The emergence of cyberbullying: A survey of primary school pupils’ perceptions and experiences

Abstract

There is little research that has examined cyberbullying among children under the age of 11years. The current study explored the nature and extent of the phenomenon among primary school children aged 7- to 11-years-old ( N = 220; 116 boys and 104 girls) and investigated their perceptions of the distress caused to victims, how victims would feel, and their recommendations to victims for coping strategies. Participants completed a modified version of Ortega, Calmaestra, and Mora-Merchán’s (2007) and Smith et al.’s (2008a) bullying and cyberbullying questionnaire. The results indicated that cyberbullying is used and experienced by some children in this age group, with some age and gender differences in these experiences. Cyberbullying is generally viewed negatively and children are aware that it may have a negative impact on the emotions of victims. There is some overlap between involvement in cyberbullying and traditional bullying; with children most likely to take the same role (i.e., traditional bully and cyberbully or traditional victim and cybervictim) across the two settings. The most commonly endorsed coping strategy for victims was to tell someone, which is in line with government guidance to schools. The findings are discussed in relation to research with secondary school pupils as well as addressing potential implications for interventions with this age group.