More Bahraini teens cyberbullying victims
Manama : Increasing number of youngsters in Bahrain are victims of cyberbullying, with the most common mediums used being instant messaging, text messaging and social networking platforms, a study finds.
Around 37.9 per cent of the youngsters polled by the survey said that they were victims of cyberbullying. However, equally alarming was the fact that 30pc of the respondents said they were engaging in cyberbullying themselves.
The study, National Internet Safety Review (NISR), by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority’s (TRA) determined that a 23.1pc overlap existed for those who were both cyberbullies and were cyberbullied.
NISR measured the exposure and awareness behaviour of youths to risky online behaviour in the Kingdom of Bahrain.
“The implications of cyberbullying alone is a staggering problem,” says Mariam Al Mannai, TRA Consumer Affairs Manager. “While caregivers might mistakenly assume this is a minor threat, they shouldn’t. The effect it has on people – children in particular are far-reaching; including psychological stress, withdrawn and anti-social behaviour, a higher risk of clinical depression, and could even result in under performance in schools,” she added.
The NISR identified Cyberbullying as a key government and educational priority in safeguarding young people online.
Another problem identified as a risk was the possibility of meeting strangers online. It’s apparent that the number of people sharing private information with strangers online, and subsequently meeting them, has dropped significantly from 43pc in 2010 to 16.4pc in 2015. While this is a positive indicator, meeting strangers is still a major issue.
The study points out that there is a critical need for policy makers and members of the educational community to take the recommendations of the NISR into consideration, implement preventive measures, and share the responsibility to educate people on Cyberbullying issues.
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