Yalom:
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Altruism
Cohesiveness
Instillation of hope
Universality
Identification
Guidance
Interpersonal learning
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Evelyn Field’s approach
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Regulate feelings
(respond assertively)
Understand your role
Build self-esteem
Become a confident
communicator
Create a personal
“power pack”
Develop a support
network
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Step One: Meet with the
target, identify friends and
potential allies, secure the
victim’s confidence and
approval for moving
forward
Step Two: Meet with all
parties involved (minus the
target for now), including
the cyberbully, if possible
Step Three: The counselor
expresses concern for the
target but does not discuss
the cyberbullying
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Step Four: The counselor
explains their desire to help
the target improve in
school/life, reiterates that no
one is in trouble
Step Five: The counselor asks
members to brainstorm ways
to help the target
Step Six: The counselor
thanks the members and
indicates a follow-up session
will be held in
approximately one week
Step Seven: The counselor
follows up with members
individually
Therapeutic Approach
Neurobiological Impact
Helps to Resolve in the
Victim
Person-Centered
Dopamine, Oxytocin
Inability to trust,
relationship formation,
willingness to take risks
CBT
Increases gray matter
Ability to regulate
obsessive thoughts
SFBT
Organization and
production of neurons
Ability to utilize
reframes
REMD
Memory processing
Ability to process
experiences that were
previously unavailable
Therapeutic Approach
Neurobiological Impact
Helps to Resolve in the
Victim
Adlerian/Individual
Increased neuroconnections between
prefrontal cortex and
hippocampus
Regulation of emotional
responses to perceived
stimuli
Erikson’s Life Stages
Increased neurogenesis
in previously
underutilized areas of
the brain
Increased ability to
develop new skills
Narrative Therapy
Increased activity in the
dorso-medial prefrontal
area of the brain
Self-empowerment and
the ability to make
meaning
Guided imagery,
mindfulness, and
meditation
Increases neurogenesis
and synchronization of
neurons
Self-awareness, foster
more stable and
reproducible mental
states
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Bauman, S. (2011). Cyberbullying: What counselors need to know. Alexandria,
Virginia: American Counseling Association.
Cyber Bullying Research Center
Cyberangels.org
Hinduja, S., Patchin, J. (2009). Bullying beyond the schoolyard. Thousand
Oaks, California: Corwin Press.
Luxton, I. D., June, J. D., & Fairall, J. M. (2012). Social Media and Suicide:
A Public Health Perspective. American Journal Of Public Health, 102(S2),
S195-S200. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2011.300608
McHenry, B., Sikorski, A., McHenry, J. (2014). A counselor’s introduction to
neuroscience. New York: Routledge.
National Crime Prevention Association
Netbullies.com
Patchin, J., Hinduja, S. (2012). Cyberbullying: Prevention and response. New
York: Routledge.
Stopbullying.gov
www.bullyingstatistics.org/content/bullying-and-suicide.html