A Study of the Motivation Behind Cyber Bullies - Research Proposal Example

Not like offline bullying, cyberbullies normally fail to hear or see the outcomes of their teasing or harassment, hence they are less apt to feel empathy for their victims or feel guilty about their actions as they may have they saw the reactions of their victims in person (Slonje & Smith, 2008). Thus, students are more likely to engage in cyberbullying than in traditional ones. Given the heightened use of the Internet among students nowadays, it is important that educators and other school personnel are knowledgeable of and understand the kinds of actions that are classified as cyberbullying, and most importantly the motivation behind the involvement of students in these activities.

Ultimately, it is similarly crucial to become aware of useful ways of addressing episodes of cyberbullying when they happen. Cyberbullying, not like traditional bullying, can take place anytime and anywhere, and it is virtually unlikely for a cyberbullying victim to avoid or walk away from the cyberbully. Moreover, in the majority of cases, even though the cyberbully knows or is acquainted with the victim, the latter does not know his/her attacker’s identity. Hence, according to some studies (Willard, 2006), anonymity on the Internet is the primary motivator of cyberbullying.

However, aside from this external motivation, there are also internal ones such as emotional and psychosocial problems (Ybarra et al., 2007) which are discussed in the later sections of the research proposal. This study focuses on the motivations behind the behavior of cyber bullies. More specifically, this study explores potential motivators, namely, (1) emotional and psychosocial factors (e.g. depression and anxiety) and (2) anonymity on the Internet. Cyberbullies have distinct social and psychological profiles.

Teenage cyberbullies, according to Pellegrini and colleagues (1999), have a tendency to have low self-discipline and high emotionality. Even though bullies are reactively and proactively antagonistic, bullies seem to exercise proactive hostility to build authority and power in their peer groups.