New Updates for February

OK State Dept of Ed sent this bulletin at 02/15/2024 11:55 AM CST
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Bullying and Cyberbullying on the Rise

The incidences of both cyberbullying and adolescent suicide are rising in the United States, with recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data showing that 14.9 percent of adolescents have been cyberbullied and 13.6 percent of adolescents have made a serious suicide attempt. Cyberbullying has been associated with suicide of a victim in several recent cases, a phenomenon that has been newly termed cyberbullicide.

Even though not all cyber bullies or victims think of (or consider) suicide, they clearly appear to be at an increased risk.

A recent study by the NIH showed that participants who experienced cyberbullying were more than 4 times as likely to report thoughts of suicide and attempts as those who didn’t.

Another study has shown that effective, evidence-based cyberbullying intervention programs involving communication and social skills, digital citizenship, empathy training, coping skills, as well as education on cyberbullying for both the individual youth and parent can help overcome suicide risk in young people who experience cyberbullying.

It is not an easy answer, but if we address it properly, we can find success in helping minimize the factors that cause the increased risk that cyberbullying can cause.

You can find an array of resources on the stopbullying.gov website.

 
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