Nearly half of Taiwan teens involved in cyberbullying

2020-10-26 02:06:40 GMT2020-10-26 10:06:40(Beijing Time) Xinhua English

TAIPEI, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- Around 47 percent of teenagers in Taiwan are involved in cyberbullying, much higher than the 22.2 percent in 2016, according to a survey by the Taipei-based Child Welfare League Foundation (CWLF).

About 36.3 percent of the respondents in the survey have been bullied, while 28.9 percent of the respondents have bullied others online, said the survey report released last week.

The CWLF received 1,589 valid questionnaires from 30 sampled middle schools and vocational schools from June 11 to July 9 this year.

The survey found that the most common form of cyberbullying for teens was attacking people they knew offline openly or through private messages, while other common forms included insulting others in mobile phone games and mocking others by posting pictures and texts in online chat groups.

Mobile phone games are the platforms where cyberbullying occurred most, followed by social networks such as Facebook and Instagram, the report said.

Having been harassed online, 31.2 percent of the respondents felt depressed, and 23.6 percent of them felt anxious and nervous about interpersonal relations, while 10.7 percent have thought of suicide or self-mutilation, the survey found.

About 62.8 percent of the respondents said they would handle online harassment by themselves, and 62.7 percent will discuss the situation with peers, while only 28.4 percent will tell their parents, and 13.5 percent will tell their teachers.

CWLF chief executive Pai Li-fang suggested that parents, schools, and teenagers collaborate in the face of increasing online harassment. 

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