Skip to main content

Gender-based cyberbullying

  Gender-based cyberbullying: Understanding expected bystander behavior online


As we discussed in class and as other classmates shared on the blog, a bystander is someone who witnesses an event but is not directly involved in it. To learn more about this topic, I read an article that specifically explores bystanders in gender-based cyberbullying, which is also a topic we covered in class.


Cyberbullying, especially gender-based harassment, is a growing issue in online spaces. This study explores how bystanders react when witnessing such harassment and what factors influence their responses.


In a very brief summary of the key finding in this reading, they found out that: 

  • Women are more likely to support the victim and condemn cyberbullying than men. 

  • Men are more likely to accept or ignore online harassment, possibly due to social norms around masculinity.

  • Past experiences matter: Those who have suffered gender discrimination are more likely to support victims, while those who have discriminated in the past tend to side with the bully.

  • Emotional intelligence plays a role: People who can recognize and understand emotions are less likely to support bullies and more likely to help victims.


In conclusion, the study highlights the need for awareness campaigns and education to encourage online users to intervene and support victims of gender-based cyberbullying. Strengthening emotional skills and promoting empathy can make a difference in fostering safer digital environments.


This article not only confirms what most of us believe about the impact of gender on bullying, but it also raises

important questions about how deeply social norms influence our behavior, both online and offline.

The study highlights that gender-based cyberbullying is not just an issue of individual aggression but a reflection

of broader societal attitudes toward gender roles and power dynamics.


Beyond individual reactions, the article challenges us to think critically about the role of bystanders in online

spaces. If bystanders fail to intervene, they allow harmful behaviors to persist, reinforcing a culture where

gender-based cyberbullying is normalized. However, the study also points to potential solutions, such as promoting

emotional intelligence and awareness to encourage active intervention.


Ultimately, this research serves as a call to reflect on how social norms construct our perceptions of bullying and harassment.

Are we passively accepting harmful behaviors because they align with traditional gender expectations?

Or are we willing to challenge these norms and create a more inclusive, respectful digital environment?


The article leaves us with a powerful debate on whether we, as individuals and as a society, are truly willing to redefine these social constructs for the better.










Herry, E., & Mulvey, K. L. (2022). Gender‐based cyberbullying: Understanding expected bystander behavior online. Journal of Social Issues, 79(4), 1210–1230. https://doi.org/10.1111/josi.12503

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Gender Differences in Bullying

  Gender Differences in Bullying Bullying is a serious problem that happens in many places with children and teenagers like in school in sports and in summer camps I work as a coach and monitor with boys and girls in these kinds of spaces so this topic is important to me One thing that I see often is that bullying is not always the same for boys and girls boys usually show more physical bullying like hitting pushing or shouting girls usually use more relational bullying like ignoring others spreading lies or leaving someone out of the group this is something that many studies say too For example a study by Villardón Gallego et al says that boys are more likely to be involved in direct and physical bullying while girls show more indirect forms like social exclusion or emotional pressure (Villardón Gallego et al 2021) this means that sometimes bullying by girls is harder to see but it can hurt just as much Also according to the International Journal of Environmental Research an...
Post a Comment
Read more

Audrie and Daisy (my opinions and way of thinking about it)

In this blog post, I brought you a documentary film mostly about 2 girls, Audrie and Daisy who had been sexually assaulted while being filmed and then cyberbullied. Audrie committed suicide in 2012 after all the things and the case happened to her. Daisy also tried to end her life by suicide multiple times right after the sexual crime and cyberbullying, but she was saved by her family every time (unfortunately in 2020, her attempt was fatal).    In the whole documentary we can meet both girls’ family and friends, talking about the things happened, which gives us a more emotional and devastating way of understanding what a sexual assault and cyberbullying can do to one person.   I do not want to give you spoilers or tell you the whole story; therefore, I would like to end my description here and truly advise you to watch it.     According to the World Health Organization, around 1 in 6 adolescents experience cyberbullying day by day and surprisingly and dev...
Post a Comment
Read more

New Definition of Bullying

 Hi everyone! The World Anti-Bullying Forum, together with UNESCO, created a Working group for establishing a new definition of school bullying. Its new definition keeps the idea that bullying requires unwanted repetitive aggressiveness and imbalance of power, and adds the idea that this power imbalance is supported by societal and institutional norms. The emphasis is now in the idea that bullying is not an affair among students but a social process. The new definition is this one: School bullying is a damaging social process that is characterized by an imbalance of power driven by social (societal) and institutional norms. It is often repeated and manifests as unwanted interpersonal behaviour among students or school personnel that causes physical, social, and emotional harm to the targeted individuals or groups, and the wider school community. You can find the document where it is explained  here . Fes
Post a Comment
Read more