Law enforcement perceptions of cyberbullying: evolving perspectives

Abstract

Purpose Cyberbullying – using technology to intentionally and repeatedly engage in bullying behaviors – has gained considerable public attention over the last decade. Parents and educators regularly instruct students about appropriate online behaviors and threaten consequences for misbehaviors. The role and responsibility of law enforcement officers in preventing and responding to cyberbullying incidents remains uncertain. While clear violations of the law (e.g. threats of physical harm) most directly implicate the police, other – more common behaviors – such as rumor spreading or hurtful online commenting do not. The paper aims to discuss this issue. Design/methodology/approach The current study surveyed 1,596 law enforcement supervisors attending the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Academy (NA) program. The survey instrument assessed perceptions of law enforcement responsibility in cyberbullying incidents. Data were collected in three waves over a nine-year period, allowing the measurement of attitudinal changes over time. Findings The authors find that certain officer characteristics are associated with a greater interest in responding to different types of cyberbullying (including having children at home and having previous experience dealing with cyberbullying) and that these perceptions have evolved over time. Research limitations/implications The data are specific to law enforcement leaders who participated in the NA and are therefore not generalizable to all officers. Nevertheless, implications for explaining variance and law enforcement involvement in cyberbullying incidents are discussed. Originality/value This is the first study to survey law enforcement leaders over time to assess their evolving perceptions of law enforcement’s role in addressing cyberbullying among youth.

Perception of the Ways of Elimination and Prevention of Bullying by Future Secondary School Teachers

“…As we can see in theory [5], [12] "cyberbullying is primarily related to mental health. Issues in this area have an impact to increasing the possibility that a child or adolescent will become an aggressor and that he or she will become a victim.…”

Advanced security testing using a cyber‐attack forecasting model: A case study of financial institutions

“…As cyber‐attackers choose the easiest path with which to gain access to several sensitive areas and infiltrate the networks of an organization, financial institutions are becoming the primary target. Cybercrime reports indicate that financial institutions are 300 times more likely to be the target of cyber‐attacks than businesses in any other industry 2 . Therefore, cyber‐attack prediction and forecasting are essential to prevent financial losses or reputational damages.…”

‘Facebook is the Devil’: Exploring Officer Perceptions of Cyber-based Harms Facing Youth in Rural and Remote Communities

“…Schools appear to struggle to find the right balance between school-based 'in house' disciplinary responses that may involve parents and formal police involvement to incidents deemed more serious; a struggle related to definitional understandings of cyberbullying among administrators and students as well as parents (Campbell et al, 2019). However, research on how schools and law enforcement are responding to cyberbullying, as well as student perceptions and experiences with cyberbullying, remains centered on urban areas (boyd, 2014;Livingstone, 2009;Patchin et al, 2020). In Canada studies on rural crime and policing with a focus on youth is still emerging (e.g., Ruddell & O'Connor, 2021;Adorjan & Ricciadelli, 2017], and even less attention has been given to police responses to cyber conflicts in rural regions.…”