It is difficult to believe that, not long ago, school bullying was a rite of passage. Little was known about the negative impact bullying had on individuals and communities before the late 1970s. Targets of bullying and their carers suffered mostly in silence. Thankfully, we have come a long way in our understanding of bullying. This chapter will focus on a deep conceptual understanding of bullying. It will include learning to differentiate the several types of bullying and their manifestations. This understanding will help you apply the techniques suggested for enhancing students’ engagement discussed throughout this book to recognise, prevent and manage bullying in your school and classroom.

Technology continues to evolve, thereby shaping how individuals can connect. Through technological advances, individuals identifying across the LGBTQ+ spectrum have gained increased access to medical and mental health services and improved ways of developing community. In this chapter, we discuss how various forms of technology serve as resources for individuals across the LGBTQ+ spectrum. We illustrate how technology bolsters mental health, connectedness, and representation within this population. Furthermore, we explore the ways in which technology, including social media and dating applications, can pose various threats to LGBTQ+ individuals, including through the perpetuation of sexual racism. We conclude with a case example and questions for further reflection.

When people perceive that they are rejected by others, they may respond in positive ways to regain acceptance or in negative ways to achieve other goals, such as revenge. This chapter examines people’s negative responses to interpersonal rejection. After discussing conceptual issues that have plagued the study of rejection, the chapter examines five forms of extreme aggression in detail: school and mass shootings, intimate partner violence, hazing, retaliative suicide, and cyberbullying. The chapter examines evidence that supports a link between rejection and these five forms of aggression and discusses variables that influence the degree to which people respond aggressively to perceived rejection.

This chapter will focus on cyberbullying and aggression by Dark Tetrad personalities on social networking sites. Cyber aggression is an umbrella term for several hate behaviors in social networks. Cyberbullying is rude or discourteous online behavior. The chapter will review the approaches to and definitions of cyberbullying. It will also review the devastating consequences of cyberbullying. The chapter will discuss the role of each Dark Tetrad personality in cyberbullying. Finally, the chapter will review the latest research findings on the relationship between Dark Tetrad personalities and cyberbullying.

1 Introduction

2 History of Research on Cyberbullying

3 Risk and Protective Factors for Cyberbullying

4 Consequences of Cyberbullying

5 Effective Interventions against Cyberbullying

6 Conclusions

7 Future Directions

1 Introduction

 1.1 Cyberbullying within a Peer Group

 1.2 Cyberbullying outside the School Setting

 1.3 Typologies of Cyberbullying

2 Beyond Peer Cyberbullying – Other Subtypes of Electronic Aggression

3 Mechanisms of Cyberaggression

4 Electronic Aggression and Cyberbullying Measurement Methodology

5 Cyberbullying Prevention and Intervention

6 Knowledge Gaps and Future Research

Social media provides a range of opportunities to interact with others and to obtain information and support. However, there are also a number of risks. While much of the debate has been focused on negative aspects of social media use, it is important to have a balanced perspective so as to work towards harnessing the benefits and reducing the risks. This chapter outlines the key issues and debates by first outlining three core risks of social media: cyberaggression and cyberbullying; sexting, coercion, and risky online interactions; and misinformation and interaction with harmful online groups. It then goes on to discuss three key benefits of social media: the benefits of information-seeking online; the sense of belongingness, social support, and social capital derived from social media; and the opportunities for identity exploration and self-expression. Through discussing examples of risks and benefits that are of particular interest to current policy discussions, media, and research, we aim to provide an overview that sets the foundation for further engagement with these issues by researchers and practitioners, particularly via digital literacy and education.

Adolescent health, development and behaviour lay a foundation for future population health (Patton, et al., 2018; Sawyer, et al., 2012). Adolescence now occupies a greater portion of the life-course. It is commonly framed as the period from 10-24 years of age, moving beyond earlier definitions of 10-19 years (Sawyer, Azzopardi, Wickremarathne, & Patton, 2018). Disadvantage, social inequality and a range of harmful health and social problems often become prominent during adolescence. This chapter explores some of the common health and social problems experienced by adolescents, including internalising and externalising problems, homelessness, substance use, and traditional and cyberbullying perpetration and victimisation. We also discuss some of the contextual factors (herein referred to as risk and protective factors) that may increase or decrease the likelihood of these health and social problems (Hawkins & Weis, 2017). We conclude by discussing some of the public health approaches used by practitioners and researchers to target these health and social problems.

We take a community psychology approach to understanding how social media affects community populations. Community psychology must always be advancing as the Internet and social media become more intertwined in users’ everyday lives. We consider the history of the rise in social media use, examining the timeline of different platforms and their purposes. The Internet is discussed as being a means of social interaction and connection, used to relate to others who share interests and experiences, or who are far away. Despite this, social media can negatively affect populations in terms of mental health. Increased use of cyberbullying has been linked with an increase in depression, anxiety, eating disorders, self harm, and suicidal ideation for those who are at risk. The term FoMO describes decreased life satisfaction as a result of inherent social comparisons online. On the other hand, social media platforms provide a helpful, supportive space for people to share their stories and knowledge. The literature on community psychology needs to incorporate greater focus on social media given its prominence in today’s society. The information, images, and representations we view affect our discourse regarding people, cultures, policies, and anything else that may affect individual lives.

Bullying is not a new problem for teachers, principals and the school community in general to deal with. However, the advent of smart devices and their widespread availability has seen the rise of a new dimension in bullying – that of online, or cyber, bullying. The ‘Digital Education Revolution’ program that was launched by the federal government in 2007 saw laptops being provided to high school students. Electronic devices are now anaccepted study tool, with many schools having a ‘bring your own device’ policy while others charge a levy and provide devices to students. So students have the tools and justification to access devices, both at school and after hours, in order to complete their homework and study.

Duty of care in an educational context is concerned with the safety and wellbeing of students. It is a term we hear all the time in schools. It is imperative to have a clear understanding and working knowledge of when and where the duty is owed and where it is not. Duty of care is part of the tort of negligence where typically a student becomes injured on school grounds or at a school event and his or her family wants to seek a remedy. This is usually in the form of financial compensation for the loss suffered and for any ongoing treatment costs. The circumstances in which a plaintiff is likely to proceed and win a case in the tort of negligence is now well established in law. This chapter discusses the duty of care and how it operates in schools. The discussion covers the defences used by schools to reduce or avoid their responsibility in such matters. The second half of the chapter outlines several of the significant judicial cases in school law, highlighting what they have decided about the liability and legal position of schools and school authorities.