Stop Cyberbullying - Steps for Parents

Cyberbullying on children, a relatively new phenomenon, has left parents scratching their heads wondering how they can prevent it. Parents facing the influences of social networking sites and cell phone-based bullying on their children can take a practical approach to getting rid of cyberbullying with a few easy steps.

Prevent Raising a Bully

According to a recent study conducted by researchers from Tulane University, "children who were spanked more than twice a month were 50% more likely than those who weren't spanked to develop aggressive behaviors."

It's easy to point fingers at parents, but even good parents can end up raising a bully. Below is a brief list of useful tips to help parents as much as possible:

Be a source of inspiration for your child by knowing how to control your temper, as your child keenly studies your behavior.

Listen: Get involved with your child and pay close attention to their social relationships and your child's words about their classmates.

Maintain a friendly environment where your children can be assured that they can share their feelings with their parents.

Give your child exposure to a diverse environment and explain to your child why it is important to respect people from all walks of life.

Impart discipline, respect, and good manners to your child. Teach your child empathy.

Seek the help of professionals if your child portrays a lot of aggression or was once doing so.

Identify Cyberbullying

The best way to make sure that your teen is safe online is to use an internet and cell phone monitoring parental control software that requires no download or installation. Such software is designed to make parents aware of the questionable behavior of children on the web, including the photos and videos that kids share publically, personal information, potential internet addiction, and change in privacy settings on social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace automatically.

Along with this, the parental control software can also help you keep tabs on a child's mobile phone usage, including MMS and text messages, and empower parents to guard their child's reputation by flagging postings that could cause serious harm to their teen's future. All you have to do to sign up is simply submit your teen's email address and the software will take care of everything else.

Talk to your children

Kids are not always open to the idea of reporting a bullying incident, whether they are a victim or a bystander because many teens think that telling a trusted adult may result in their computer or cell phone privileges being taken away.

Kids need to know that adults take their reports of bullying seriously and will take action. If your child is currently a victim of bullying or cyberbullying, follow some of the conversation points below with your kid or teen:

If you don't trust us, then at least share your problems with your friend. It's an easier way to tackle the situation of an aggressive child by including someone who is your child's friend in the conversation.

We're always there for you, you aren't alone. Numerous children suffer the effect of isolation today.

Please talk to me, you don't need to suffer. Please let me know what's going on, or I can't help you. If you don't prefer telling me, then speak to a trusted teacher or counselor at school, and together we can solve your problem. (Try to console your child, and develop trust that silence may worsen the situation more).

Never strike back. Although your child's aggressive behavior may double your anger and frustration remember never to react in kind to children. It will only worsen the situation and double your child's aggressive attitude.

Console your child to entertain outside school activities. Boost your children's confidence by involving them in good activities that will raise their self-esteem.

Follow these simple steps and safeguard your kids and teens from cyberbullying and other online threats.