In recent years, cases of cyberbullying have been on the rise across the world. The social media sites are often used to perpetrate this heinous act, especially among teenagers. This has increased suicide rates among teens who can no longer take the bullying. The most recent incident occurred in South Africa, where a young girl committed suicide due to cyberbullying perpetrated by her classmates.
A thirteen-year-old girl from Pretoria committed suicide after she was bullied by her peers who allegedly teased her about a photograph that was doing rounds on WhatsApp groups in her school. According to Sinoville Crisis Centre (SCC) representative, the girl was traumatized by the incidence and had asked for help from the teachers (GOUS, 2019). The intensity of the bullying was realized days later when her mother found her dead at home. This incident is one in many other similar cases that occur in several other schools but go unreported. The event is a perfect example of what psychologists refer to as social aggression.
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Social aggression is described as actions that are usually directed to other individuals to destroy their social status and self-esteem (Martins, & Wilson, 2012). To achieve this, the aggressors use unacceptable behavior such as gossiping and contemptuous facial expressions. Also, the perpetrators may manipulate friendships to make others feel worthless and inadequate.
In the Pretoria girl's case, her peers showed social aggression towards her, which had a significant impact on her self-esteem. The peers used the contents of the photograph to tease and humiliate her, which had a toll on her self-esteem hence the eventual suicide. Social aggression behavior in children may be attributed to several factors, such as a child's exposure to family conflicts and also media violence. Studies show that televised social aggression, such as social exclusion and malicious humor, may trigger aggressive behavior in children (Martins, & Wilson, 2012). The children imitate the televised models, which prompts them to pick on their peers and bully them. Children who come from families where social aggression is prevalent are likely to perpetuate the same towards their peers.
References
GOUS, N. (2019). Pretoria girl commits suicide allegedly after cyberbullying. Retrieved from https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2019-02-19-pretoria-girl-commits-suicide-allegedly-after-cyberbullying/
Martins, N., & Wilson, B. J. (2012). Mean on the screen: Social aggression in programs popular with children. Journal of Communication, 62(6), 991-1009.
