The problems that children and youth have to deal with are numerous, from hunger, malnutrition, abuse and lack of education to lack of opportunities. However, one of the most uniquely challenging issues to tackle is the ever-rising presence of cyberbullying in our age of almost always online lives. And, according to experts, children of families who are poor at communication are more exposed to cyberbullying.

Cyberbullying and digital violence have been the subject of an increasing number of academic studies in recent years, stated associate professor Demet Akarçay Ulutaş, of Konya Chamber of Commerce (KTO) Karatay University's Faculty of Social and Human Sciences.

Ulutaş told Anadolu Agency (AA) that cyberbullying was defined as all kinds of organized attacks against individuals with digital tools. These systematic harassments can include the aggressor intentionally turning the victim into a target, voicing hate speech, insulting and disclosing personal information.

Ulutaş drew attention to the fact that children who grew up in a disinterested and authoritarian environment become a clear target in digital environments.

"The child becomes lonely if his opinion is not asked at home and if he does not agree with the decisions taken at home, if his family is not interested in the problems he experiences during the day. And these factors are seen in oppressive, indifferent and authoritarian parent environments," Ulutaş said.

"Children with poor family communication cannot express themselves adequately, so they tend to hide cyberbullying. Communication is the key here. Cyberbullying happens on every platform. Especially adolescents tend to reveal themselves on social media because they do not have any communication with their families. For example, they say, 'I can't get along with my father,' 'I can't communicate with my mother.' This becomes an opportunity for the perpetrator. The aggressor uses that vulnerability that the child has revealed about himself and (opportunity rises for abuse)."

Unfortunately, children experience such instances of bullying more than we can ever imagine. In the advanced technological age of the 21st century, it has become a relentless barrage of abuse that can leave deep psychological scars on children and can lead to physical reactions in the real world. Self-harm is unfortunately an ever-present and ever-looming danger as the psychological damage of such bullying results so often in mental health issues like depression with unpredictable physical ramifications.

Back in 2020, Microsoft's Digital Civility Index (DCI), showed that the internet is not such a welcoming safe space anymore, especially for millennials.

As part of a series of surveys carried out in 25 countries based on the responses gathered from teenagers and adults, the tech giant found that people were increasingly losing their civility in their online interactions worldwide

The data that researchers started collecting in 2016 shows that DCI plunged to a four-year low to reach the 70th percentile for the first time. It also found that 75% of Generation Y in Türkiye received online threats. The Turkish DCI Index rose 2 percentage points compared to the prior year.

With online trolling, hate speeches, sexual harassment and unwanted contact making up the majority of online threats, the situation is even direr for children when compared to millennial adults, especially if the child does not have an established support system they trust, particularly a family with good communication.

Families, teachers' responsibility

Professor Zeliha Traş, a lecturer at Necmettin Erbakan University Ahmet Keleşoğlu Education Faculty Guidance and Psychological Counseling Department, said that they conducted internet addiction research with 2,758 people aged 7 to 18 across Türkiye.

Traş noted that the increase in the time spent on the internet leads to digital addiction.

"In our study, we see that adolescents' use of the internet on the weekend increases. When this period increases, there is an increased probability of being exposed to or exhibiting bullying behavior."

Traş stated that families and teachers have important duties against cyberbullying.

"Instead of taking a defensive and protective position, families should follow a 'win-win' policy and should think: 'I need to protect my child and at the same time I need to protect and show respect to other kids who are children of other parents,'" Traş said.

"The family needs to show empathy and respect in its communication with the child. At the same time, we recommend parents guide children to sports and art according to the child's skills so that they can protect their children from internet addiction."

Spotting such instances of bullying can be much harder than real-world bullying that occurs in schools or playgrounds as the social journeys of children through the internet is more often than not a blind spot in the eyes of children's families and friends.

Once spotted though, the responsibility to support children against bullying – cyber or otherwise – falls on families and friends, and support, love and care are crucial elements in the fight against bullying.