Navigating Cyberbullying in the Digital Age: Young People's Self-Presentation and Coping Strategies

• In Event: Understanding Experiences of Cyber-stalking, Technology-supported Violence and Cyber-bullying

Abstract

In the digital age, online communication plays a crucial role, yet, it also presents the risk of cyberbullying and victimization. While the literature on the negative consequences of cyberbullying has garnered considerable attention, little is known about how young people cope with the consequences of online bullying. Drawing on Goffman’s concept of self-presentation, I explore how young people with lived experiences of cyberbullying victimization cope with online harassment and balance the management of their virtual and real self-presentation. Through analysis of interviews and participant-generated visual data from undergraduate students in Manitoba, Canada, this research unmasks the intricate dynamics of digital identity, revealing a nuanced overlap between victim and perpetrator roles that shape participants’ presentation of self. This study advances our understanding of the contested phenomenon of cyberbullying and its associated victimization, accentuating the importance of enhanced mental health support as online victimization and coping with this experience can contribute to unequal access opportunities to social and mental health support services.

Author

• Bilguundari Enkhtugs, University of Alberta