Hi, this is Parker. Let’s face it; bullies have always been a part of our society. You can easily find people who think they’re better than others, and unfortunately, nowadays most of them migrated to social media. That’s why you can find lots of social media bullying in almost every country. The reason why social media bullying appears is that most kids and teens stay on social media a lot. And those bullies start posting nasty comments and other stuff that’s not appropriate.
While those posts might be seen as a joke if performed once, continual harassment and lots of nasty comments can lead to online bullying. According to a UK bullying survey, around 91% of people who reported cyberbullying said that the parents or the social site took no action.
But the issue is there as another survey found that around 47% of youth have dealt with bullies and 62% of them were sent nasty messages via smartphone apps. Since more and more kids and teens have access to social media, the cyberbullying problem can easily get out of control.
Why are There So Many Social Media Bullying Cases?
The reason is simple, in my opinion. Kids lack the confidence to speak with their parents and report any potential problems that appear in their life. As a result, this is damaging their life, and they end up being heartbroken because they take everything they see on social media to heart. But the reality is that as long as you believe in yourself and you have a strong mind, nothing will stand in your way. You have to push the boundaries and focus on the best possible actions in your life to achieve great benefits.
However, the main issue remains that social media bullying damage can last a very long time. The harm is severe, especially since most of the online content on platforms such as Facebook can stay there for years. So if you don’t act right away, there will be repercussions.
Can Parents Help Stop Cyber Bullying?
The last thing you want to do is not to get involved in any way. Usually, social media bullying comes in a lot of shapes and situations. But as a parent, it’s important to monitor and access the social account of your child. Talking with your child and showing him that you understand the problem is a crucial aspect here, so you might want to keep that in mind.
Also, if you find any abusive situations like that, report them on social media sites. Most if not all social sites have zero tolerance when it comes to internet and online abuse, and you have to use that advantage in any way that you can as a parent.
Moreover, it’s important to use some parental control features on your child’s computer. Limit computer usage and encourage your child not to spend most of his time on social media is extremely important. If that happens, there’s less social media bullying to deal with, and in the end, it will be well worth it.
How Can You Stop Cyberbullying?
The first thing you want to do is to encourage your child to talk about these issues. Proper connectivity with your child can do wonders, and it will also keep those online bullies away.
Engaging and facing those people is not going to help in any way. It will just show that their bullying methods work, so the best thing you can do is to avoid all of that. That strategy usually works in most situations. Of course, you can get a track record of all the bullying information and show it to parents, teachers and family members. It’s is a much better option, and it will be a great recourse in the long run. Plus, social media allows you to block accounts, so blocking the bully is a great idea; it will often work very well.
Using secure apps and not sharing accounts is important too. Bullies will either try to hack or acquire accounts to damage your child’s reputation. Secure logins and reliable apps will be very helpful here. There are also anti-bullying apps that can easily connect to the family of that bully and send them a message if necessary.
Also, staying close to your child and offer support. As we all know, issues like this one are rather common in our society, and it’s not like you have a lot of control over those who are behind social media bullying. You can just ignore them and move on.
How to Avoid Cyberbullying Attacks
Another good idea is not to post a ton of stuff on social media. Most people know that nowadays it can be very tricky to find post content on social media and that’s what matters most in such a situation. The benefit that comes from this is that you can push the boundaries and adapt or adjust all these things as you see fit. It’s never going to be easy to let your child know that posting pictures is dangerous. But it all comes down to perspective. The last thing you want as a parent is for your kid to receive a bully attack. So it makes a lot of sense to tackle this correctly now to help avoid it happening later on.
Lastly, keeping all data secure can be crucial, and it all comes down to how you handle it. Letting your child post everything on social media won’t work. You need to study every picture and message until they learn what to post and what to avoid.
Sure, dealing with social media bullying is very tricky, and it will always lead to problems. But you have to understand that without your help, your child will still deal with bullies. It’s important to create a plan that helps counteract those bullies. And it all comes down to involvement as a parent. As long as you are right near your child, you will have no problem helping them get through this situation!
About Parker Townsend
A professional poet looking to help you succeed online, by providing comprehensive solutions for your questions. Unscripted Income is only a website, I’m a real person and I enjoy fishing, watching baseball and eating the same as most people. My passion is helping others define their current online skills and accelerating them. Connect with Parker on social media at Twitter and check out his self-titled blog.
No one told me how to avoid social bullying….. :-:
It’s a sad reality today… Thanks for taking time here, Erina.