Day against cyberbullying in Russia

The advent of the Internet, social networks and instant messengers has led to the fact that people began to spend part of their lives online Due to online bullying, more than half of Russians do not perceive the virtual space as a safe environment Cyberbullying tools include posting threats of physical harm and offensive messages, sending videos discrediting the honor and dignity of a person, distributing incriminating evidence and other content Both adults and children and adolescents become targets for the manifestation of anger This happens more often on the Internet than in real life due to the anonymity of users The purpose of cyberbullying is the desire to assert oneself, gain power over the opponent’s emotions, and make him doubt the correctness of his thoughts and actions Understanding the scale of the problem led to the implementation of measures aimed at preventing online aggression November 11, 2019, is the Day against Cyberbullying in Russia Research by sociologists and psychologists explains the reasons for people’s aggressive behavior online Online communication can hardly be called full-fledged communication that takes place during a live conversation If a person is not personally acquainted with the user who is on the other side of the monitor, has never seen him and does not know about his position in life, how he speaks and moves, then there is a high probability that when reading a post on a social network, he will understand it incorrectly Communication that took place offline creates more prerequisites for the manifestation of empathy and compassion than anonymous correspondence The second reason for bullying is the frantic pace of modern life Today, the speed of communication on social networks and instant messengers depends on how quickly a person types a message Reflection, evaluation of one’s own thoughts and expression of feelings suffer from this In ordinary life, standing face to face, people try to the last to restrain themselves from showing aggression and anger towards their interlocutor, which cannot be said about the Internet The concentration of negative emotions and the manifestation of threats depends both on the topic of discussion and on the first 6 comments left under a post or article It has been noticed that if these opinions have a negative connotation and are aggressive in nature, then there is a very high probability that the discussion will continue in an offensive tone Researchers are also paying attention to the forensic theory of broken windows Visible signs of civil unrest and anti-social behavior create an environment that encourages further chaos, hooliganism and crime This rule also applies to communication on the Internet Most aggressive comments are published where such communication is, if not encouraged, then at least not regulated by the resource moderator Therefore, the eradication of cyberbullying depends, first of all, on the position of the owner of the platform, page or channel author The initiator of the establishment of the Day against Cyberbullying in Russia is Mailru Group The company believes that aggression both online and offline is unacceptable The purpose of the annual events held on November 11 is to draw attention to the problem of shaming and spread information about which organizations can help victims The symbol of the action is an emoji in the form of a yellow heart, which all caring people post on their pages on social networks and resources Internet trolling is common among users aged 18-24 Most often, teenagers experience shaming Peer attacks and cyberbullying, which usually occurs in closed groups, cause not only unpleasant emotions, but also fear Volunteers from the Boneless Internet League are helping to cope with the problem In honor of the Day against Cyberbullying, lectures and seminars are held for schoolchildren, teachers and parents on methods of combating online bullying of children, reducing the level of aggression and methods of psychological rehabilitation of victims