NEW
ORLEANS – Cyberbullying – the use of the Internet, phones or other technologies
to repeatedly harass or mistreat peers – is often linked with teen suicide in
media reports. However, new research presented on Saturday, Oct. 20, at the American Academy
of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans, shows that the reality is more
complex. Most teen suicide victims are bullied both online and in school, and
many suicide victims also suffer from depression.
For
the abstract, “Cyberbullying and Suicide: A Retrospective Analysis of 41
Cases,” researchers searched the Internet for reports of youth suicides where
cyberbullying was a reported factor. Information about demographics and the
event itself were then collected through searches of online news media and
social networks. Finally, descriptive statistics were used to assess the rate
of pre-existing mental illness, the co-occurrence of other forms of bullying,
and the characteristics of the electronic media associated with each suicide
case.
The
study identified 41 suicide cases (24 female, 17 male, ages 13 to 18) from the U.S., Canada,
the United Kingdom and Australia. In
the study, 24 percent of teens were the victims of homophobic bullying,
including the 12 percent of teens identified as homosexual and another 12
percent of teens who were identified as heterosexual or of unknown sexual
preference.
Suicides most frequently
occurred in September (15 percent) and January (12 percent) although these
higher rates may have occurred by chance. The incidence of reported suicide
cases increased over time, with 56 percent occurring from 2003 to 2010,
compared to 44 percent from January 2011 through April 2012.
Seventy-eight
percent of adolescents who committed suicide were bullied both at school and
online, and only 17 percent were targeted online only. A mood disorder was
reported in 32 percent of the teens, and depression symptoms in an additional
15 percent.
“Cyberbullying
is a factor in some suicides, but almost always there are other factors such as
mental illness or face-to-face bullying,” said study author John C. LeBlanc,
MD, MSc, FRCPC, FAAP. “Cyberbullying usually occurs in the context of regular
bullying.”
Cyberbullying occurred
through various media, with Formspring and Facebook specifically mentioned in
21 cases. Text or video messaging was noted in 14 cases.
“Certain social media, by virtue of allowing
anonymity, may encourage cyberbullying,” said Dr. LeBlanc. “It is difficult to
prove a cause and effect relationship, but I believe there is little
justification for anonymity.”
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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 60,000 primary
care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical
specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants,
children, adolescents and young adults. For more information, visit www.aap.org.
