Preamble Taking on Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying can take many forms, including harassment, exclusion, shaming, cyber aggression, impersonation, dissing, trickery, trolling, gossip, or doxing. Outside of school, parents have reported bullying primarily emerges on social media [1]. However, unlike schools where kids are physically together from 8 am to 3 pm, cyberbullying can occur online 24/7. With the COVID-19 pandemic, people have spent 20% more time on social media than pre-pandemic [2]. Evidence shows that victimization online can lead to consequences offline:

  • Physical Impact
  • Emotional Impact
  • Mental Impact
  • Behavioral Impact

Victims may turn to delinquent behavior, including using drugs, alcohol, stealing, assaulting a peer, or damaging property [3]. Additional research from John et al. (2018) reports that individuals who are victims of cyberbullying are more than twice as likely to inflict self-harm, exhibit suicidal behaviors, or attempt suicide [4]. The second leading cause of death for 10-24 year olds in the US is suicide as of 2019 [5]. While bullying may not be the only factor for self-harm or suicide, the persistent nature of cyberbullying can increase the mental toll on victims. The true extent of the cyberbullying problem is challenging to gauge since most statistics rely on victims’ or their parents’ reporting. A study by the Pew Research Center in 2018 claims 59% of US teens have experienced some form of cyberbullying [6].

Preamble’s mission is to develop AI solutions that can have a real-world impact to improve society. Our first AI-based solution detects cyberbullying content to help platforms reduce this harm to children. Our future solutions will address other vital areas for children’s wellbeing. If you are interested in supporting our mission or want to use our solution, contact us at contribute@preamble.com.


References

[1] Cook, S. (2021, December 18). Cyberbullying facts and statistics for 2018 – 2021. Comparitech. https://www.comparitech.com/internet-providers/cyberbullying-statistics/

[2] Statista. (2020, June 18). Media consumption increase due to the coronavirus worldwide 2020, by country. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1106766/media-consumption-growth-coronavirus-worldwide-by-country/

[3] Hinduja, S., & Patchin, J. W. (2007). Offline Consequences of Online Victimization. Journal of School Violence, 6(3), 89–112. https://doi.org/10.1300/j202v06n03_06

[4] John, A., Glendenning, A. C., Marchant, A., Montgomery, P., Stewart, A., Wood, S., Lloyd, K., & Hawton, K. (2018). Self-Harm, Suicidal Behaviours, and Cyberbullying in Children and Young People: Systematic Review. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 20(4), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.9044

[5] Suicide. (2021). National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/suicide

[6] Anderson, M. (2020, August 14). A Majority of Teens Have Experienced Some Form of Cyberbullying. Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2018/09/27/a-majority-of-teens-have-experienced-some-form-of-cyberbullying/

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