Cyber Bullying: Virtually bad behavior

Cyber Bullying: Virtually bad behavior

Cyber Bullying: Virtually bad behavior

Cyber Bullying is the growing problem facing our schools.  Cyber Bullying targets students who are perceived as weaker, different, or less aggressive.  As a result cyber bullying drives many children to desperate decisions and cyber bullying even leads to suicide.

Recently, the state of New Jersey has addressed bullying and cyber bullying in its schools.  There is a zero tolerance for bullying and cyber bullying.  Recently, Anderson Cooper address bullying and cyber bullying.  Many children don’t tell their parents they are the target of cyber bullying.

As the saying goes, much of what we know, we learn in kindergarten.  Unfortunately, that means the learned behavior of bullying and cyber bullying comes to the workplace.  Just as bullies target those who are perceived as being weaker, different or less aggressive, workplace bullies have the same pattern, using cyber bullying in person bullying and other tactics of bad behavior to control employees. Often bosses are the perpetrators.  Also, women are more often the target of workplace bullying.

Further, just as school districts are becoming more litigious to deal with bullying and cyber bullying, many organizations are also developing anti- bullying polices, which would also address cyber bullying.  Bullying and cyber bullying in the workplace create an unengaged staff, create personal and emotional problems for the target, and can lead to a formal legal complaint.  When women, religious minorities and racial minorities are the targets of bullying and cyber bullying at work, the organization can be on the hook for a Title VII harassment case.

Bullying and cyber bullying are perhaps the unfortunate manifestations of a particularly tense time in our history.  With unemployment rates still above 9%, with family frustrations growing due to threats to fiscal stability, adults and children might act out through bullying and cyber bulling as a way to control another wise unstable situation.  Regardless of the reason, bullying and cyber bullying is not only hurtful to schools and young students,   bullying and cyber bullying are particularly costly behaviors for organizations to ignore.  Proper policy implementation can address bullying and cyber bullying, allowing for organizations to protect their employees