‘Want to know exactly why people participate in bullying on social media? Here are the 5 most common motives.
Bullying on social media can be more humiliating and more devastating victims than face-to-face bullying. Why? Because the cruel taunts and attacks can be ready by a much wider audience. Moreover, vicious lies and ugly rumors have a much farther reach than in the days before the internet.
In this post, you will learn the most common reasons people use social media to bully. In other words, you’ll learn the goals of this type of bullying.
Once you learn all about these objectives, you will be better able to call it out. Also, you’ll have the ability to explain it to police, attorneys, the court, and therapists in a clearer, more intelligible manner without the risk of rambling and having to pause mid-sentence to search for the words to describe what you’re enduring.
This post is all about social media bullying, why people do it, and what they hope to rain so that you can have a better understanding of it all and quickly call it out.
Bullying on Social Media
This type of cyber-bullying is difficult for anyone. However, it’s especially damaging for children and teenagers, whose brains are still developing.
Sadly, many in this age group rely on likes, positive comments, praises, and high friend/follower counts to maintain their self-esteem. It shouldn’t be this way. No one should rely on social media to feel validated.
We live in the age of electronic baby sitters and internet addiction. Moreover, we have a generation of children and young adults who rely more on online communication than on face-to-face interactions.
This, in and of itself is a huge problem. However, it’s the reality of the times we live in.
Also, if you’re an adult who owns a business, especially a small business, this type of bullying can decimate your entire livelihood.
Therefor, the main reason people bully you on social media is to destroy your online and real-life reputation. This is the main goal of all cyber-bullies.
Effects of Bullying on Social Media
Marriage and Family:
Many people will use social media to destroy your marriage and cause discord in your family.
Causes many divorces and rifts in families. Cyber-bullies have been known to spread lies of infidelity to destroy their target’s marriage and cause problems in their families. Moreover, online harassers have also stalked their victims’ children and other family members.
People are sick these days. Therefore, you must gather evidence of it and report it to the police. Although there’s only so much the law can do, by reporting it, at least you’ll establish a paper trail.
Job and Career:
Many use social media bullying to destroy your job and career.
Can cause termination of employment from current job. Moreover, it can bring about loss of opportunities for future employment.
Cyber-bullies love to call their targets’ places of employment and get them terminated. Also, they love to blackball them to keep them from obtaining future employment.
You should never take this type of bullying lightly. Do your own investigation and gather your own evidence. Now’s not the time to be lazy.
Bullying on social media can destroy your finances:
This kind of bullying causes loss of income due to firing and lack of future employment opportunities. Therefore, it can also cause victims to lose their homes, vehicles, entire life savings, etc.
Therefore, if you have evidence of this kind of cyber-bullying and can ID the troll, talk to an attorney. You might be able to sue for damages.
Business:
Loss of customers and therefore, revenue. Cyber-trolls love to destroy businesses. Therefore, realize that it’s about power.
Again, if you have evidence and identification of the cyber-bully. Consult a lawyer and take it to court.
Health:
The stress from bullying on social media can cause not only mental health issues, but also physical ailments as well. Victims can also become disabled and unable to work because of the distress brought about by this type of online bullying.
Examples:
Examples of social media bullying include:
1. Spreading ugly rumors and lies about someone.
Cyber-bullies do this in hopes of defaming you and turning your friends and followers against you. Moreover, if you own a small company, they’ll do it to put a dent in profits and destroy your business and livelihood.
This type of bullying has caused many innocent people to lose their hard-earned reputations and, therefore, their businesses.
Additionally, cyber-bullies have ruined victim’s marriages by spreading lies and accusations of infidelity. In that, they caused division in families.
In short, many innocent targets have had their entire lives ruined due to cyber-bullies. Many more have died by suicide or have been murdered because of the vicious lies and cruelty of online trolls.
2. Bullying on Social Media:
Posting porn or compromising photos of someone
Online bullies do this to embarrass and humiliate their victims. Moreover, they also do it to make them look bad and sully their good name.
For example, classmates may sneak into the gym shower room and secretly take nude pictures of a targeted girl while she’s in the shower. They do this without her knowledge.
Later, they’ll post the pictures online for all to see.
Consequently, not only does this humiliate her, but it puts her in danger of being stalked and possibly raped by predators in the area.
Here’s another example: You have a lover who talks you into sending them nude pics of you and, without thinking, you comply. After all, you’re only thinking it would enhance your relationship. Right?
However, what happens a few months later, when the relationship ends and you part on bad terms? Remember, your ex still has all those nudie pics and beaver shots you sent six months ago. Moreover, your now ex-lover posts them online to get back at you for breaking it off with them.
Therefore, never EVER send a romantic partner nude pics of yourself. It doesn’t matter how much they beg and say they love you and would never this or that. Don’t do it! It just isn’t worth the risk!
3. Impersonating someone ad sending cruel messages to others in that person’s name.
Cyber-bullies do this to cause trouble in all your online relationships. In fact, this is a form of relational or social aggression because it’s specifically designed to destroy your relationships and to isolate you.
Therefore, if you endure bullying on social media, keep an eye out for any duplicate accounts with your name and claiming to be you. If you find some, send a disclaimer to all your friends/followers, warning them of the duplicates and to not accept friend/follow requests from them.
Moreover, taking screenshots is super important! So, gather your own evidence!
4. Bullying on Social Media:
Sending Cruel, threatening, or abusive messages/images through private message platforms, text, email, etc.
This tactic is designed to intimidate you and instill fear. Moreover, these bullies choose messaging platforms for secrecy and to keep others from seeing what lowlifes they truly are.
Therefore, take screenshots! Always, take screenshots when a cyber-bully attacks you via messaging. Then out them with it. It’s what I did when it happened to me and it worked. They left me alone.
5. Doxxing.
Doxxing is the most dangerous kind of cyber-bullying there is. What is it? You may ask.
When a cyber-bully doxxes you, they collect personal information on you and plaster it all over the internet. Moreover, the information they gather is your home address, phone number, email, and the names and addresses of your family members, friends, and associates.
Doxxers can even get your SS number and banking information to steal your identity.
Also, they also find the name, address and phone number of your employer and any organization you’re affiliated with.
This is especially dangerous because it puts you at risk of being home invaded, robbed, murdered. Someone could even target one of your family members just to get to you.
It just causes so many risks that wouldn’t be if your information hadn’t fallen into the wrong hands.
Therefore, people dox you to get your personal information and exploit it to cause you fear. Moreover, they may do it to place you and your family in harm’s way.
It’s best to contact police in situations like these. It may or may not work. However, you’ll have a report of it on file, which is a good step!
Bullying On Social Media:
In conclusion
One thing that bullying online has over face-to-face bullying is that you can gather evidence of it easily. Anything done online automatically leaves a digital footprint.
Also, you can take screenshots and print hard copies of any incendiary messages and comments to take to court.
Face-to-face bullying can’t be proven unless you keep documentation of it in a journal, wear a hidden body camera, or hide an audio-recording device in your purse, briefcase, or book bag.
However, this can be illegal depending on the laws of the state you live in. Therefore, before using any recording device whether body cam or audio, be sure to get abreast of the law. The last thing you want is for your bullies to sue you for invasion of privacy.
If you keep documentation of the bullying incidents, make sure you use the 5W method when doing so.
This post is all about bullying on social media and the reasons why people do it so that you can better pinpoint, report, and explain it when it happens to you.
Related posts you’ll enjoy:
1. Cyberbullying Tactics: 9 Common Tricks of Cyber-Bullies and Trolls
2. Fight Flight Freeze Fawn: 4 Stress Responses of Bullying Victims
3. Stop Victim Blaming: 8 Reasons People Blame Targets for Bullying
4. Bullying is Abuse: 9 Ways Bullying and Abuse are The Same
5. Social Bullying Examples: 7 Reasons Bullies Destroy Relationships