Cyberbullying on university campuses in the US is creating stress management issues and new challenges for counsellors.
This is the conclusion of Jiyoon Yoon, a researcher at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA), who said the problem of online harassment is getting worse at educational establishments across America.
Professor Yoon surveyed 276 students from University of Minnesota campuses and found that while students used tools – such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube – to bully others, they often also utilised intranets and other networks meant for research and discussion purposes.
The UTA scientist said: “We hope our study will lead universities to ask themselves ‘What does the university do to help minimise cyberbullying in academe?’ Students also need to know about this and how to prepare for something like this.”
Online harassment at educational institutions in the US recently became the topic of national debate after an 18-year-old Rutgers University student killed himself after a roommate secretly recorded compromising videos of the student and posted them on the internet .
