The Nature and Impact of Cyberbullying and Cyber-harassment in South African Schools

Innovation Cyberbullying, bullying via electronic media and communication, is on the increase. It has been thrust to the forefront of the public agenda, with concerns about the psychological and health impacts resulting from online victimisation. Traditional anti-bullying strategies do not appear to be effective. This article adds to the existing research by investigating the nature and impact of cyberbullying in South Africa. 1258 adolescent children from eight urban schools in Cape Town responded to our survey examining the nature, extent and impacts of cyberbullying. Incidents of cyberbullying were examined in relation to gender, age and school grade, internet usage, traditional bullying factors, and economic factors. There was a significant incidence of cyberbullying. We found significant correlations with gender, age, grade, perceived academic performance and frequency of internet access. Cyberbullying impacts were perceived as negative, eliciting feels of anger, fear and depression, and in one case, suicidal ideation.