Young people who are the targets of cyber bullying at school are at greater risk for depression than are those who bully them, according to a study released by the National Institutes of Health.

by Rune H. Rasmussen

The “cyber bullying” findings are in contrast to earlier studies of traditional bullying, which indicated that bully-victims – those who both bully others and are bullied themselves – are most likely to feel depressed.

“Notably, cyber victims reported higher depression than cyber bullies or bully-victims, which was not found in any other form of bullying,” the study authors wrote in the Journal of Adolescent Health. “Unlike traditional bullying which usually involves a face-to-face confrontation, cyber victims may not see or identify their harasser; as such, cyber victims may be more likely to feel isolated, dehumanized or helpless at the time of the attack.”

Traditional forms of bullying involve physical violence, verbal taunts, or social exclusion. Cyber bullying comes in the form of hurtful gestures communicated over a computer or a cell phone.

The analysis, of 6th through 10th grade students, was conducted by researchers of the Division of Epidemiology, Statistics and Prevention Research at NIH’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

Read more:

Depression High Among Youth Victims of School Cyber Bullying, NIH Researchers Report

Related articles on kidsandmedia.org:

What is digital bullying?

What to do if your child is being bullied

Bullying: Teenagers’ best advice for parents

Cyber bullying - Topics for dicussion

Other resources:

STOP Cyberbullying
This website is an interactive resource which contains a lot of useful information about cyber bullying and good advice on how to prevent and handle it.

Stop Bullying Now!
StopBullying.gov provides information from various government agencies on how kids, teens, young adults, parents, educators and others in the community can prevent or stop bullying. StopBullying.gov is an official U.S. Government Web site managed by the Department of Health & Human Services in partnership with the Department of Education and Department of Justice. 

Youth Violence: Electronic Aggression
The US Center for Disease Control provides information on electronic aggression for parents, educators, and researchers.

Online Psychology Degree
At OnlinePsychologyDegree.com, you'll find an interesting article which discusses bullying, cyberbullying, and how to help children deal with bullies.