Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

On Technology Against Cyberbullying

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Book cover Responsible Innovation 1

Abstract

Technology is one of the modalities to regulate anti-social online behavior such as cyberbullying. It is unknown what characteristics of effective technology against cyberbullying are and to what extent existing Internet safety technologies can be expected to protect against cyberbullying. This chapter addresses both these issues, by first proposing a set of desired characteristics from literature on cyberbullying and Internet safety technology and subsequently discussing the expected effectiveness of existing Internet safety technologies based on these characteristics. The results indicate that existing Internet safety technologies are not effective against cyberbullying, mainly because they have been designed for other online risks than cyberbullying. Another way technology can steer behavior is by providing social cues. Additionally, we propose the virtual empathic buddy, an application of this so-called persuasive technology, that provides emotional support and practical advice to victims of cyberbullying as an alternative to existing restrictive technology against cyberbullying.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    http://www.youtube.com/

  2. 2.

    http://www.netnanny.com/

  3. 3.

    http://www.cyberpatrol.com/

  4. 4.

    Pendar (2007) and Kontostathis et al. (2009) both used data made available by Perverted Justice (http://www.perverted-justice.com/).

  5. 5.

    http://caw2.barcelonamedia.org/

  6. 6.

    http://explore.live.com/windows-live-messenger

  7. 7.

    http://www.facebook.com/

  8. 8.

    http://www.myspace.com/

  9. 9.

    See for example http://cybermentors.org.uk/, http://www.stopcyberbullying.org/, and http://www.cybersmart.gov.au/

  10. 10.

    http://secondlife.com/

  11. 11.

    http://mrctrl.spaces.live.com/ (in Dutch).

  12. 12.

    http://www.infinitelearninglab.org/

References

  • Abbasi, A., and H. Chen. 2008. Writeprints: A stylometric approach to identity-level identification and similarity detection in cyberspace. ACM Transactions on Information Systems 26(2): 1–29.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • AMiCA. 2010. Automatic monitoring for cyberspace applications. http://www.clips.ua.ac.be/amica/. Accessed 6 July 2011 [Online].

  • Broekens, J., and W.P. Brinkman. 2009. Affectbutton: Towards a standard for dynamic affective user feedback. In Affective computing and intelligent interaction (ACII), Amsterdam.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cassidy, W., M. Jackson, and K.N. Brown. 2009. Sticks and stones can break my bones, but how can pixels hurt me?: Students’ experiences with cyber-bullying. School Psychology International 30(4): 383–402.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chawla, N.V., N. Japkowicz, and A. Kotcz. 2004. Editorial: Special issue on learning from imbalanced data sets. SIGKDD Explorations Newsletter 6(1): 1–6.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cowie, H., P. Naylor, L. Talamelli, P. Chauhan, and P.K. Smith. 2002. Knowledge, use of and attitudes towards peer support: A 2-year follow-up to the Prince’s Trust survey. Journal of Adolescence 25(5): 453–467.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dehue, F., C. Bolman, and T. Völlink. 2008. Cyberbullying: Youngsters’ experiences and parental perception. Cyberpsychology & Behavior: The Impact of the Internet, Multimedia and Virtual Reality on Behavior and Society 11(2): 217–223.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eurobarometer. 2007. Safer internet for children, qualitative study in 29 European countries, national analysis: The Netherlands. http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/activities/sip/surveys/qualitative/index_en.htm.

  • Finkelhor, D., K.J. Mitchell, and J. Wolak. 2000. Online victimization: A report on the nation’s youth. http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/ResourceServlet?LanguageCountry=en_US&PageId=869.

  • Fogg, B.J. 2002. Persuasive technology: Using computers to change what we think and do. New York: ACM. Chap. Computers as persuasive social actors.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hinduja, S., and J.W. Patchin. 2009. Bullying beyond the schoolyard: Preventing and responding to cyberbullying. Thousand Oaks: Corwin Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hunter, C.D. 2000. Internet filter effectiveness (student paper panel): Testing over and underinclusive blocking decisions of four popular filters. In CFP’00: Proceedings of the tenth conference on computers, freedom and privacy, Toronto, 287–294. New York: ACM.

    Google Scholar 

  • Internet Safety Technical Task Force. 2008. Enhancing child safety and online technologies: Final report of the Internet Safety Technical Task Force to the multi-state working group on social networking of state attorneys general of the United States. Tech. rep., http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/pubrelease/isttf/.

  • Iqbal, F., R. Hadjidj, B.C.M. Fung, and M. Debbabi. 2008. A novel approach of mining write-prints for authorship attribution in e-mail forensics. Digital Investigation 5(Supplement 1): 42.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kontostathis, A., L. Edwards, and A. Leatherman. 2009. Chatcoder: Toward the tracking and categorization of internet predators. In Proceedings of the 7th text mining workshop, Sparks.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kowalski, R., and S. Limber. 2007. Electronic bullying among middle school students. Journal of Adolescent Health 41(6, Supplement 1): 22–30.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kowalski, R.M., S.P. Limber, and P.W. Agatston. 2008. Cyber bullying: Bullying in the digital age. Malden: Wiley-Blackwell.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Kucukyilmaz, T., B.B. Cambazoglu, C. Aykanat, and F. Can. 2008. Chat mining: Predicting user and message attributes in computer-mediated communication. Information Processing & Management 44(4): 1448–1466.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lessig, L. 2000. Code and other laws of cyberspace. New York: Basic Books

    Google Scholar 

  • Lewis, D.D., Y. Yang, T.G. Rose, and F. Li. 2004. RCV1: A new benchmark collection for text categorization research. Journal of Machine Learning Research 5: 361–397. http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=1005332.1005345.

  • Li, Q. 2007. New bottle but old wine: A research of cyberbullying in schools. Computers in Human Behavior 23(4): 1777–1791.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Livingstone, S., L. Haddon, A. Görzig, and K. Ólafsson. 2010. Risks and safety on the internet: The perspective of European children. Initial findings. http://www2.lse.ac.uk/media@lse/research/EUKidsOnline/EUKidsII%20%282009-11%29/home.aspx.

  • Lynne, H., A. Paiva, D. Wolke, K. Dautenhahn, E. Andre, and P. Rizzo. 2008. Virtual role-play in the classroom – Experiences with fearnot. In eChallenges e-2008, Stockholm.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mesch, G.S. 2009. Parental mediation, online activities, and cyberbullying. CyberPsychology & Behavior 12(4): 387–393.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mishna, F., M. Saini, and S. Solomon. 2009. Ongoing and online: Children and youth’s perceptions of cyber bullying. Children and Youth Services Review 31(12): 1222–1228.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mishna, F., C. Cook, M. Saini, M.J. Wu, and R. MacFadden. 2010. Interventions to prevent and reduce cyber abuse of youth: A systematic review. Research on Social Work Practice 21(1): 5–14.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Olweus, D. 1999. The nature of school bullying: A cross-national perspective, 7–27. New York: Routledge. Chap. Sweden.

    Google Scholar 

  • Paiva, A., J. Dias, D. Sobral, R. Aylett, S. Woods, L. Hall, and C. Zoll. 2005. Learning by feeling: Evoking empathy with synthetic characters. Applied Artificial Intelligence: An International Journal 19(3): 235–266.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Patchin, J.W., and S. Hinduja. 2006. Bullies move beyond the schoolyard: A preliminary look at cyberbullying. Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice 4(2): 148–169.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pendar, N. 2007. Toward spotting the pedophile telling victim from predator in text chats. In ICSC’07: Proceedings of the international conference on semantic computing, Irvine, 235–241. IEEE Computer Society, Washington, DC.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sapouna, M., D. Wolke, N. Vannini, S. Watson, S. Woods, W. Schneider, S. Enz, L. Hall, A. Paiva, E. Andre, K. Dautenhahn, and R. Aylett. 2010. Virtual learning intervention to reduce bullying victimization in primary school: A controlled trial. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 51(1): 104–112.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shariff, S. 2008. Cyber-bullying: Issues and solutions for the school, the classroom and the home. New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sharples, M., R. Graber, C. Harrison, and K. Logan. 2009. E-safety and web 2.0 for children aged 11–16. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning 25(1): 70–84.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, P.K., J. Mahdavi, M. Carvalho, S. Fisher, S. Russell, and N. Tippett. 2008. Cyberbullying: Its nature and impact in secondary school pupils. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 49(4): 376–385.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stacey, E. 2009. Research into cyberbullying: Student perspectives on cybersafe learning environments. Informatics in Education 8(1): 115–130.

    Google Scholar 

  • Szwajcer, E., W. Ebbers, M. Oostdijk, C. Wartena, and B. Hulsebosch. 2009. Kinderen en nieuwe media – Technische and socio-technische oplossingsmogelijkheden voor gevaren in de online wereld. http://www.novay.nl/medialibrary/documenten/originelen/Eindrapportage_kinderen_en_nieuwe_media.pdf.

  • The Gallup Organisation. 2008. Towards a safer use of the Internet for children in the EU – A parents’ perspectives. http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/activities/sip/surveys/quantitative/index_en.htm.

  • Thierer, A.D. 2009. Five online safety task forces agree: Education, empowerment & self-regulation are the answer. Progress & Freedom Foundation Progress on Point Paper 16(13).

    Google Scholar 

  • Tokunaga, R.S. 2010. Following you home from school: A critical review and synthesis of research on cyberbullying victimization. Computers in Human Behavior 26(3): 277–287.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vandebosch, H., and K.V. Cleemput. 2008. Defining cyberbullying: A qualitative research into the perceptions of youngsters. CyberPsychology & Behavior 11(4): 499–503.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vandebosch, H., K. Van Cleemput, D. Mortelmans, and M. Walrave. 2006. Cyberpesten bij jongeren in vlaanderen, studie in opdracht van het viwta, brussel. Tech. rep.

    Google Scholar 

  • van der Zwaan, J.M., M.V. Dignum, and C.M. Jonker. 2010. Simulating peer support for victims of cyberbullying. In Proceedings of the 22nd Benelux conference on artificial intelligence (BNAIC 2010), Luxembourg.

    Google Scholar 

  • WISE Research Group. 2010. Evidenced-based ICT interventions against (cyber-)bullying amongst youngsters. http://wise.vub.ac.be/content/evidenced-based-ict-interventions-against-cyber-bullying-amongst-youngsters. Accessed 6 July 2011 [Online].

  • Wolak, J., K. Mitchell, and D. Finkelhor. 2006. Online victimization of youth: Five years later. http://www.unh.edu/ccrc/pdf/CV138.pdf.

  • Wolak, J., K.J. Mitchell, and D. Finkelhor. 2007. Does online harassment constitute bullying?: An exploration of online harassment by known peers and online-only contacts. Journal of Adolescent Health 41(6): S51–S58.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wright, V.H., J.J. Burnham, C.T. Inman, and H.N. Ogorchock. 2009. Cyberbullying: Using virtual scenarios to educate and raise awareness. Journal of Computing in Teacher Education 26(1): 8.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ybarra, M.L., and K.J. Mitchell. 2004. Youth engaging in online harassment: Associations with caregiver-child relationships, internet use, and personal characteristics. Journal of Adolescence 27(3): 319–336.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ybarra, M.L., and K.J. Mitchell. 2007. Prevalence and frequency of internet harassment instigation: Implications for adolescent health. Journal of Adolescent Health 41(2): 189–195.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ybarra, M.L., and K.J. Mitchell. 2008. How risky are social networking sites?: A comparison of places online where youth sexual solicitation and harassment occurs. Pediatrics 121(2): 350–357.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ybarra, M.L., K.J. Mitchell, J. Wolak, and D. Finkelhor. 2006. Examining characteristics and associated distress related to internet harassment: Findings from the second youth internet safety survey. Pediatrics 118(4): 1169–1177.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ybarra, M.L., M. Diener-West, and P.J. Leaf. 2007. Examining the overlap in internet harassment and school bullying: Implications for school intervention. Journal of Adolescent Health 41(6, Supplement 1): 42–50.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yin, D., Z. Xue, L. Hong, B.D. Davison, A. Kontostathis, and L. Edwards. 2009. Detection of harassment on web 2.0. In CAW 2.0’09: Proceedings of the 1st content analysis in web 2.0 workshop, Madrid.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This work is funded by NWO under the Responsible Innovation (RI) program via the project ‘Empowering and Protecting Children and Adolescents Against Cyberbullying’.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Information and Communication Technology, Delft University of Technology, Jaffalaan 5, 2628 BX, Delft, The Netherlands

    Janneke M. van der Zwaan & Virginia Dignum

  2. Interactive Intelligence, Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands

    Catholijn M. Jonker

  3. eLaw@Leiden, Universiteit Leiden, Leiden, The Netherlands

    Simone van der Hof

Authors
  1. Janneke M. van der Zwaan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Virginia Dignum
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Catholijn M. Jonker
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Simone van der Hof
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Janneke M. van der Zwaan .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands

    Jeroen van den Hoven

  2. Delft University of Technology, Delft, Zuid-Holland, The Netherlands

    Neelke Doorn

  3. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Maastricht, Maastricht, The Netherlands

    Tsjalling Swierstra

  4. Tilburg Law School, University of Tilburg, Tilburg, The Netherlands

    Bert-Jaap Koops

  5. Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

    Henny Romijn

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

van der Zwaan, J.M., Dignum, V., Jonker, C.M., van der Hof, S. (2014). On Technology Against Cyberbullying. In: van den Hoven, J., Doorn, N., Swierstra, T., Koops, BJ., Romijn, H. (eds) Responsible Innovation 1. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8956-1_21

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation