COVID-19 has caused an equally terrible social epidemic.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has published a report with alarming data on the increasing incidence of cyberbullying among children and adolescents. According to a study covering 44 countries, 16% of children aged 11 to 15 will experience digital violence in 2022 – a figure 3% higher than four years earlier.
WHO Regional Director for Europe, Hans Kluge, noted that it is necessary to take active measures to counter bullying in any of its manifestations. The study found that 15% of boys and 16% of girls have experienced cyberbullying at least once in the past few months.
The COVID-19 pandemic and its associated quarantine restrictions have dramatically transformed teen communication. Then the problem of virtual violence became particularly acute. At the same time, other forms of bullying remained at the same level or became slightly more frequent.
11% of boys and girls were victims of bullying at school at least two or three times a month, which is 1% more than in 2018. WHO indicated that boys are most likely to suffer from this problem in Bulgaria, Lithuania, Moldova and Poland, and less often in Spain.
Given that young people spend up to six hours a day on the Internet, even a small change in the frequency of such attacks can seriously affect the health and well-being of thousands of children, Kluge said. Every eighth teenager admitted that he was among the offenders. In 2018, this figure was also 3% lower.
The study is based on a survey of 279,000 children and adolescents from Europe, Central Asia and Canada and shows that the highest prevalence of cyberbullying occurs at the age of 11 years for boys and 13 years for girls. The socio-economic status of families had little impact on children's behavior, except in Canada, where children from less affluent backgrounds were more likely to be bullied online.
The report also offers solutions to the problem. First of all, as experts emphasize, it is important to raise awareness about cyberbullying among teenagers, their parents and schools – people need to understand what it is and what threatens the younger generation. It is also important to ensure control over social networks in order to reduce possible risks.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has published a report with alarming data on the increasing incidence of cyberbullying among children and adolescents. According to a study covering 44 countries, 16% of children aged 11 to 15 will experience digital violence in 2022 – a figure 3% higher than four years earlier.
WHO Regional Director for Europe, Hans Kluge, noted that it is necessary to take active measures to counter bullying in any of its manifestations. The study found that 15% of boys and 16% of girls have experienced cyberbullying at least once in the past few months.
The COVID-19 pandemic and its associated quarantine restrictions have dramatically transformed teen communication. Then the problem of virtual violence became particularly acute. At the same time, other forms of bullying remained at the same level or became slightly more frequent.
11% of boys and girls were victims of bullying at school at least two or three times a month, which is 1% more than in 2018. WHO indicated that boys are most likely to suffer from this problem in Bulgaria, Lithuania, Moldova and Poland, and less often in Spain.
Given that young people spend up to six hours a day on the Internet, even a small change in the frequency of such attacks can seriously affect the health and well-being of thousands of children, Kluge said. Every eighth teenager admitted that he was among the offenders. In 2018, this figure was also 3% lower.
The study is based on a survey of 279,000 children and adolescents from Europe, Central Asia and Canada and shows that the highest prevalence of cyberbullying occurs at the age of 11 years for boys and 13 years for girls. The socio-economic status of families had little impact on children's behavior, except in Canada, where children from less affluent backgrounds were more likely to be bullied online.
The report also offers solutions to the problem. First of all, as experts emphasize, it is important to raise awareness about cyberbullying among teenagers, their parents and schools – people need to understand what it is and what threatens the younger generation. It is also important to ensure control over social networks in order to reduce possible risks.