The Changing World of Bullying: Student Strategies for Cyberbullying Intervention

Abstract

A gap in research on cyberbullying intervention strategies exists. The purpose of this study was to identify effective coping strategies for cyberbullying by interviewing cyberbullying survivors. The study used grounded theory qualitative methodology to allow data to fully emerge from participants’ perspectives. When analyzing the data, the researchers found that youth engaged in three types of coping: online coping, offline coping, and intrinsic coping. Online coping involved online interventions to stop active cyberbullying and prevent future cyberbullying; for example, youth limited who had access to their online accounts or blocked and reported cyberbullies. Offline coping included strategies that participants engaged in offline to minimize, tolerate, or cope with the effects of cyberbullying, such as talking about their experiences or reframing the way that they think about things. Finally, intrinsic coping described survivors’ personality traits or ways of being that aided them in developing such resilient coping strategies; for instance, possessing self-awareness and self-love contributed to survival. Accordingly, the findings contribute to the literature on effective coping strategies by confirming previously identified strategies, like online coping, and highlighting new ones, like intrinsic coping. The findings also help inform future counseling practices within schools.