ONE in six young people across 44 countries said they were victims of online bullying in 2022, with a slightly higher percentage among girls, according to a new study released on Wednesday, March 27, by the World Health Organization (WHO).
The WHO Regional Office for Europe, in the second volume of the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study, stated that researchers surveyed more than 279,000 young people aged 11, 13, and 15 about bullying across 44 European and Central Asian countries and regions as well as Canada.
Cyberbullying is bullying with the use of digital technologies and a repeated behaviour aimed at scaring, angering or shaming those who are targeted, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
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The act compounds many other challenges young people go through.
The study revealed that although overall bullying rates had remained steady since 2018, instances of cyberbullying—such as sending derogatory messages or sharing unauthorised videos or images online—had risen.
The latest data from 2018 to 2022 shows a concerning increase in cyberbullying, with boys cyberbullying others rising from 11 per cent to 14 per cent and girls from seven per cent to nine per cent.
Likewise, instances of cyberbullying rose from 12 per cent to 15 per cent among boys and from 13 per cent to 16 per cent among girls from 2018 to 2022.
The study also revealed gender differences in bullying behaviour, noting that boys exhibited a higher tendency towards aggression and engagement in physical fights.
Speaking on the challenge, the HBSC study International Coordinator Joanna Inchley, a doctor, said, “The digital world, while offering incredible opportunities for learning and connecting, also amplifies challenges like cyberbullying. This calls for comprehensive strategies to protect our young people’s mental and emotional well-being. It’s crucial for governments, schools, and families to collaborate on addressing online risks, ensuring adolescents have safe and supportive environments in which to thrive.”
On his part, the WHO Regional Director for Europe, Hans Henri P. Kluge, said the report was a wake-up call for everyone to call out bullying and violence “whenever and wherever it happens.
“With young people spending up to six hours online every single day, even small changes in the rates of bullying and violence can have profound implications for the health and well-being of thousands. From self-harm to suicide, we have seen how cyberbullying in all its forms can devastate the lives of young people and their families. This is both a health and a human rights issue, and we must step up to protect our children from violence and harm, both offline and online,” he said.
Key findings
Boys exhibited higher rates of engaging in violent behaviour, including bullying at school or online, as well as involvement in physical altercations.
WHO says no systematic age patterns were evident with regard to involvement in bullying and cyberbullying, but a significant decrease in fighting with increasing age was seen in more than half of the countries and regions.
- On average, six per cent of adolescents disclosed that they had bullied others at school at least two to three times a month in the past couple of months (eight per cent of boys and five per cent of girls).
- Around one in 10 (11 per cent) boys and girls reported they had been bullied at school at least two to three times a month in the past couple of months.
- The frequency of adolescents reporting that they engaged in school bullying has remained relatively unchanged since 2018, with a slight decrease observed among boys from 2014 to 2018.
- One in eight adolescents reported cyberbullying others at least once or twice in the past couple of months (14 per cent of boys and 9 per cent of girls), representing a slight increase from 2018.
- Overall, 15 per cent of adolescents reported being cyberbullied at least once or twice in the past couple of months (15 per cent of boys and 16 per cent of girls).
Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: [email protected]. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M