From Bullying to Cyberbullying: A reflective look

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to theoretically approximate the ontological content of peer violence or bullying, and its evolution with the use of social networks that account for cyberbullying. This type of harassment presents well-marked characteristics such as its repetitive, systematic nature and the intention to cause damage or harm someone who is usually weaker, with three main actors: the harasser, the victim and the observers. This form of harassment or manifestation of violence takes a new form when it occurs through new technologies such as the Internet or mobile phones, causing a mutation, so to speak, from the traditional form of harassment to this phenomenon called cyberbullying. For this purpose, qualitative research of a phenomenological nature has been developed within the interpretive paradigm. It is concluded that this type of dynamic has negative consequences for both the aggressor and the victim. Cyberbullying, known as online harassment, has as its main characteristic the use of ICTs to cause online defamation, in a hostile manner and that can reach an unlimited group of observers who in one way or another participate in the aggression when sharing the content.