The paper analyzes three articles about the research topic through summaries, including the main topic, the methodology, and the ultimate findings. Additionally, it briefly compares and contrasts the articles by examining the concepts contained. The three articles for the content analysis include “Moral disengagement about cyberbullying and parental monitoring: Effects on traditional bullying and victimization via cyberbullying involvement” by Diana J. Meter and Sheri Bauman; “Cyberbullying and cybervictimization versus parental supervision, monitoring and control of adolescents’ online activities” by Anna Costanza Baldry, Anna Sorrentino, and David P. Farrington; and “Parenting in a digital age: A review of parents’ role in preventing adolescent cyberbullying” by Caitlin Elsaesser, Beth Russell, Christine McCauley Ohannessian, and Desmond Patton.
The article by Baldry, Sorrentino, and Farrington (2019) examines the relationship between parental roles monitoring, control, and supervision and an adolescent’s involvement in cybervictimization and cyberbullying. It aims at equipping parents and adults with efficient knowledge to protect their children from cyberbullying and cybervictimization. The study involved 4390 Italian adolescents from nine schools with students aged between 13 and 18 and from different socioeconomic statuses. Measuring the nature and prevalence of cybervictimization and cyberbullying among the students involved using an Italian translation of the Students’ Needs Assessment Survey. The study found significant gender differences regarding involvement in cyberbullying, as boys had a higher likelihood of being cyberbullies than girls. Additionally, they believed that their parents were less likely to educate them about internet use and inherent risks. Also, girls with higher parental supervision levels were likely to be more cybervictimized.
In their article, Meter and Bauman (2018) examined the indirect effects that moral disengagement about parental monitoring and cyberbullying have on the involvement of children in bullying through cyberbullying and traditional victimization. The study involved 800 participants, grade 3 to 8 students hailing from Southwestern United States who are in elementary and middle school. It involved the creation of scales aimed at learning more about cyberbullying’s about predictors and the consequences of participating in it. Graduate assistants and undergraduates who received training from the graduate research assistants administered paper-and-pencil surveys. The study found that moral disengagement from parents regarding parental monitoring and cyberbullying affects cyberbullying involvement and can also have a significant impact on other experiences besides the cyber context.
The article by Elsaesser et al. (2017) reviews existing literature on the influence parents have on their adolescents regarding cyberbullying as both perpetrators and victims. It aims to identify the role played by parental warmth and strategies related to parental monitoring in lowering cyberbullying. The study involved a review of 23 cross-sectional articles that met the inclusion criteria of relevance to cyberbullying and parenting, focused on youth aged between 10 and 18, published before October 2016, peer-reviewed, full-text version available, and written in English. The study concluded that parents needed to provide emotional warmth to adolescents, encouraging their disclosure of online activity.
The three articles agree that parental engagement plays a vital role in determining adolescents’ involvement in cyberbullying. However, Meter and Bauman (2018) focus on the moral aspect of parental involvement, specifically, the vital role of moral standards in determining how parents become engaged in their adolescents’ online activities. The studies by Baldry, Sorrentino, and Farrington (2019) and Elsaesser et al. (2017) highlight the essential role that parental monitoring plays in determining adolescents’ involvement in cyberbullying. For Elsaesser et al. (2017), parental warmth is necessary to help prevent cyberbullying among adolescents, as it allows for their disclosure of online activity.
References
Baldry, A., Sorrentino, A., & Farrington, D. (2019). Cyberbullying and cybervictimization versus parental supervision, monitoring and control of adolescents’ online activities. Children and Youth Services Review, 96, 302-307. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.11.058
Elsaesser, C., Russell, B., Ohannessian. C., & Patton, D. (2017). Parenting in a digital age: A review of parents’ role in preventing adolescent cyberbullying. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 35, 62-72. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2017.06.004
Meter, D., & Bauman, S. (2018). Moral disengagement about cyberbullying and parental monitoring: Effects on traditional bullying and victimization via cyberbullying involvement. Journal of Early Adolescence, 38(3), 303-326. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272431616670752
