Companies should take note: Technological advancements could create an even bigger monster
Around the world, bullying is an ugly reminder that education is not the only priority for local authorities. They also have a responsibility to protect the well-being of schoolchildren.
China has the largest education system in the world. Nearly 260 million students are taught in around 514,000 schools, meaning that the nation’s educators are responsible for the mental health of an overwhelming number of children and adolescents.
School-aged bullying is an age-old phenomenon. But with the advent of social media, cyberbullying has raised its ugly head in the past decade or so to torment victims virtually everywhere they go. Unlike traditional bullying, cyberbullying – thanks to mobile device improvements – can harass a child remotely at any time, often in abusive attacks from multiple perpetrators in a single chat room set up for that malicious purpose.
Cries from well-meaning adults for children to just simply turn off their phones are misplaced. In 2018, cutting off a child’s internet connection is the modern-day social equivalent of physically muting them. Social media, whether we like it or not, can play an extremely significant role in how young people socialize and learn collectively.
As the country with the largest number of social media users, China will have to consider the irrefutable growing global research into bullying, which sadly points toward a significant increase in suicide, as well as trauma persisting into adulthood.
The stakes are high, and ideas on how to tackle the issue globally would be welcome for all. China’s neighbors also suffer unique versions of the same universal issue. Across the water, in Japan, Sept 1 – just before the start of the new school term – sees a significant increase in suicides of school-age children. Anecdotally, in the West, students who perform well academically in school are more at risk. In China, the reverse tends to be true: Children struggling with school work or who come from more working class backgrounds are targeted.
In fact, the perfect storm of advanced widespread communications technology in Asia, coupled with the booming population, has given rise to a unique type of cyberbullying in the East. A recent study by Polytechnic University in Hong Kong found that more than half of secondary school children in the city’s municipal area had experienced having their personal data or photos published on social media without their consent.
This form of cyberbullying, known as doxxing, is unique in its scale and can involve thousands of strangers sharing confidential information in order to publicly humiliate someone.
Chinese legislation promises to tackle the issue. Under new rules set by the Legislative Affairs Office, individuals will be banned from abusing a minor via the internet, and both schools and guardians will have a duty to contact the police if they believe a child may be at risk.
The definition of what constitutes bullying is broad, encompassing any type of malicious behavior, regardless of whether it is physical, verbal or – perhaps most important now – online. Student perpetrators who fail to adhere to decency can be expelled and sent to corrective reform schools. In more serious cases, such as threats of violence or the online publication of sexually compromising material, then such cases may be handled directly by local law enforcement.
This will be one of the few pieces of legislation in China that will justify local police investigating minors, as children under the age of 16 are normally not subject to criminal punishment, with parents usually taking the responsibility for discipline.
It does not stop there. Vice-principals at schools across the country now have the explicit responsibility to implement counterbullying initiatives. Such measures can include improved surveillance and awareness courses for both parents and pupils. Schools with repeat problems may also be subject to external independent investigation.
The legislative framework in China is definitely heading in the right direction to tackle an issue that is truly universal. A tighter grip on school policy and intervention, as well as more widespread awareness, are certainly steps in the right direction, but a problem such as bullying requires multiple angles, some of which yet to be fully explored.
The development of 4G internet has allowed bullies to send and receive sensitive images and videos with the swipe of a finger. With the advent of 5G technology, which is nearing the mainstream, one might be concerned that the next revolution in internet communication could mutate cyberbullying into something even more sinister and unpredictable.
Along with legislative means, perhaps big tech corporations responsible for these very advancements can spare a thought for the children who so adamantly adore them.
The author is a London-based columnist. Contact the writer at [email protected].
(China Daily European Weekly 11/02/2018 page11)