Motivations for cyberbullying study: A longitudinal and multi-perspective inquiry

The Motivations for Cyberbullying Study is a three-year study that involved administering questionnaires and conducting interviews, which allowed for a comprehensive examination of cyberbullying. Three participant groups were selected: (1) students, (2) parents, and (3) teachers. Participants were tracked over the course of three years (2012 - 2014). A stratified, random sample of 19 schools was drawn from the Toronto District School Board (TDSB). Schools were stratified into: (a) low needs, (b) medium needs, and (c) high needs based upon the TDSB’s Learning Opportunities Index. The stratification was to help ensure the socio-cultural and socio-economic diversity of the study – factors which have the potential to impact access to ICTs and experiences of cyberbullying. Students were drawn from the 4th, 7th and 10th grades to allow comparison of experiences with cyberbullying across age groups. These grades provided a wide age range (8 - 18), allowing examination of trends in primary, middle and secondary schools. All students at the 19 selected schools in the 4th, 7th or 10th grade were offered the opportunity to participate in the study.This study was funded by:The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada Fund: 49108

Risk Factors for involvement in cyber bullying: Victims, bullies, and bully-victims

Objectives: The purpose of the current study was to examine the frequency of cyber bullying among youth by distinguishing among the three categories of involvement in cyber bullying: victims, bullies, and bully–victims, to compare these to a fourth category of students who are not involved in the three categories of cyber bullying and to explore the factors that contribute to involvement in cyber bullying. Method: This study utilized a large and diverse sample of 2186 middle and high school students, who completed self report questionnaires during class time. We performed a Multinomial Logistic Regression to examine the relationship between the cyber bullying categories and our independent variables (gender, age, technology use, parental involvement and safety). Results: Over 30% of the students in this study identified as involved in cyber bullying, as victims or perpetrators, and one in four of the students (25.7%) reported having been involved in cyber bullying as both bully and victim during the previous three months. Students who were involved in cyber bullying were more likely than others to report perpetration of violence toward peers, to use computers for more hours a day, and to give their password to friends. Other risk factors, such as gender, age and safety, were found to be specific only for one category of cyber bullying. Conclusion: The findings revealed that students are highly involved in cyber bullying. Several unique characteristics emerged regarding the frequency and risk factors of students' involvement in cyber bullying. In traditional bullying the category of bully–victims represents the smallest and most vulnerable group of children, whereas in the current study the bully–victims category emerged as common. In addition, females were more likely than males to be bully–victims, in contrast to research on traditional bullying, in which more males than females are typically involved as bully–victims. In addition, several risk factors were common among the three groups of children, including the amount of hours per day students use the computer, and giving passwords to a friend. These results point to the need for further examination and to focus on the risk factors for students' cyber bullying involvement in each of the three categories

Cyber Bullying Behaviours among Middle and High School Students

Little research has been conducted that comprehensively examines cyber bullying with a large and diverse sample. The present study examines the prevalence, impact, and differential experience of cyber bullying among a large and diverse sample of middle and high school students (n=2186) from a large urban centre. The survey examined technology use, cyber bullying behaviours, and the psychosocial impact of bullying and being bullied. About half (49.5%) of students indicated they had been bullied online and 33.7% indicated they had bullied others online. Most bullying was perpetrated by and to friends and participants generally did not tell anyone about the bullying. Participants reported feeling angry, sad, and depressed after being bullied online. Participants bullied others online because it made them feel as though they were funny, popular and powerful, although many indicated feeling guilty afterwards. Greater attention is required to understand and reduce cyber bullying within children’s social worlds and with the support of educators and parents

Cyber Bullying Survey

The Internet has created a whole new world of social communications, particularly for young people whose use of e-mail, websites, instant messaging, web cams, chat rooms and text messaging is exploding worldwide. While these new tools of electronic communication are widely used for positive purposes, they can also be a means through which children and adolescents bully and are bullied by their peers. There is little existing research on cyber bullying. In response to this knowledge gap, we conducted a study on cyber bullying in order to gain an understanding of the nature and impact of online bullying. This research was generously funded by Bell. In order to systematically examine the phenomenon of cyber bullying we administered a survey on cyber bullying of children and adolescents. Student participants in the study were drawn from schools within two school boards within the Greater Toronto Area; the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) and UJA Board of Jewish Education (BJE). Twenty-eight schools (18 secondary and 10 elementary/middle) in the Toronto District School Board participated and five schools (2 secondary and 3 elementary/middle) in the UJA Board of Jewish Education participated. A representative sample of children and adolescents in grades 6, 7, 10 and 11 was surveyed once we received parental consent and student assent. The survey questionnaire was developed with the help of an advisory group, including personnel from both participating school boards and a number of other organizations. Two age-appropriate survey instruments (one for grades 6 & 7 and one for grades 10 & 11) were used to collect information on students’ experiences with cyber bullying. The survey used a random, multistage, stratified, and cluster sampling design in order to ensure heterogeneity of the sample, and to provide a more complete representation of the range of experiences related to cyber bullying. Within this design, all the classrooms within the grade range of the selected schools were chosen to complete the survey instrument. In addition, a convenience sample of parents, teachers, educational assistants and school administrators was surveyed regarding their knowledge of and experience with cyber bullying of students. Surveys for parents were translated into the appropriate language.This work was funded by Bell

Ontario incidence study of reported child abuse and neglect 2003 (OIS 2003): Major Findings Report

Non-commercial reproduction of this report in whole or in part is permitted, provided the authors and the Centre of Excellence for Child Welfare are acknowledged as the source on all copies.Financial support for the OIS-2003 was provided by a combination of federal, provincial, and private sector funds from the Public Health Agency of Canada through the Injury and Child Maltreatment Section, the Ontario of Ministry of Children and Youth Services and Bell Canada through the Bell Canada Child Welfare Research Unit

Ontario Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect 1998 (OIS-1998)

Non-commercial reproduction of this report in whole or in part is permitted, provided the authors and the Centre of Excellence for Child Welfare are acknowledged as the source on all copies.The 1998 Ontario Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect (OIS 1998) is the second Ontario study to examine the incidence of reported child maltreatment and the characteristics of children and families investigated by the province’s children’s aid societies. The study used a multistage sampling design to select a representative sample of 13 child welfare service areas across Ontario and track maltreatment investigations conducted by the selected sites from October to December 1998. The final sample of 3,053 investigations was used to derive province-wide estimates of the scope and characteristics of child maltreatment investigations. The OIS 1998 was conducted in conjunction with the Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect (CIS 1998), with funding from the provincial government to collect information from a larger Ontario sample. The OIS 1998 includes contextual information about factors associated with key child welfare service decisions and provides the basis for comparison with the 1993 Ontario Incidence Study. The OIS 1998 describes the study methodology and results, and presents major findings with regard to the incidence of abuse and neglect, characteristics of maltreatment, investigation outcomes, child and household characteristics, referral and agency characteristics, and recommendations for further research.The OIS 1998 research was funded by: Ministry of Community and Social Service, Government of Ontario, Child Maltreatment Division, Health Canada, Bell Canad

Ontario Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect-2008 (OIS‑2008)

Non‑commercial reproduction of this report in whole or in part is permitted, provided the authors and the Child Welfare Research Portal are acknowledged as the source of all copies.The Ontario Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect-2008 (OIS‑2008) is the fourth provincewide study to examine the incidence of reported child maltreatment and the characteristics of the children and families investigated by Ontario child welfare agencies. The OIS‑2008 tracked 7,471 child maltreatment investigations conducted in a representative sample of 23 Child Welfare Service agencies across Ontario in the fall of 2008.The OIS‑2008 research was funded by: Ministry of Children and Youth Services, Government of Ontario, and the Injury and Child Maltreatment Section, Public Health Agency of Canada. Funding was provided by Ministry of Children and Youth Services (MCYS); however, the views expressed in the OIS‑2008 report do not necessarily reflect those of the Ministry of Children and Youth Services (MCYS). Additional funding was provided by the Centre of Excellence for Child Welfare (CECW), Factor‑Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto. The CECW ceased to exist as of March 31st, 2010. Please go to the Child Welfare Research Portal (www.cwrp.ca) for more information

Prevalence, Motivations, and Social, Mental Health and Health Consequences of Cyberbullying Among School-Aged Children and Youth: Protocol of a Longitudinal and Multi-Perspective Mixed Method Study

This paper describes the protocols applied in a longitudinal and multi-perspective mixed-methods study with five objectives: (1) to explore children/youth’s experiences, and children/youth’s, parents’, and teachers’ conceptions, definitions, and understanding of cyberbullying; (2) to explore how children/youth view the underlying motivations for cyberbullying; (3) to document the shifting prevalence rates of cyberbullying victimization, witnessing, and perpetration; (4) to identify risk and protective factors for cyberbullying involvement; and (5) to explore social, mental health, and health consequences of cyberbullying