Question

With the increasing use of electronic communications and Internet, a growing problem among youth is the experience of online harassment (cyberbullying). Estimates of the extent of cyberbullying vary. In one national (U.S.) survey conducted in 2005, professional interviewers used random-digit dialing to construct a sample of 1,500 English-speaking households with youth between the ages 10 and 17 who use the Internet (Youth Internet Safety Survey). Youth were interviewed if their parents provided consent, and the youth assented. Nine percent of the youth in this sample reported being targets of online harassment within the past year. In another study conducted in 2008, 20,406 high school students (9th -12th grades) in the Boston metropolitan area completed an anonymous, paper-and-pencil survey about health and behavior topics one day in school (MetroWest Adolescent Health Survey). One question asked, “How many times has someone used the Internet, a phone, or other electronic communications to bully, tease, or threaten you?" In this sample, 15.8% of the students reported being victimized within the past year.

Decide whether each of the following statements is True or False, then explain your answer.

A.   The much larger sample size of the Boston survey indicates that 15.8% is a more reliable estimate of the amount of cyberbullying experienced by youth in the U.S. population.

B.   The different ages included in the two samples (10-17 and 9th-12th graders) may account for differences in the reported rate of cyberbullying.

C.   One reason youth reported more cyberbullying in the Boston study could be because an anonymous, self-report survey was used, compared to the telephone interview for the national sample.

D.   The findings for Internet bullying in the two surveys indicate that the Boston area has more Internet bullying than the overall national rate.

E.         The findings for the two surveys indicate that the percentage of cyberbullying increased nearly 7% points from 2005 to 2008.

Answer 1

A. TRUE

EXPLANATION: The larger the sample size, the more reliable the results of the study. As the U.S. survey has sample size of 1500 whereas the Boston study has 20,406 students, the results of the Boston study are reliable concerning the amount of cyberbullying experienced by youth.

B. TRUE

Different age groups may account for the differences in which researchers can investigate a particular age group which is more prone to cyberbullying. Both the samples can account for the differences concerning the occurence of cyberbullying.

C. TRUE

Anonymous survey can be one reason that the high school students reported more cyberbullying as there is no fear of being judged by researchers when they described their cases of cyberbullying. However, during an interview, (US Survey) students may feel ashamed or there is a fear of judgement from researchers which may result in less reported cases of cyberbullying.

D. FALSE

It may not mean that Boston area has more cases of cyberbullying than overall national level as both the studies have different sample size, age groups, and methodology to analyse prevalence of  cyberbullying. The study of Boston is area specific study whereas U.S. depicts a national survey. So, it cannot be generalized that Boston has more Internet bullying than the overall national rates.

E. FALSE

Though there is a difference of 7% in comparing both the studies, however, we cannot say that cyberbullying has increased from 2005 to 2008 as both the studies have different sample sizes, age groups, and different methodologies to assess cyberbullying.