Gee I'm glad social media never existed while I was in high school. It was bad enough being bullied face to face. Had it occurred online as well, I just don't know how I would have handled it. Much like today's teens, probably not very well. And adults, rather than knowing better, engage in the internet version of schoolyard tactics to an even greater magnitude, particularly when it comes to the workplace. Â
It's easy to see why. So much of how we work these days is dependent on our use of technology – and not just the ubiquitous and haunting presence of email. It's also text messages, instant chat functions, and the vulnerability of being connected to colleagues on Facebook and LinkedIn. All of it enhances the likelihood we'll eventually become bullied or, perhaps accidentally, the bully.
![Victims of cyberbullying have higher levels of depression and social anxiety, lower rates of self-esteem and feel more alone.](http://web.archive.org./web/20180418081601im_/https://www.fairfaxstatic.com.au/content/dam/images/g/w/u/g/y/2/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gy7pj8.png/1505745803108.jpg)
A common form of cyberbullying is the act of public humiliation via email. That's when you suddenly find an email addressed to you, in language both patronising and condemnatory, with a number of VIPs cc'd to make sure everyone knows you suck. Other examples include hostile late-night texts, exclusion from social media groups and, in a personal example of mine, which happened via an instant messaging service, sexual solicitations from a colleague's PC that had been hacked, leading to incorrect perceptions of that innocent person's intentions.
It's estimated cyberbullying happens to at least one in 10 Australians. Using that statistic as a baseline, American researchers released their own analysis of 3700 people a few months ago, which showed it happens more among adults than it does among children. That's quite staggering. It also occurs on a scale more widespread than traditional face-to-face bullying.
In 70 per cent of cases, it takes place on a social networking site; 49 per cent of the time it's via email; and in 44 per cent of cases it's on the phone. The perpetrator is also more likely to be a colleague than a spouse or a friend, which speaks volumes about the state of the modern workplace.
To a certain extent, this blog is a workplace of mine. Even though I read all the comments, some of which can be fairly harsh, back in the early years (2009 and 2010) I had to moderate all the comments myself, which meant reading the unpublishable ones too – those that get immediately rejected. And my god were some of them brutal. Not just the foul language but the repeated, personalised attacks. Still, I never regarded it as cyberbullying, but it did highlight the vicious things people say when they're protected by distance, anonymity and a computer screen.
That may similarly explain the accidental cyberbullying that goes on at work. When you don't have someone in front of you – their facial expressions to see, their body language to observe – it's much easier to impulsively fire off a nasty email or a menacing text, only to regret it the second you press "send".
So what are the consequences of being on the receiving end of such missives? According to the study noted above, which was published in the Journal of Social Psychology, victims of cyberbullying have higher levels of depression and social anxiety, lower rates of self-esteem and feel more alone.
"As the nature of work moves more and more into the online realm, it makes sense that bullying phenomena will move online as well," conclude the researchers. "Victimisation might become more pervasive and might start to occur outside of work hours. If a co-worker has a victim's email address or is added as their Facebook friend, he or she will be able to continue cyberbullying a victim outside of work hours, preventing the victim from finding a reprieve at home from their bullying experiences."
As mentioned before, adults really can be worse than children.
James Adonis is the author of Employee Enragement. ​Follow MySmallBusiness on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.Â
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