Cyberbullying prevention and intervention programs: Are they enough to reduce the number of the acts of online aggression

Aim. Cyberbullying has become a global problem that affects millions of teenagers, causing depression, anxiety, decrease in school performance, and even dropping out of school, substance abuse or suicide. It is manifested through frequent aggressions online, with the sole purpose of causing suffering. Due to its constantly growing occurrence, cyberbullying has become a concern for psychologists, sociologists, and teachers. The existing body of research emphasizes the importance of identifying the groups that are prone to be victims of online harassment; the effect that it has on its victims; the prevention and intervention programs for cyberbullying to solve the cases of online aggression. However, sometimes these prevention and intervention programs are not enough to solve the cyberbullying conflicts and reduce the number of cases.

Methods. In order to provide a complete picture of this phenomenon, we analyzed some of the news and testimonies from Romania regarding the cases of cyberbullying and some methods of prevention of and intervention in cyberbullying that Romania and other countries have adopted. Having studied the materials and the programs implemented in other countries, we conducted a research with 108 psychologists from Romania to find out what their opinion about the discrepancy of the cases reported to the authorities and the real ones, but as well as about the programs developed.

Results. The results of this research study show that the intervention and prevention programs that have been adopted are essential in the reduction of cyberbullying cases, but these programs have to be combined with personalized intervention that can be made online.