The problem of cyberbullying has been the subject of considerable media attention in Australia and has been framed as a crisis threatening the wellbeing of Australian youth, provoking a comprehensive policy and legislative response to the problem. Definitions of cyberbullying, however, remain contested and there is a lack of nuance in public debates about cyberbullying. This article draws on interviews and focus groups with forty Australian parents to determine parents’ anxieties, perspectives, and experiences in relation to cyberbullying, a perspective that has remained relatively under explored. This study found that while online conflict, exclusion and relational aggression appear common amongst young people, parents in this study eschewed the term cyberbullying, instead characterising negative online peer interactions as part of ‘normal’ child development. This paper demonstrates that a more nuanced understanding of negative online behaviours is needed. The findings have particular relevance to policy makers and organisations tasked with addressing cyberbullying.
AllenKP (2015) “We don’t have bullying, But We have drama”: Understandings of bullying and related constructs within the social milieu of a US high school. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment25(3): 159–181.
2.
BarlettCCoyneSM (2014) A meta-analysis of sex differences in cyber-bullying behavior: The moderating role of age. Aggressive Behavior40(5): 474–488.
3.
BjörkqvistKLagerspetzKMKaukiainenA (1992) Do girls manipulate and boys fight? Developmental trends in regard to direct and indirect aggression. Aggressive Behavior18(2): 117–127.
4.
BoydD (2014) It's Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens. London, New York: Yale University Press.
5.
BoydDHargittaiE (2013) Connected and concerned: Variation in parents’ online safety concerns. Policy & Internet5(3): 245–269.
6.
BraunVClarkeV (2006) Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology3(2): 77–101.
7.
BraunVClarkeVHayfieldN, Terry, G et al. (2019) Thematic analysis. In Handbook of Research Methods in Health Social Sciences. In: Liamputtong P (ed.). Singapore: Springer, pp. 843–860.
8.
BrownLM (2003) Girlfighting: Betrayal and Rejection among Girls. New York and London: NYU Press.
9.
CampbellMA (2005) Cyber bullying: An old problem in a new guise?Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools15(1): 68–76.
10.
CardNAStuckyBDSawalaniGM, et al. (2008) Direct and indirect aggression during childhood and adolescence: A meta-analytic review of gender differences, intercorrelations, and relations to maladjustment. Child Development79(5): 1185–1229.
11.
ClarkLS (2013) The Parent app: Understanding Families in the Digital age. New York: Oxford University Press.
DanchinM (2021) Top 10 child health problems: What Australian parents think. In: The Royal Children's Hospital National Child Health Poll. Poll number 20. Parkville, VIC: The Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne. Retrieved from https://www.rchpoll.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/NCHP20-Poll-report-A4_FA.pdf.
14.
DavisV (2012) Interconnected but underprotected? parents’ methods and motivations for information seeking on digital safety issues. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking15(12): 669–674.
15.
DehueFBolmanCVollinkT, et al. (2012) Cyberbullying and traditional bullying in relation to adolescents’ perception of parenting. Journal of cybertherapy & rehabilitation5(1): 25–34.
16.
DelenEKayaFRitterNL, et al. (2015) Understanding parents’ perceptions of communication technology use. International Online Journal of Educational Sciences7(4): 22–36.
17.
DrotnerK (1992) Modernity and media panics. In: SkovmanMSchroderKC (eds) Media Cultures Reappraising Transnational Media. New York, London: Routledge, 42–62.
18.
ElsaesserCRussellBOhannessianCM, et al. (2017) Parenting in a digital age: A review of parents’ role in preventing adolescent cyberbullying. Aggression and Violent Behavior35: 62–72.
19.
Enhancing Online Safety Act (2015) Cth. Retrieved from https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2018C00356.
20.
EurobarometerF (2008) Towards a safer use of the Internet for children in the EU - a parents’ perspective: Analytical Report. Retrieved from http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion/flash/fl_248_en.pdf.
21.
FletcherP (2019) “New Online Safety Act to keep Australians safe.” Media release. December 11. [Press release]. Retrieved from https://www.paulfletcher.com.au/media-releases/media-release-new-online-safety-act-to-keep-australians-safe.
22.
FletcherP (2020) “New legislation to protect Australian against harmful online abuse.” Media Release. December 23. https://minister.infrastructure.gov.au/fletcher/media-release/new-legislation-protect-australians-against-harmful-online-abuse [Press release].
23.
FOSI (2014) Parenting in the Digital Age: How Parents Weigh the Potential Benefits and Harms of Their Children's Technology Use. Retrieved from https://www.fosi.org/policy-research/parenting-digital-age/.
24.
GörzigA (2011) Who bullies and who is bullied online?: a study of 9–16 year old internet users in 25 European countries.
25.
GörzigAFrumkinLA (2013) Cyberbullying experiences on-the-go: When social media can become distressing. Cyberpsychology7(1): 4.
26.
JefferyCP (2021) Parenting in the digital age: Between socio-biological and socio-technological development. New Media and Society23(5): 1045–1062.
27.
JuvonenJGrossEF (2008) Extending the school grounds?—bullying experiences in cyberspace. Journal of School health78(9): 496–505.
28.
KowalskiRMLimberSPLimberS, et al. (2012) Cyberbullying: Bullying in the Digital age. West Sussex: John Wiley & Sons.
29.
LegateNWeinsteinNPrzybylskiAK (2019) Parenting strategies and adolescents’ cyberbullying behaviors: Evidence from a preregistered study of parent–child dyads. Journal of Youth and Adolescence48(2): 399–409.
30.
LenhartAMaddenMSmithA, et al. (2011) Teens, kindness and cruelty on social network sites: How American teens navigate the New world of ”digital citizenship”. Pew internet & American life project. Retrieved from https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2011/11/09/teens-kindness-and-cruelty-on-social-network-sites/
31.
LiQ (2007) New bottle but old wine: A research of cyberbullying in schools. Computers in Human Behavior23(4): 1777–1791.
32.
LivingstoneSÓlafssonKHelsperEJ, et al. (2017) Maximizing opportunities and minimizing risks for children online: The role of digital skills in emerging strategies of parental mediation. Journal of communication67(1): 82–105.
33.
LivingstoneSStoilovaMKellyA (2016) Cyberbullying: incidence, trends and consequences. LSE Research Online Retrieved from http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/68079/.
34.
MartínezIMurguiSGarcíaOF, et al. (2019) Parenting in the digital era: Protective and risk parenting styles for traditional bullying and cyberbullying victimization. Computers in Human Behavior90: 84–92.
35.
MarwickABoydD (2014) ‘It's just drama’: Teen perspectives on conflict and aggression in a networked era. Journal of Youth Studies17(9): 1187–1204.
MillerSA (2016) “How You bully a girl” sexual drama and the negotiation of gendered sexuality in high school. Gender & Society30(5): 721–744.
38.
MonksCPMahdaviJRixK (2016) The emergence of cyberbullying in childhood: Parent and teacher perspectives. Psicología Educativa22(1): 39–48.
39.
Office of the eSafety Commissioner (2019a) Cyberbullying. Retrieved from https://www.esafety.gov.au/esafety-information/esafety-issues/cyberbullying.
40.
Office of the eSafety Commissioner (2019b) Our legislative functions. Retrieved from https://www.esafety.gov.au/about-us/who-we-are/our-legislative-functions.
41.
Office of the eSafety Commissioner (N.D) FAQ About Making a Cyberbullying Complaint. Retrieved from https://www.esafety.gov.au/report/cyberbullying/making-a-complaint-faq.
42.
OlweusD (1994) Bullying at school: Basic facts and effects of a school based intervention program. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry35(7): 1171–1190.
43.
PonteCSimõesJA (2009) Asking parents about children's internet use: Comparing findings about parental mediation in Portugal and other European countries. Paper presented at the EU Kids Online-Final Conference. London.
44.
RaskauskasJStoltzAD (2007) Involvement in traditional and electronic bullying among adolescents. Developmental Psychology43(3): 564.
45.
RingroseJ (2006) A New universal mean girl: Examining the discursive construction and social regulation of a New feminine pathology. Feminism & Psychology16(4): 405–424.
46.
SassonHMeschG (2017) The role of parental mediation and peer norms on the likelihood of cyberbullying. The Journal of Genetic Psychology178(1): 15–27.
47.
ShepherdCArnoldMGibbsM (2006) Parenting in the connected home. Journal of Family Studies12(2): 203–222.
48.
SorbringE (2014) Parents’ concerns about their teenage children's Internet use. Journal of Family Issues35(1): 75–96.
49.
TanrikuluICampbellM (2015) Correlates of traditional bullying and cyberbullying perpetration among Australian students. Children and Youth Services Review55: 138–146.
50.
YbarraMLBoydDKorchmarosJD, et al. (2012) Defining and measuring cyberbullying within the larger context of bullying victimization. Journal of Adolescent Health51(1): 53–58.
51.
YbarraMLEspelageDLMitchellKJ (2014) Differentiating youth who are bullied from other victims of peer-aggression: The importance of differential power and repetition. Journal of Adolescent Health55(2): 293–300.
52.
YbarraMLMitchellKJ (2004) Youth engaging in online harassment: Associations with caregiver–child relationships, internet use, and personal characteristics. Journal of Adolescence27(3): 319–336.
53.
YoungRTullyM (2019) ‘Nobody wants the parents involved’: Social norms in parent and adolescent responses to cyberbullying. Journal of Youth Studies22(6): 856–872.
54.
YoungRTullyMRamirezM (2017) School administrator perceptions of cyberbullying facilitators and barriers to preventive action: A qualitative study. Health Education & Behavior44(3): 476–484.
55.
ZamanBHollowayDGreenL, et al. (2020) Opposing narratives about children's Digital media use: A critical discourse analysis of online public advice given to parents in Australia and Belgium. Media International Australia176(1): 120–137.
