Leading Education and Social Research - Institute of Education University of London
Behaviour - Cyberbullying
Key London Issues > Behaviour > Cyberbullying:

How informed are you about the latest type of bullying: cyberbullying?

Young people surveys show that youngsters often choose not to tell adults about cyberbullying incidents for fear that they will be denied access to technology, while adults do not have the skills to manage the risks of the digital world.

Did you know that children exposed to cyberbullying face:
  • Deliberate, Repeated, and Hostile Behaviour?
While being Online involves the risks of:
  • exposure to sexually inappropriate content
  • exposure to negative beliefs and attitudes
  • access to inappropriate content from sites which may promote harmful behaviour, including suicide websites
LERU brings you the digest of a key report on cyberbullying commissioned by the Government:

  • Safer Children in a Digital World: The Report of the Byron Review
    Dr Tanya Byron, March 2008

    Key arguments presented in the Byron report

    Dr Byron warns that ‘The internet allows for global exploration which can also bring risks, often paralleling the real world.’ Additionally, there is a generational divide between parents and children in terms of technological skills, which means that many parents do not feel equipped to manage risks in the digital world in the same way that they do in the real world.

    According to the report violent and destructive behaviour is often linked to video games and children’s use of internet. Additionally, there are concerns about excessive use of these technologies by children at the expense of other activities and family interaction. The report highlights the fact that children are increasingly kept at home because of fears for their safety outside, consequently this results in a higher exposure to risks in the digital world, which is largely unmanaged.

    Recommendations and objectives for child safety on internet:

    As a starting point Dr Byron recommends approaching online risks in the same way that we approach risks in the real world. The key element is identified as: providing a level of supervision and monitoring suitable to a particular age.

    However, Dr Byron warns that ‘just like in the offline world, no amount of effort to reduce potential risks to children will eliminate those risks completely. We cannot make the internet completely safe.’ Therefore, the objective is to work on developing ‘children’s resilience to the material to which they may be exposed to, so that they have the confidence and skills to navigate these new media more safely.’

    The report focuses on managing the online risks rather than eliminating them. Dr Byron identifies two key elements in this process: ‘restricting access and increasing resilience to harmful and inappropriate material online’.

    Dr Byron’s policy recommendations are:
    • To establish a UK Council on Child Internet Safety, which would lead on developing a national strategy and report to the Prime Minister.
    • Two core strands of the strategy should be: better regulation of voluntary codes of practice in the relevant industries and improved awareness and education of stakeholders, where the government, law enforcement, schools and children’s services need to play a key role.

    Full report available on: http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/byronreview/

Policy

Child Internet Safety

Following the Byron Report on child internet safety, the Government has accepted all the recommendations put forward in the report (click here for the LERU report digest, click here for the full report). As the starting point The UK Council for Child Internet Safety will be launched in September 2008, six months ahead of the recommended scheduled, demonstrating the urgency of it.

In May 2008 the Government announced a timescale as follows:
  • Inviting stakeholders to join the Council – 14 May
  • Cross Department Action Plan - end of June 2008
  • Launch of the UK Council on Child Internet Safety – September 2008
  • First Child Internet Safety Summit hosted by the Prime Minister - spring 2009
The Council, which will be responsible for leading on a future strategy and advising the Government, will offer membership to a number of stakeholders including children’s charities and industry.

What do key politicians say about on-line safety:
  • Kevin Brennan Minister for Children and young people said:
    “All children deserve to take advantage of opportunities new technologies bring but parents have told us that they want support from the Government to help make sure these opportunities are beneficial to their children’s development without causing harm. We are inviting experts within industry and children’s charities to come forward and provide their expertise and advice by joining the UK Council on Child Internet Safety. By developing an e-safety strategy together, we can help children to learn and play safe online whilst at the same time supporting parents to manage new pressures they face in a modern technological world.”
  • Home Office Minister Vernon Coaker said:
    “The Home Secretary’s Task Force on Child Protection on the Internet has made fantastic progress in bringing together law enforcement agencies, children’s groups and the internet industry to ensure that the web is as safe as possible. The UK Council for Child Internet Safety will build on this progress and the recommendations made by Dr Tanya Bryon. The internet is a great tool which offers many opportunities and it’s up to all of us to work together to make sure young people get the most out of it and stay safe online.”
  • Culture Minister Margaret Hodge said:
    “In a few short years the internet has become a huge part of our cultural lives, opening up a world of opportunity for young people to access culture, increase their knowledge or simply be entertained. The freedom the internet brings must be balanced by appropriate safeguards, and this key recommendation from Dr Byron's landmark report will help children and parents safely enjoy the wealth of benefits that the internet can offer.”

Research:

Forthcoming evaluations and reports
Next steps to improving the emotional well-being and mental health of children and young people

The Review of CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) was announced in the Children's Plan in December 2007. The Review chaired by Jo Davidson will evaluate how well services are meeting the educational, health and social needs of children and young people at risk of, and experiencing, mental health problems. It is also a chance to make recommendations for future progress.

The report will be based on the evidence from a wide range of sources including:
  • a review of existing evidence
  • a national Call for Evidence
  • focus groups of children and young people and their parents/carers
  • review of practice visits to local authorities/primary care trusts
The final report will be published in October 2008. The CAMHS Review is an independent review supported by the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Department of Health.

Further information from: http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/CAMHSreview/

References on cyberbullying:
  • Patchin, J. & Hinduja, S. (2006). Bullies Move beyond the Schoolyard: A Preliminary Look at Cyberbullying. Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice, 4(2), 148-169.
  • Hinduja, S. & Patchin, J. (2007). Cyberbullying: An Exploratory Analysis of Factors Related to Offending and Victimization. Deviant Behavior, 29(2), 1-29.
  • Hinduja, S. & Patchin, J. (2007). Offline Consequences of Online Victimization: School Violence and Delinquency. Journal of School Violence, 6(3), 89-112.