Rather than taking action on their behalf, try asking them what they’d like to do about the situation, and how you can best support. This will make them feel less helpless, and empower them to find a healthy solution.
What to do if you suspect your child is a perpetrator
You’ve likely heard the expression “hurt people hurt people”, so try to identify possible motivators behind their actions.
How are your child’s relationships with the rest of the family? Have they experienced or witnessed examples of bullying in the home? Could someone else be bullying them? Are they doing it to feel accepted?
This can be confronting, but getting to the root cause will likely make it easier to deal with the issue at hand and be much more effective in changing behaviour.
Just because it’s happening behind a screen, don’t dismiss the severity of it.
Discuss empathy regularly, including how that looks online
Just because it’s happening behind a screen, don’t dismiss the severity of it. Use questions like “How would you feel if someone said this about you online?” to evoke thoughts around the emotional impact of bullying.
Having an open dialogue about online behaviour can help catch things before they become serious and can also serve as a general wellbeing check.
As technology continues to further infiltrate our lives, building a strong sense of empathy within our children will help stamp out bullying, both online and in-person.
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