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Going online can expose us to all sorts of amazing new ideas, interesting information and unique opportunities. However, the Internet can also be used in ways that are seriously harmful. One such example is “cyber dating abuse.”
A new study looked at responses from middle and high school students to learn more about this trend. It’s pretty scary that 26 percent of the students they surveyed said they had experienced cyber dating abuse. The study also found that in general, girls experienced higher levels of cyber dating abuse than boys did.
The study broke down what kinds of behaviors students (including both male and female) reported. The most common response was that their BF or GF was hacking into their social networks, with 9 percent of students reporting this behavior. Others included forms of sexual cyber abuse, like receiving unwanted text messages related to sex or being asked to send explicit photos. Some students reported their partner posted mean pictures or comments about them online.
In their report on the study, The Washington Post spoke to the lead researcher, Janine Zweig, and they quoted her as saying, “The technology opens up a wide avenue for someone who wants to be abusive toward their partner.”
While upsetting, it makes total sense – I mean, just think about all the methods of digital communication there are now and how it’s likely to keep increasing. It’s irresponsible to ignore the ways in which technology could enable really damaging behavior. That’s why I think it’s encouraging though that people are invested in understanding the many forms that abuse can take. Digital culture is still fairly new, so studies like this help us understand the way technology is used and address pressing issues, like cyber abuse.
Overall, just because digital abuse may not be happening when you’re in the same room doesn’t make it any less real. In addition, the researchers also found an overlap between abuse happening digitally and other forms of abuse, including psychological abuse, sexual coercion and physical abuse. Teenage dating violence can have long-term effects so the more we can understand all the ways that abuse is being perpetuated, then the more we can do to really address it fully.
If you or someone you know are experiencing digital abuse – or abuse in any form – it is so important that you seek out a trusted adult. Dating violence is something that nobody should ever have to experience and luckily there are resources and people out there who are willing to help.
Were you surprised at all by these statistics? Have you ever had to deal with digital abuse from a partner? What did you do? Tell us in the comments!
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