Teachers' Role in Youth Protection Against Cyber

RUHR-UNIVERSITÄT BOCHUM

Fakultät für Philologie

Institut für Medienwissenschaft

TEACHERS’ ROLE IN YOUTH PROTECTION AGAINST CYBER-

BULLYING: THE UTILITY OF INTEGRATED PROTECTION MOTI-

VATION AND ATTACHMENT THEORIES

Inaugural-Dissertation

zur Erlangung des akademischen Grades eines Doktors der Philosophie

in der

Fakultät für Philologie

der

RUHR-UNIVERSITÄT BOCHUM

vorgelegt von

Seyed Rahim Benrazavi

aus Kerman, Iran

Bochum im Mai 2020

Gedruckt mit der Genehmigung der Fakultät für Philologie der Ruhr-Universität Bochum

Referent: Professor Dr. Peter M. Spangenberg

Koreferentin: Professor Dr. Barbara Thomaß

Tag der mündlichen Prüfung: 20.11.2020

Acknowledgment:

I would like to take this opportunity to thank my parents, my siblings, and my friends without whose support this job could never come to an end. Likewise, I would like to thank my colleagues and advisors in the process of writing this dissertation from whom I learned more than the content of this work.

III

Abstract

Despite all interactive advantages of digital media, one cannot ignore the unfavorable products of digital communication such as cyberbullying, a destructive process that undermines the physical and psychological well-being of pupils. However, in the light of systematic digital competence training, such threats can be managed and the digital experience of both victims and perpetrators can be improved. In this regard, numerous studies are focusing on the necessity of introducing different protection and prevention measures to control the harsh consequences of cyberbullying. Most of these studies focus on parents as the main care providers for the pupils in the case of cyberbullying events despite parents’ limited knowledge in the field, as well as their technical and time restraints. In a different approach, the present study investigated the possibility of taking support from schoolteachers, as a more potential group of care providers for the pupils. This study was based on reviewing the related literature and provides additional digital training programs and attachment building steps for teachers to improve their response efficacy in handling cases of cyberbullying and to enhance pupils’ self- efficacy in protecting themselves against cyberbullying. Consequently, the author formulated guidelines which point out schoolteachers’ best course of action to protect pupils against cyberbullying. This research investigated the possibility of attachment building between the pupils and schoolteachers based on an integration of Attachment Theory and Protection Motivation Theory. The author then constructed a model based on the integration of these two theories to better explain the ways that digital training and attachment building can help prevention of cyberbullying among pupils. Likewise, the author highlighted the importance of a systematic approach to improve the digital and social media competence among teachers and pupils to control the prevalent risks of cyberbullying. The results of this study suggest, while teachers are not obliged to provide any digital education or protection to their pupils against cyberbullying, they have a very potential ground to do so. Teachers can gain their pupils’ trust through attachment building and by improving their knowledge in this field, they can pro- foundly influence the digital experience of pupils.

Keywords: Child and Youth Protection, Teacher, Pupil, Cyberbullying, Digital Literacy, Digital Competence, Digital Media, Protection Motivation Theory, At- tachment Theory, Literature Review

Table of Contents Chapter I Introduction to the Background of Study and Problem Statement ...... 1 1.1 Introduction ...... 1 1.2 The Significance of Social Media Interaction ...... 1 1.2.1 A Brief History of Digital Media and Digital Communication ...... 3 1.2.2 WEB 2.0, House of Social Media ...... 4 1.2.3 Emergence of Mobile Devices into the Picture ...... 5 1.2.4 Definition of Social Media for Pupils ...... 7 1.2.5 Pupils’ Objectives from Socialization in Social Media ...... 8 1.3 Risk categories on Social Media ...... 9 1.3.1 Parents’ Approach Toward Social Media ...... 9 1.3.2 Teachers’ Approach toward Digital Media and Pupil Protection ...... 11 1.3.3 Pupils’ Online Risk Patterns ...... 12 1.4 Different Approaches to Cyberbullying ...... 13 1.4.1 Terminology and Typologies of Cyberbullying ...... 13 1.4.1.1 Traditional Bullying ...... 15 1.4.1.2 Cyberbullying ...... 16 1.4.1.3 Different Aspects of Cyberbullying ...... 17 1.4.1.3.1 Repetition ...... 17 1.4.1.3.2 Imbalance of Power ...... 19 1.4.1.3.3 Intention to cause damage ...... 20 1.4.1.3.4 Anonymity ...... 20 1.4.1.3.5 The Public Aspect ...... 21 1.4.1.4 The Cyberbullying Cycle ...... 22 1.4.1.5 Areas of Cyberbullying Victimization ...... 22 1.4.2 Taxonomies of Cyberbullying ...... 23 1.4.2.1 Taxonomy by Type of Medium ...... 23 1.4.2.2 Taxonomy by Type of Attack...... 24 1.4.3 History of Cyberbullying and Cyberbullying Research ...... 27 1.4.4 Psychological Approach to Cyberbullying ...... 30 1.4.5 Criminology of Cyberbullying ...... 32 1.5 Cyberbullying in Schools ...... 35 1.5.1 Pedagogical Approach to Cyberbullying ...... 36 1.5.2 The German School System and its Federal Regulations ...... 39 1.5.3 Parents’ Regard for Cyberbullying ...... 42

1.6 Current State of Research ...... 43 1.6.1 Prevalence of Cyberbullying: A Common Digital Media Threat ...... 47 1.6.2 Related Studies and Practices in Germany: ...... 49 1.6.3 Related Studies and Practices in Europe ...... 58 1.6.4 Related Global Perspectives ...... 59 1.7 Statement of Problem ...... 61 1.8 Objectives ...... 65 1.9 Theories ...... 66 1.9.1 Protection Motivation Theory ...... 66 1.9.2 Attachment Theory ...... 72 1.10 Significance of this Thesis ...... 75 1.10.1 Practicality ...... 75 1.10.2 Policy Formulation ...... 76 1.10.3 Extension of the Theories ...... 76 1.11 Definition of Variables ...... 77 1.12 Limitations of the Thesis ...... 86 1.13 Assumptions ...... 87 1.14 Summary of the Chapter ...... 87 Chapter II Methodology ...... 88 2.1 Introduction to Materials and Methods ...... 88 2.2 Location and Population ...... 91 2.3 Theories and Models ...... 92 2.4 Justification of Theory ...... 92 2.4.1 Justification of Attachment Theory ...... 93 2.4.2 Justification of Protection motivation Theory ...... 96 2.5 Conceptual Framework ...... 98 2.6 Execution Phases ...... 99 2.6.1 Phase I ...... 99 2.6.2 Phase II ...... 100 2.6.3 Phase III ...... 101 Chapter III Elaboration on the Study Objectives Based on the Available Literature ...... 102 3.1 Introduction ...... 102 3.2 Review of Related Literature ...... 102

3.2.1 To investigate schoolteachers’ possibility of proximity maintenance with their pupils...... 106 3.2.2 To investigate the impact of teachers’ proximity maintenance on pupils’ self- efficacy ...... 107 3.2.3 To investigate the impact of teachers’ proximity maintenance on response efficacy ...... 109 3.2.4 To investigate schoolteachers’ possibility of standing as a safe haven for their pupils ...... 110 3.2.5 To investigate the impact of a safe haven on pupils’ self-efficacy...... 112 3.2.6 To investigate the impact of a safe haven on response efficacy ...... 113 3.2.7 To investigate schoolteachers’ possibility of standing as a secure base for their pupils...... 114 3.2.8 To investigate the impact of schoolteachers’ standing as a secure base on their pupils’ self-efficacy ...... 116 3.2.9 To investigate the impact of schoolteachers’ standing as a secure base on their response efficacy ...... 117 3.2.10 To investigate the possibility of improving schoolteachers’ digital literacy ..... 119 3.2.11 To investigate the impact of teachers’ digital literacy on pupils’ self-efficacy . 120 3.2.12 To investigate the impact of teachers’ digital literacy on response efficacy ..... 123 3.2.13 To investigate the impact of pupils’ perceived self-efficacy on handling cyberbullying ...... 124 3.2.14 To investigate the impact of teachers’ response efficacy on pupils’ ability to handle cases of cyberbullying ...... 129 3.4 Summary of the Chapter ...... 131 Chapter IV Results and Discussions ...... 132 4.1 Introduction ...... 132 4.2 Presentation of Results and Discussions Based on the Proposed Research Objectives ...... 133 4.2.1 Research Conclusions and Arguments on schoolteachers’ Possibility of Proximity Maintenance with Their Pupils ...... 133 4.2.2 Research Conclusions and Arguments on the impacts of Schoolteachers’ Proximity Maintenance on Pupils’ Self-efficacy ...... 134 4.2.3 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Schoolteachers’ Proximity Maintenance on Their Response Efficacy ...... 137 4.2.4 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Schoolteachers’ Possibility of Standing as a Safe Haven for Their Pupils ...... 138 4.2.5 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Schoolteachers’ Stand as a Safe Haven on Pupils’ Self-efficacy ...... 140

VII

4.2.6 Research Conclusions and Arguments Regarding Teachers’ Stand as a Safe Haven on Response Efficacy...... 141 4.2.7 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Schoolteachers’ Possibility of Standing as a Secure Base for Their Pupils ...... 142 4.2.8 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Teachers’ Stand as a Secure Base on Pupils’ Self-efficacy ...... 144 4.2.9 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Teachers’ Stand as a Secure Base on Their Response Efficacy ...... 145 4.2.10 Research Conclusions and Arguments on the Possibility and Benefits of Improving Schoolteachers’ Digital Competence ...... 146 4.2.11 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Teachers’ Digital Competence on Pupils’ Self-efficacy ...... 148 4.2.12 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Teachers’ Digital Competence on their Response Efficacy ...... 149 4.2.13 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Pupils’ Perceived Self-efficacy on Their ability of Handling Cyberbullying ...... 150 4.2.14 Research Conclusions and Arguments on the Impacts of Teachers’ Response Efficacy on Pupils’ Ability to Handle Cyberbullying ...... 152 4.3 Summary of the Chapter ...... 159 Chapter V Conclusions and Formulation of Policies ...... 161 5.1 Introduction ...... 161 5.2 Formulation of policies ...... 163 5.2.1 Policies on Attachment Building ...... 164 5.2.1.1 Proximity Maintenance ...... 164 5.2.1.2 Standing as a Safe Haven ...... 164 5.2.1.3 Standing as a Secure Base ...... 165 5.2.1.4 Policies on Development of Digital Literacy ...... 165 5.2.2 Policies Concerning Protection Motivation Factors ...... 168 5.2.2.1 Response Efficacy ...... 168 5.2.2.2 Policies Concerning Self-efficacy ...... 170 5.2.3 Policies on Detecting and Attending to High-risk Pupils ...... 172 5.2.4 Seeking Help from External Authorities ...... 174 5.2.5 Noteworthy Points in Cyberbullying Prevention Training ...... 175 5.3 Recommendations for Further Research and Practices ...... 175 5.4 Summary of Research ...... 176 Bibliography ...... 177

VIII

Table of Figures Figure 1. Germany’s Education System (Studying in Germany. n.d.) ...... 40 Figure 2. Activities on the Internet (Feierabend et al. (2017). JIM-Studie 2017) ...... 45 Figure 3. I Got Help/Would Get Help from …(Feierabend et al. (2016). JIM-Studie 2016) ...... 48 Figure 4. A Scale of Oneself Who Has Been Affected through Mobile Phone (Feierabend et al. (2017). JIM-Studie 2017) ...... 53 Figure 5. A Scale of having one’s Embarrassing/Offending Photos/Videos Spread (Feierabend et al. (2020). JIM-Studie 2020) ...... 54 Figure 6. A Scale of Different Means of Using the Internet (Feierabend et al. (2020). JIM-Studie 2020) ...... 55 Figure 7. Protection Motivation Theory (Adapted from Rogers, 1983) ...... 68 Figure 8. Conceptual Framework of Attachment Theory (Adapted from Hazan, & Shaver, 1994)...... 73 Figure 9. Conceptual Model of the Study ...... 99 Figure 10. A Scale of having one’s Embarrassing/Offending Photos/Videos Spread (Feierabend et al. (2017). JIM-Studie 2017) ...... 155 Figure 11. A Scale of Acquaintances Who Have Been Affected through Mobile Phones (Feierabend et al. (2017). JIM-Studie 2017) ...... 156

List of Abbreviations Abbreviation: Explanation: AT Attachment Theory DLM Direktorenkonferenz der Landesmedienanstalten EU European Union FIM Familie, Interaktion und Medien ICT Information and Communication Technologie IM Instant Messaging IT Information Technology JIM Jugend, Information und (Multi-) Media JMStV Jugendmedienschutzstaatsvertrag KIM Kindheit, Internet, Medien KJM Kommission für Jugendmedienschutz LFK Landesanstalt für Kommunikation Baden-Württemberg LfM Landesanstalt für Medien NRW LMK Landeszentrale für Medien und Kommunikation mekonet Medienkompetenz-Netzwerk mpfs Medienpädagogische Forschungsverbund Südwest NRW North-Rhine Westphalia OBPP Olweus Bullying Prevention Program OCW Onderwijs, Cultuur en Wetenschappen OECD Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development PC Personal Computer PEB Program on Educational Building PMT Protection Motivation Theory SAVE Seville Anti-Violencia Escolar SLO Stichting Leerplan Ontwikkeling SNS Social Networking Sites TLM Thüringer Landesmedienanstalt TMSC Transactional Model of Stress and Coping UNICEF United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund VZ verzeichnis

Chapter I Introduction to the Background of Study and Problem Statement

1.1 Introduction In the introductory chapter of this study, the background studies and scientific surveys that urged me to do this thesis on cyberbullying are reflected. Based on these studies I have identified a gap that this thesis means to address. From the perspective of this thesis, the controlling impact of schoolteachers in the process of cyberbullying prevention and the protection of pupils against this particular digital media threat hardly receives the attention that it deserves. In this chapter, I have outlined the studies which provide an understanding of the gravity of cyberbullying among pupils as well as the studied on the origins of cyberbullying. Likewise, investigation in previous scientific works and the ways that they addressed this problem helped me with justifying and improving the approach that this thesis is taking into consideration in order to address this problem. This chapter includes the statement of problem, presentation of the study objectives, an introduction to the theories that are utilized in this study as well as the significance of the study. The definition of variables, limitations of the study and the basic assumptions of the study are also discussed in this chapter.

1.2 The Significance of Social Media Interaction Teachers can enhance their connectivity and their level of interaction with their pupils by taking advantage from digital technology. However, first they have to acquire the necessary skills on how to competently use digital technology including social media and the internet-based communication platform that suits their objectives. Digital competence can also enhance teachers’ performance in terms of using the latest applications and innovative technologies to educate their pupils on the subjects that they teach. Application of digital technology by the teachers can also increase pupils’ level of education related interactions with each other. Until 2020, teachers regarded the incorporation of digital technology into their teaching methods as a rather modern and voluntary choice. However, with the emergence of epidemic viral infections such as COVID-19, and after realizing “the sobering reality that such epidemics will become

more common with our increasingly connected age”1, it becomes more evident that using digital technology to teach is no longer a choice. Teachers need to learn how to use this technology efficiently, so that in turn they could train their pupils on how to use it in order to continue educating their pupils.

Apart from this concept, social media and, practically, the interactions on social media encompass a great range of other privileges and activities, from political expressions to social interactions, from redefining one’s identity to struggling with maintaining the privacy etc. Digital natives, i.e. young people of 18 years of age or younger, are at the heart of such interactions since they tend to find the digital society more approachable than the actual one. Kahne and Bowyer (2018), in a study, entitled “The Political Sig- nificance of Social Media Activity and Social Networks”, interestingly pointed out that most 18-year-olds who were eligible to cast their first vote in a national election in 2012 had been born in 1994, the year Yahoo!, the Sony PlayStation, and Ama- zon.com came to existence. Similarly, those who are eligible to vote in 2020, have never experienced the Internet without Facebook whom I would call the social media natives. As a result, I cannot ignore the impact of digital media in shaping and developing the personal, social and political mindsets of the pupils who have grown up in the shadow of Web 2.0.

Lenhart et al. (2015), found that 92% of pupils aged 13 to 17 go online every day, with 24% reporting being online almost constantly. Furthermore, the rate of social media use among 18- to 29-year-olds has grown sharply, from 41% in 2006 to 90% in 2015 (Perrin, 2015). In another study by Do et al. (2020), which included pupils aged 13 to 19 years old, nearly 65% of the respondents reported using the Internet daily. In this study, 34.3% of the participants stated they would feel uncomfortable and even anxious if they did not use the Internet for an entire day, and this was regardless of their gender. Interestingly, 40% of the participants, mostly females, believed frequent usage of the Internet did not affect their physical wellbeing.

A level of attachment as such, to social media and digital media, sounds very alarming when I know digital media provides a great range of productive and nonproductive

1 A direct quote from World Economic Forum which was accessed on April 17. 2020 and is traceable at: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/03/coronavirus-global-epidemics-health-pandemic-covid- 19/

possibilities for its users. This is where, from my perspective, scholars in the field of media studies and media pedagogy should pay closer attention to pupils’ interactions on digital media; otherwise, the next generation would be shaped, at least in part, with counterproductive aspects of digital media. Digital media threats include cyberbullying which can cause issues such as low school performance, physical problems, as well as psychological and social problems ranging from depression and social isolation to suicide attempts. Here, once again, I shall highlight the pedagogical role of teachers in training the pupils on how to use digital technology for education purposes. Pupils can acquire the training on how to protect themselves and their peers against digital media threats such as cyberbullying, when they are learning how to use this technology for education purposes.

1.2.1 A Brief History of Digital Media and Digital Communication Digital media was not commonly used until the late 20th century. However, such media which could integrate into a great deal of human beings’ day-to-day activities can be traced back to the work of scientist and engineer Vannevar Bush (1945). In his essay “As We May Think,” published in The Atlantic Monthly in 1945, Bush foresaw a network of devices that came to the assistance of scientists, doctors, historians, and other professionals to facilitate the process of analysis and communicating information (Simpson et al., 1996). He called this then-imaginary device a ‘memex’. Bush expected the ‘memex’ to be one of the prominent creations of scientists after World War II. In the same essay digital computers and the social and intellectual benefits of digital media, as well as the conceptual framework for digital scholarship, the World Wide Web, wikis and even social media, were anticipated (Simpson et al., 1996).

However, the existence of digital media was only made possible by advances in data compression, which provided the possibility of storing high memory, and bandwidth requirements of uncompressed media (Lee, 2005, 25-40). From the 1960s onward, computing power and storage capacity increased dramatically. Later on, personal computers and smartphones provided the opportunity of accessing, storing and modifying digital content in the hand of billions of people. Digital media in combination with the World Wide Web and the Internet caused a cultural, economic and social

transformation in 21st century society which were comparable to the social impact of the invention of the printing press (Bazillion, 2001).

The transition to digital media has caused uncertainties in terms of the definition of this new media as well as its terms of use. The combination of the Internet, personal computing, digital media, and other media has a significantly broad and complex impact on society and culture, and it has given a new definition to the concept “the new media”, in the blending of digital media with other media, and with cultural and social factors (Itō, 2009, 1-10). Likewise, utilizing digital media demands a new set of communication skills, known as transliteracy, media literacy, or digital literacy (Thompson et al., 2014, 144-145). This skillset encompasses both traditional forms of literacy, such as the ability to read and write, as well as the ability to navigate content on the Internet, evaluate sources, and create digital content (Burkell et al., 2015).

Currently, there were 2.32 billion smartphone users worldwide and this rate was estimated to reach 3.5 billion in 2020 and 3.8 billion in 2021 (Holst, 2019). Such figures and the fact that such a large proportion of the world’s population owns smart devices do give us an overview on the rapid level of growth achieved throughout the digital revolution. Likewise, it demonstrates the impact of digital media communications today and the attention that this field demands from scientists and experts in this area.

1.2.2 WEB 2.0, House of Social Media The Internet plays a significant role in the context of socialization of pupils and young adults. In the past two decades, digital media have made an interactive platform of convergence for all other types of media. Digital media users have also got used to the interactive and collaborative digital media services such as weblogs, wikis, social networking sites, and podcasts, where sharing content and getting information is much easier compared to the older versions of media. Applications as such are included under the term “Web 2.0” (Jäger, 2018, pp. 7) which is defined by O’Reilly as follows:

Web 2.0 is the network of platform, spanning all connected devices. Web 2.0 applications are those that make the most of the intrinsic advantages of that platform, delivering software as a continually-updated service that gets better the more people use it, consuming and remixing data from multiple

sources, including individual users, while providing their own data and services in a form that allows remixing by others, creating network effects through an ‘architecture of participation’, and going beyond the page met- aphor of Web 1.0 to deliver rich user experiences. (O’Reilly, 2007, pp. 17).

Web 2.0 could be also define through its applications such as sharing of one’s own files with other users online, creation of web sites or blogs, rating of products, services or people by using an online rating system or commentary platforms in the social or professional networks. Basically, Web 2.0 is characterized by new forms of activities that applicants can do on its platforms as well as the technical developments that make it possible to upload, share and mark data in services such as Wikipedia, YouTube, Flickr or Facebook (Madden & Fox, 2006). One of the most prominent services of Web 2.0 is social networking. Boyd and Ellison (2007), define social networks as:

web-based services that allow individuals to construct a public or semi- public profile within a bounded system, articulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection, and view and traverse their list of connections and those made by others within the system (Boyd & Ellison, 2007, p. 211).

Hence, creating one’s own profile and starting to network with different people around the globe, on a social network web site or via social media provides a unique interaction possibility for the Web 2.0 applicants. This application and the vast possibilities that it provides for its applicants turns networking to the most interesting service and social media to the most prominent platform of Web 2.0. By far the most frequently used social network both internationally and in Germany is Facebook. Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Tumblr are also widespread (Duggan, 2015; Koch & Frees, 2016). Therefore, social networking, in particular, occupy a central place in the everyday lives of pupils and young adults for a variety of reasons and it is up to the experts in the field to improve the benefits and curb the negative effects of this Web 2.0 service for its applicants.

1.2.3 Emergence of Mobile Devices into the Picture The mobile Internet, a term which refers to the application of the Internet via mobile devices such as mobile phones, laptops or tablets, has become increasingly important

in recent years. Feierabend et al. (2009), in their Jugend, Information und (Multi-) Media (JIM) study on youth, information and (multi) media, pointed out that Internet use among young users took place primarily at home and that the mobile Internet played almost no role at that time. However, in the 2014 JIM study, they stated that mobile phones and the mobile Internet have become the standard of Internet use for pupils and young adults (Feierabend et al., 2014).

This trend has continued in the following years where the proportion of pupils and young adults who logged on to the Internet via computer or laptop has declined stead- ily over the past few years, from 87% in 2013 to 82% in 2014 and 74% in 2015 (Fei- erabend et al., 2015). However, as of 2019, I can see that the rate of using smart phones among the Germany pupils and young adults has reached 93% (Feierabend et al., 2019). From the perspective of this thesis, it is a matter that demands closer attention from the experts. As mentioned before, using digital technology opens up many learning opportunities and helps with home schooling when necessary but it also demands further attention to the level of media competence and media literacy. Such qualities are necessary to minimize the negative effects of digital media and social media at least on its young applicants.

The extent to which mobile phones and smartphones have replaced other devices such as computers or laptops as the primary means of accessing the internet as of the 2017 reached 81% which reported smartphones as the most frequent means of accessing the internet. In that year only 8% used computers and 6% laptops (Feierabend et al., 2017). This rate in 2019 has reached 93% for smart phones and 65% for computers and laptops (Feierabend et al., 2019). By studying these figures, I could say due to the increasing availability of mobile phones, users can access online content almost permanently and almost everywhere. This is of practical relevance for the present thesis, as pupils and adolescents are increasingly able to escape their parents' sphere of influence.

Media convergence is yet another reason for the popularity of digital media and mobile Internet. As Tatsch et al. (2012), attests until a few years before the Internet was mainly comprised of classic computer-related content. Films were mainly viewed via television sets; games were played via PCs or consoles, and mobile phones were primarily used for telephone calls. In recent years, however, the traditional boundaries between formerly separate media have faded away or totally disappeared. As the

Medienpädagogischer Forschungsverbund Südwest (Media Education Research As- sociation South-West) points out as of 2014, it was possible to use smartphones to read e-books and newspapers, listen to radio and music, watch TV and videos, play computer games, surf web sites, do research, send news, navigate, take photos, film, and record, and finally make phone calls. Media are not only an integral part of life, but they are also a working tool at school, training device at work, and means of entertainment and pastime. Social media are increasingly becoming a platform to build relationships and networks and to develop one’s own personality through exchange and communication in the private sphere (Feierabend et al., 2014).

1.2.4 Definition of Social Media for Pupils The mindset of Pupils and young adults in our era are shaped by different media than any time before. The media that influence pupils’ and young adults’ lives are in part media such as television, radio, and magazines, but it is, in fact, social media and digital media that have the greatest effect on the everyday lives of pupils and young adults. The new media have penetrated the world of pupils to the extent that they have become an integral part of their everyday lives (Feierabend et al., 2015).

For pupils, in particular, digital media and especially social media, are an indispensable part of their lifestyle, through which they make or maintain contact with their peers. It is in these communications that they study, work and spend a large part of their leisure time. Boyd (2014), characterizes social media as the hang out places of our time, as meeting places where young people spend and hang out and thus as an equivalent to drive-ins in the 1950s or the shopping malls of the 1980s. At the same time, one can claim that digital media are not even virtual spaces that are visited purely for their own sake. These platforms are responsible for fulfilling an extremely important role in the self-discovery and identity construction of pupils and young adults. In the words of Boyd: It (social media) enables youth to create a cool space without physically transporting themselves anywhere. And because of a number of social and cultural factors, social media has become an important public space where teens can gather and socialize broadly with peers in an informal way. Teens are looking for a place of their own to make sense of the world beyond their

bedrooms. Social media has enabled them to participate in and help create what I call Networked publics (Boyd, 2014, pp. 5).

1.2.5 Pupils’ Objectives from Socialization in Social Media Socialization is defined as a process of social learning that happens through interaction with other individuals in society. An individual must first be accepted in that society in order to enter the process of social learning and therefore gain social experience. Socialization is, therefore, the process or a major part of learning about and consistently introducing the individual into the society (Berger & Luckman, 1991, Chapter III, Part 1). I can also consider some agents for socialization such as family, education, friend communities, professional environment, and media. In the age of digitization, individuals as social actors interact with a variety of social media every day. This interaction happens in a rather bilateral manner where on the first hand the individuals utilize the media to socialize, inform, develop, and educate themselves; while on the other hand, the individuals make their mark on social media through sending messages, producing and sharing images, posts and discussions.

For pupils and other members of the society alike, media play a major role in the process of globalization with their significant place in the world society as a mediator of numerous relations and contacts. For the pupils and young adults, their diverse background has turned digital media to an environment for creating social abilities and skills. At the same time, digital media have provided a unique platform for the pupils to make sense and possibly contribute to social capital. Here the pupils would try to make a link between media socialization and the formation of the culture associated with digital products and services that are distributed through a global network. They make this attempt to build social experience and knowledge in a broader sense. Digital media provide a unique ability for the pupils and young adults to get a clearer perspective over their society as well as evaluating different situations to increase opportunities for personal realization and development (Milenkova et al., 2018).

Likewise, by using social media pupils can improve their self-efficacy beliefs, the sense that they can enact a successful behavior and that it will be effective, through

the building and maintaining their access to others. Simply put, having access to a student-focused online community can potentially improve pupils’ belief in their ability to reach other students who could provide help (DeAndrea et al., 2012).

1.3 Risk categories on Social Media The problematic content that pupils and young adults are exposed to on the Internet includes but is not limited to pornographic content; content that contains violence or glorifies violence; racist content or content that is harmful to health. It is a common event for pupils or young adults to unintentionally come in contact with problematic content. Pupils and young adults also search for such content out of curiosity or to test their limits. The troubling fact about such attempts is that the videos or images that are found through this process are often sent to peers (Tatsch et al., 2012).

The fact that increases the risk in this context is that pupils spend a considerably long amount of time online via social networking web sites such as Facebook or apps such as WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger. The concerning matter is that pupils receive and distribute problematic content as well as offensive posts about others on social networks in no time. They also exchange personal information with almost no precautions with people they do not know, or the trust people who for all I know could fake their identity. Such activities can open the door to cyberbullying and online child grooming. The main area of risk in the context of pupils’ online interactions includes risks that originate from the pupils themselves, e.g. behaviors that are categorized under cyberbullying, or posting insulting, offensive or threatening content. The threatening contents could include illegal content or viewing content that is harmful to the pupils’ health or even life-threatening, such as contents that admit, promote or instruct suicide (Jäger, 2018; Tatsch et al., 2012).

1.3.1 Parents’ Approach Toward Social Media I could attest the changes that digital media have brought into the social life of pupils and young adults, have been rather considerable compared to the former versions of media, but this change in social life has changed parenthood as well. I do not mean to say that the earlier generations of parents were not confronted with the challenges of

the new technologies of their time such as radio or television, but the intriguing thing about digital media is that one would need a whole new skill set or literacy to begin with using digital media and that is just the first step to gain competence in using this new media.

One of the most prominent challenges that parents have to face is about the special features of the Internet, such as its increasingly mobile and individualized use. The challenge with regards to these features is that they can easily extend beyond the reach of parents. In such a situation, if parents feel the need to monitor or control their children’s Internet and digital media use, they have to take the time and effort to educate themselves to gain literacy and competence in the language of the new media. Parents are now required to work closely with teachers, experts, and the extended family and online service providers to address problems and challenges as they arise (Yardi & Bruckman, 2011, 3237-3246).

Parents have the responsibility of taking care of their children’s wellbeing and to fulfill this responsibility, they must be able to understand the world that their children live in which is highly influenced by digital media (Epstein, 2012). As Hasebrink et al. (2012) rightfully emphasize, pupil and young adult media protection is a field that must be realized in a network of all relevant actors. The involvement of parents in this context is a rather given and indispensable factor as many regulations that are approved by the experts can only be effectively implemented if the parents actively participate in implementing them in their children’s everyday lives.

However, there are also difficulties in the parents’ ways of child protection against the probable threats of digital media. For instance, pupils and young adults move around in the digital world in a way that is increasingly difficult for parents to oversee. A further challenge is the widespread digital literacy gap between parents and children, which is often associated with the fact that parents do not have the necessary skills to help their children adequately in the digital context. In this context, it is particularly important to critically reflect on the concept of ‘digital natives’ or ‘digital immigrants’ postulated by Prensky (Jäger, 2018). Here, I would like to add that it is not the level of digital literacy and eventually the level of digital competence of parents that makes this whole cycle challenging. It is in fact the different applications that parents, and pupils have for digital media which will put their form of digital competence different

from each other. As a result, parents might not be able to fully realize the type of digital context and digital competence that their children are into.

1.3.2 Teachers’ Approach toward Digital Media and Pupil Protection Apart from the parents, it is also teachers who have an ethical responsibility to protect their students against threats that can be potentially prevented through training and education. Teachers have the ethical responsibility to take part in difficult conversa- tions with their students to find out about dominant narratives among their pupils and on social media. It seems very critical for teachers to know which of their pupils have access to social media spaces and whose online presence is being excluded as an attempt to bully that particular pupil. It is also raised as a responsibility for the teachers to explore the possibility of exposure to cyber-violence in the form of racial hate and misogyny, especially for female students of color, non-heterosexual students and students with an immigrant background (Nagle, 2018).

Based on my personal experience, I can attest that teachers can enter the necessary dialogue with their students on topics related to social media by taking over the effort of acquiring critical social media literacy. This would provide the opportunity of gaining information about the social media sites that their pupils use and checking on the ways that they interact with each other on these web sites. Such interventions would help the teachers realize that not every pupil is experiencing cyberspace in the same manner, whereas some pupils have particular difficulties in this process. There are pupils who are suffering from the interactions that they are making on these platforms. Gaining digital literacy would also create an understanding that participatory technologies are a choice with risks, which need informed consent. Consequently, there is a need for open dialogue in teacher education about how to respond to cyber-violence; a knowledge that teachers shall gain through their special digital literacy process. consequently, teachers can establish an understanding among their pupils that a digitally competent teacher can guide them through the process of safe and fruitful application of digital media and social media.

1.3.3 Pupils’ Online Risk Patterns Pupils’ online risks can be regarded from different points of view. Basically, the range of the online risks that potentially affect the wellbeing of pupils can be so wide that they can undermine the biological, psychological, and social well-being of pupils (Machimbarrena et al., 2018).

Jäger (2018), considers four dimensions for online risks that include commercial violations, aggressive behavior, sexual offences, and attack based on the values. He then looks at these four dimensions of online risks from the point of view of the content of the violation, the victim and the perpetrator. As a result, he points out that online commercial violations can happen through advertisements, spam correspondences, and sponsorship scams. In this category of online risks, the victims are the ones who give up their personal information and make themselves easy targets and easily traceable for the perpetrators. The perpetrators, however, find and motivate their victims to fall for their alleged harm through gambling platforms, illegal downloading web sites and even by hacking their victims’ devices or social media platforms.

In case of violations that fall in the category of aggressive behavior, the content is mostly about glorification of violence, cruel and/or homicidal subjects. The victims would be cyberbullied, harassed or stalked and the perpetrators take on cyberbullying and harassing others. The contents of online sexual offences are mostly pornographic or sexual content that is aimed at damaging the social figure of an individual. The victims of sexual offenses are mostly sexually abused or asked to meet strangers. The perpetrators in this category approach their victims through gaining access, creating, sharing or threatening to share pornographic content. Attacks based on the values of the individuals happen through content that is racist, distorted information and hate speech. The victims of this online threat are also likely to take on self-harm activities and social isolation. The perpetrators, apart from spreading unpleasant content against their victims’ values, could motivate them to self-harm, suicide, or taking on eating disorder habits.

Machimbarrena et al. (2018) focus on the risks that are associated with cyberbullying. They break down related risks into cyberbullying, cyber-dating abuse, sexting, online grooming, and problematic Internet use. These risks are then studied individually and in relationship with each other to find out how could they moderate or mediate each

other. The results of the cross-sectional study that they did in this regard with 3212 participants from 22 Spanish schools illustrate that the most prevalent single risk in this category is cyberbullying which was reported by 30.27% of the participants in the study.

Among the two-risk associations, the most prevalent were cyberbullying-online grooming with 12.61% reports and cyberbullying-sexting with 5.79%. At the same time, 7.12% of the participants highlighted victimization by a combination of three- risk combination which was cyberbullying-sexting-grooming, and 5.49% of the adolescents pointed out the presence of all the risks. These scientists highlighted the importance of determining the comorbidity of risks as it is deemed to be useful for clinical and educational interventions, as it can provide information about additional risks.

1.4 Different Approaches to Cyberbullying The number of studies on cyberbullying has rapidly increased in recent years, even though it is a rather recent research topic. However, this cannot hide the fact that the concept of cyberbullying is still an attention-worthy topic and deserves all the attention that it has attracted and more, as will be shown below.

1.4.1 Terminology and Typologies of Cyberbullying Although the terms ‘cybermobbing’ and ‘cyberbullying’ have been established in Ger- many and internationally, the multiple terms that are used in the context of cyberbullying are confusing. Even with the traditional concept of bullying, it is apparent that no uniform term of bullying has been used to represent this phenomenon on the level of individual countries or on an international level. As Smith et al. (2002) state, the term ‘mobbing’ is mainly used in German as well as in Scandinavian languages. In English-speaking countries, the term ‘bullying’ is more frequent as mobbing has a different meaning. In languages with Latin origin, the term ‘bullying’ is difficult to trans- late, and no equivalent terms can be found. Instead, in countries such as Italy or Spain, a number of different terms are used to describe all aspects of bullying (Nocentini et al., 2010; Smith et al., 2002). The terms ‘prepotenza’ or ‘violenza’, which are

frequently used in Italy, imply a more physical and violent behavior in comparison to the term bullying.

If you leave the Western world, you will come in contact with terms that are even more remotely related to ‘bullying’ as it is commonly used in English, Scandinavian or Ger- man-speaking countries. The term ‘iijme’, is the equivalent of ‘bullying’ in the Japa- nese language and represents a form of behavior characterized by social manipulation and aimed at humiliating and damaging the reputation of the other party (Morita et al. 1999, 309-323).

Concerning the term cyberbullying, for a long time, there was no clear and consistent term used for cyberbullying in Germany. According to research in the Google News archives conducted by Jäger et al. (2010, 69-86), the terms ‘Handy-Gewalt’, which means mobile phone violence, and ‘Handy-Mobbing’, which means mobile phone bullying, were predominantly used around 2004. From mid-2006 onward, the terms ‘cybermobbing’ or the English term ‘cyberbullying’ were increasingly used, and from mid-2007 onwards the term ‘Internet violence’ was also used. As a result of wide- ranging information campaigns, such as klicksafe, an initiative funded by the European Commission’s Safer Internet Program, the term ‘cybermobbing’ has become widely accepted in Germany since 2009 (Jäger, 2018).

On an international level, a large number of different terms can be found in publications on cyberbullying and in the public debate. Even in the English-speaking world the term ‘cyberbullying’ is not used consistently. In the USA, for example, the term ‘Internet harassment’ is often used (Ybarra et al., 2010; Ybarra & Mitchell, 2004a). A similar term – ‘cyber-harcèlement’ – is also frequently used in French-speaking countries such as France or Switzerland (Baumberger et al., 2011, 87-100). In Spain, too, the reference to ‘harassment’ is found in terms such as ‘ciberacoso’ (cyber harassment) or ‘acoso electrónico/tecnológico’ (electronic/techno harassment), although terms such as ‘e-bullying’ or ‘cyberbullying’ are now more common (Calmaestra et al., 2010, 146-162).

1.4.1.1 Traditional Bullying To get a better understanding over the concept of cyberbullying and the controversial discussion of cyberbullying definitions, it is helpful to first take a closer look at the definition of ‘traditional’ bullying. Heinemann (1973) was one of the first scientists to publish on the phenomenon of bullying and used the term ‘mobbing’, which goes back to the Norwegian term ‘mobbning’. In its original meaning, mobbing refers primarily to actions taken by a group against an individual. The original reference to a group changed over time and has subsequently been extended to include systematic assaults by a single person. This is, however, the case of countries where mobbing includes the systematic assaults against a person by one person or a group of people.

The most widespread definition of bullying to date goes back to Dan Olweus. Olweus defines mobbing as follows: “A person is bullied when he or she is exposed, repeatedly and over time, to negative actions on the part of one or more other persons, and he or she has difficulty defending himself or herself” (Olweus, 1993, 152).

Olweus’ definition of bullying comprises four criteria that are decisive in characteriz- ing a set of behavior as bullying and on which there is a broad agreement among bullying researchers:

➢ Repetition: assaults must occur repeatedly over a longer period of time in order to be classified as bullying.

➢ Intention to hurt: The perpetrator must have a clear intention to inflict targeted psychological or physical harm on the victim. Fun fights, so-called ‘rough and trouble plays’, would not fulfill this criterion and are therefore not mobbing (Smith & Boulton, 1990).

➢ Imbalance of power: The perpetrator must be physically or psychologically su- perior to the victim. An imbalance can manifest itself, for example, through differences in age, size or power. It should also be noted that an imbalance does not necessarily have to exist in reality: what is decisive is rather the perception of the victim who feels inferior (Scheithauer et al., 2003). It is not regarded as bullying when two equally strong opponents face each other (Hanewinkel & Knaack, 1997).

➢ Helplessness: The criterion of helplessness follows from the criterion of the imbalance of forces and is therefore not explicitly mentioned in some of the descriptions. It means that the victim is not able to defend herself adequately and is helplessly at the mercy of the perpetrator (Hanewinkel & Knaack, 1997; Smith & Brain, 2000). However, from my perspective, helplessness shall be defined as having no one to intervene as an attempt to protect the victim or prevent the act of bullying.

1.4.1.2 Cyberbullying Although no definition of cyberbullying has yet been established in a similarly dominant way as Olweus’ definition of bullying, the literature repeatedly refers to a few definitions. One of the first definitions is by Nancy Willard. She defines cyberbullying as “a language that is defamatory, constitutes bullying, harassment, or discrimination, discloses personal information, or contains offensive, vulgar or derogatory comments” (Willard, 2003, 66). In a later definition, Willard expanded her original concept of cyberbullying: “Cyberbullying is being cruel to others by sending or posting harmful material or engaging in other forms of social aggression using the Internet or other digital technologies” (Willard 2007, 265). The common ground in both definitions is that I cannot trace the signs of the classical criteria of bullying according to Olweus, namely repetition of the act, intention to harm and imbalance of power.

Other common definitions are much more strongly oriented toward Olweus’ definition of bullying. In addition to the ‘classical criteria’, they also place the accent on the media through which cyberbullying is carried out. One of the best-known early definitions comes from Bill Belsey, who defines cyberbullying as follows:

Cyberbullying involves the use of information and communication technologies such as e-mail, cell-phone and pager text messages, instant messaging, defamatory personal web sites, blogs, online games and defamatory online personal polling web sites, to support deliberate, repeated, and hostile behavior by an individual or group that is intended to harm others (Belsey, 2006, pp. 1).

The definition of Slonje and Smith (2008), aims in a similar direction. Cyberbullying is defined here as “an aggressive, intentional act carried out by a group or individual, using electronic forms of contact, repeatedly and overtime against a victim who cannot easily defend him or herself” (Slonje & Smith, 2008, 147). The definition of Hinduja and Patchin, which is also very widespread, is also closely based on Olweus’ criteria for traditional bullying. The authors see cyberbullying as “willful and repeated harm inflicted through the use of computers, mobile phones, and other electronic devices” (Patchin & Hinduja, 2006, 152).

Hence, I can conclude that most common definitions of cyberbullying are based on the same criteria as traditional bullying: repetition, an intention to harm on the part of the perpetrator, an imbalance of power between perpetrator and victim, and helplessness on the part of the victim. In addition to the criteria closely related to the definition of traditional bullying, further criteria can be found in the literature in connection with the specifics of new media and the Internet. Some authors refer to the importance of ‘anonymity’ and regard the possibility of an offender remaining anonymous as a criterion specific to cyberbullying (Jäger, 2018; Langos, 2012; Menesini et al., 2012).

1.4.1.3 Different Aspects of Cyberbullying The extent to which the criteria for traditional bullying according to Olweus are also transferable to cyberbullying has been the subject of controversial discussions (Me- nesini & Nocentini, 2009). In the following, the individual criteria used for cyberbullying are critically discussed.

1.4.1.3.1 Repetition According to Olweus (1993, 150-160), the repetition of an assault is an essential characteristic of traditional mobbing, by which I can clearly distinguish bullying from oc- casional aggressive assaults. Even concerning traditional bullying, this definitive criterion is not uncontroversial as Dooley et al. (2009) point out. Tattum and Lane (1988, 45-57), noted that it may not be the repetition of the act itself, but also persistent or recurrent bullying.

The perception of bullying by a victim can be also characterized by symptoms such as stress caused by single attacks. As a result, from the perspective of the affected person the repetition aspect of an act is not relevant, neither is it regarded as a broad accord among scientists regarding the concept of bullying. Interestingly, there are differences in the attribution of the repetition to bullying from adults’ point of view versus that of pupils and young adults. For example, Madsen (1996) found that pupils and young adults regard individual assaults as bullying, whereas for parents the repetition of an act is the decisive characteristic to regard in an act of bullying. The findings of Guerin and Hennessy (2002) are in a similar direction. Less than 50% of the 166 pupils surveyed by Guerin and Hennessy (2002), in Ireland considered the frequency of assault to be a decisive criterion for bullying. However, more than 40% said that for them an assault can be considered as bullying even if it occurs only once or twice.

The relevance of the repetitive aspect of an assault is also controversially discussed regarding the definition of cyberbullying. Several authors also stick to the criterion of ‘repetition’ in the definition of cyberbullying but make it clear that repetition can manifest itself in different ways in the context of new media (Jäger, 2018).

Like Tattum and Lane (1988, 45-57), various authors point out that the aspect of repetition does not necessarily have to be done exclusively by the repetition of the act itself. Rather, as Menesini et al. (2012) point out, using new media a single act such as uploading an offending image of an individual on a platform like YouTube could lead to having it pop up in an immense number of times in so many other social media and digital media platforms and therefore cause numerous victimizations possibilities (No- centini et al., 2010; Menesini & Nocentini, 2009; Vandebosch & van Cleemput, 2008; Langos, 2012). In contrast to traditional bullying, the repetition of an assault does not have to be done by the perpetrator, but it can happen through the nature of new media, which facilitates a repeated reception of a posted like an image or a bad-mouthing comment. It is also easier to have the original material distributed by others (Smith, 2010). Some authors, such as Faumann (2008), therefore stress that the repetition of an act in the case of cyberbullying does not play the same role as in traditional bullying. Vandebosch and van Cleemput (2008) also note that cyberbullying is present even when there is only a single attack via new media.

Dooley et al., (2009) also point out that the criterion ‘repetition’ is comparatively difficult to operationalize in the context of investigations, partly because perceptions of how often an assault occurs or the consequences of an assault can differ clearly between perpetrators and victims. While in cases of sending offensive SMS or e-mails it is easy to understand and operationalize the criterion of repetition, this is much more difficult when uploading a video to YouTube.

1.4.1.3.2 Imbalance of Power An imbalance of power between perpetrator and victim is considered one of the essential characteristics of bullying while it separates bullying from aggression (Dooley et al., 2009). In the ‘real world’, an imbalance of power can manifest itself in various ways, for example through differences in age, height, physical strength, intellectual superiority or socio-economic status (Patchin & Hinduja, 2006).

In the cyber world, the distance and in some cases the anonymity that new media provides, makes it much more difficult to determine the nature of the imbalance of power. It is obvious that physical differences such as size or physical strength play no or at least a significantly less important role than in traditional bullying. Some authors as- sociate an imbalance of power in the cyberworld with a higher level of digital competence and thus superiority in the use of information and communication technology (Vandebosch & van Cleemput, 2008; Dooley et al., 2009). Ybarra & Mitchell (2004b) found that cyberbullies are more likely to see themselves as Internet experts than young people who are known as perpetrators. Slonje et al. (2013) counter that no great expertise is needed to take pictures of another person with a mobile phone and to distribute them on the Internet. Ybarra and Mitchell (2004b) point out in this context that the specifics of the online environment can give rise to a new group of perpetrators that is different from the real world. In the context of their “revenge of the nerd” hy- pothesis, they postulate that victims of traditional bullying could use the anonymity of the cyber world to take revenge on perpetrators. Revenge for assaults in the real world has been shown in some studies to be a motive for cyberbullying actions (Vandebosch & van Cleemput, 2008; Sitzer et al., 2012).

Some authors stress that it is difficult or perhaps impossible for victims to escape the attacks through new media, leaving the victims defenseless, 24/7 (Slonje & Smith,

2008; Dooley et al., 2009). There is also an imbalance of forces in this regard. Other authors take a more differentiated view and point out that, for example, in the case of attacks via e-mails or personal messages, victims have the opportunity to block the sender and thus let the perpetrator run into nothing, a behavioral reference that can also be found in most cyberbullying prevention brochures and guidelines for children and young people (Kowalski et al., 2008; Willard, 2007, 255-265). However, it is much more difficult for a victim to avoid assaults in which a broader public is involved, such as posting offensive messages on social media, blogs or web sites or even offensive videos on content-sharing web sites such as YouTube.

1.4.1.3.3 Intention to cause damage The presence of an intention to harm on the perpetrators’ side is already considered as a determining characteristic of aggression (Baron & Richardson, 1994, 212-214). Even if some authors do not consider the intention to cause harm as a decisive factor, the infliction of harm seems to be enough from the perspective of other scientists such as (Rigby, 2002, 190-195).

Nonetheless, the intention to harm is a concept that is very much applicable to the definition of cyberbullying as well. As Menesini et al. (2012) state, various qualitative studies have concluded that from the perspective of children and young people, cyberbullying requires the perpetrator to have an intention to harm (Nocentini et al., 2010; Vandebosch & van Cleemput, 2008; Spears et al., 2009).

1.4.1.3.4 Anonymity As explained above, the perpetrator’s ability to remain anonymous is considered specific to cyberbullying (Smith, 2010, 7-19). An offender can hide his or her identity by, for example, sending e-mails or personal messages without specifying the sender, using a pseudonym on social networks or chat rooms, or by blocking his or her mobile phone number (Langos, 2012).

According to Menesini et al. (2012), the anonymity of offenders is considered especially important from the perspective of children and adolescents, particularly with regard to assessing the threat situation. Even in the absence of all other relevant criteria

for cyberbullying, such as intent to harm or imbalance of power, an anonymous assault is considered to be perceived as more threatening than an assault by a person known to the victim. A study by Vandebosch and van Cleemput (2008) shows that victims feel more helpless and suffer more from anonymous assaults. The findings of Nocen- tini et al (2010) point out a similar direction. Mishna et al. (2009) also concluded that many victims consider a cyberbullying attack to be more serious and threatening than traditional bullying because of the anonymity of the perpetrator.

Although some articles stress the relevance of anonymity for cyberbullying (Hinduja & Patchin, 2008; Kowalski & Limber, 2007; Spears et al., 2009), none of the common definitions of cyberbullying explicitly include the criterion of ‘anonymity’. This is partly because a number of studies have now shown that the factor anonymity is not as important as initially assumed since cyberbullying usually occurs in the context of social relationships (Hoff & Mitchell, 2009, Mishna et al., 2009). A study carried out in Germany concludes that at 44% a significant proportion of perpetrators come from the social environment of the school. Exclusively in the online networks, 11% of the offenders come from the school environment, overlap can be observed in 45% of the offenders (Schneider et al., 2013).

1.4.1.3.5 The Public Aspect According to various studies, sharing private photos or videos with the aim of exposing the target is perceived as a severe or very severe offense by almost half of the victims. Insults, ridicule, and threats, on the other hand, are perceived as strongly or very strongly incriminating by only about a quarter of the respondents. The findings confirm that images or videos or forms of cyberbullying that involve a broader public are perceived as the greatest burden by most victims (Sticca & Perren, 2013, Menesini et al., 2011, Nocentini et al., 2010, Slonje & Smith, 2008, Smith & Slonje, 2010, 249- 262). The authors of these studies suggest that the consequences of the dissemination of images or videos by the affected people are difficult to control, as they can be passed on to an unmanageable, potentially unlimited audience, whereas forms of cyberbullying such as insults, abuse or threats are usually focused directly at the victim and hardly any witnesses are involved.

The ‘public’ aspect has not been included in any of the current definitions of cyberbullying either. Similar to ‘anonymity’, the creation of a public sphere primarily plays a role in moderating the perceived severity of a cyberbullying attack (Jäger, 2018).

1.4.1.4 The Cyberbullying Cycle The social struggle among today’s pupils or young adults has an evident hierarchy like most other competitive environments. Bullying, and in the age of digital media cyberbullying, is a component of this hierarchy and has its own structure. According to Dr. Dan Olweus, there are seven different levels within the bullying hierarchy. It begins with the students or the pupils who want to bully and initiate the action, and continues with their followers or henchmen, supporters or passive bullies, passive supporters or possible bullies, disengaged onlookers, possible defenders, and defenders who dislike the action of bullying and help those that are victimized (Olweus, 2001, 3-20). This is important to explain to the pupils that those who follow the bullies and those who are passively observing the situation are equally involved in the process as the person who has initiated the act of perpetration. Dismantling the aggressive segments of this hierarchy and shifting pupils to a preventing mindset must be a fundamental part of any prevention program.

1.4.1.5 Areas of Cyberbullying Victimization According Hinduja and Patchin (2010), the rate of cyberbullying victimization has been increasing in the past few years, ranging between 18.8% in May 2007 and 28.7% in Nov. 2009 with a mean of 27.32% based on 7 different studies from May 2007 until Feb. 2010. Cyberbullying perpetration rates have varied in a broader spectrum compared to the victimization rates, ranging between 20.1% in June 2004 and 11.5% in Nov. 2009 with a mean of 16.76% based on 7 different studies from June 2004 to February 2010 (Hinduja & Patchin, 2010). Several specific types of victimization and cyberbullying were discovered in this survey in 2010.

The survey discovered that the highest concentration of victimizations and cyberbullying offenses occurred in the following areas respectively: mean or hurtful comments posted online (14.3%, 8.8%), rumors online (13.3%, 6.8%), and threats through a

mobile phone text message (8.4%, 5.4%) (Hinduja & Patchin, 2010). Another important factor that Hinduja and Patchin (2010) brought to light was what type of technology pupils are primarily using. According to them, once they asked teens which were the most popular technologies they used in their daily lives, mobile phones were used the most (83%), followed by the Internet for schoolwork (50.8%), and then Fa- cebook (50.1%) (Hinduja & Patchin, 2010). This emphasizes the fact that mobile phones and the Internet are the two primary mediums used for cyberbullying.

Cyberbullying also proved to be gender-related as well. Based on Hinduja and Patchin (2010), involving a random sample of 2,212 teen males and 2,162 teen females, the male-to-female ratio varied the most in the following three areas: victimization within a person’s lifetime (16.6% for males vs. 25.1% for females), admitted to a cyberbullying offense within a person’s lifetime (17.5% for males vs. 21.3% for females), and had a hurtful comment posted about oneself online (10.5% for males vs. 18.2% for females) (Hinduja & Patchin, 2010). The reason behind the lower range of bullying reports among boys might be their reserved attitude toward admitting to having been a victim however, it is interesting that females reported a higher percentage in all categories.

1.4.2 Taxonomies of Cyberbullying Cyberbullying, similar to bullying, can manifest itself in different ways. In the literature there are mainly two taxonomies: One is the approach of Smith et al. (2006) which distinguishes seven sub-categories of cyberbullying based on the medium used. The second is the approach of Willard (2007, 255-265), which is based on a distinction of behavior.

1.4.2.1 Taxonomy by Type of Medium Smith et al. (2006) distinguish between the following seven different sub-categories of cyberbullying, which are based on the medium used by the offender: SMS, the dis- tribution of pictures or videos, mobile phones, e-mail, chat rooms, instant messages, web sites. Similar taxonomies are also found in Hinduja and Patchin (2010) and in the form of a summary of five groups of media in Wachs and Wolf (2011).

Particularly in the early days of research into the cyberbullying phenomenon, taxonomy according to Smith et al. (2006) was an appropriate tool for making an initial, temporary classification and for determining the cyberbullying phenomenon in more detail. However, in a constantly changing environment such as that of modern information and communication technology, it was obvious even then that this taxonomy would not last long due to the emergence of new media and the withdrawal of others.

In the meantime, the convergence of different media listed by Smith et al. (2006) makes it difficult to clearly distinguish the different media from each other. For example, pictures or videos can now be accessed via almost all channels listed like e-mails, chat rooms, instant messages, mobile phones, etc., and can also be accessed via the Internet itself. Similarly, social networks, where young people today spend a large part of their time on, are not yet explicitly mentioned in this taxonomy.

As Riebel and Jäger (2009) point out, classification according to the type of medium does not allow for a consistent class assignment. Accordingly, various authors, such as Mora-Merchan and Ortega (2007, 7-34), oppose the use of the taxonomy proposed by Smith et al. (2006) and suggest that the taxonomy postulated by Willard (2007, 255-265) should be used. Even Slonje et al. (2013) conclude that, due to the constantly changing media landscape, the originally proposed taxonomy is not exhaustive.

1.4.2.2 Taxonomy by Type of Attack A widespread taxonomy goes back to Willard (2007, 255-265). Willard’s taxonomy is based on the behavior or the type of assault rather than the media used in implementing the assault. The forms of behavior or types of assault that he points out are namely flaming, harassment, denigration, impersonation, outing, and cyberstalking.

Flaming describes a short, heated, intense argument in which offensive and vulgar language is used. The argument can take place between two or more opponents, who may well be equally strong. Flaming can take place via various media, such as instant messaging, blogs, social networks, chat rooms, discussion forums or even online games. As various authors point out, flaming does not necessarily meet the definition of an imbalance of power and therefore, if you are really strict about it, then you should not consider it as cyberbullying (Sitzer et al., 2012).

Harassment (threat, harassment), from Willard’s perspective, is about repeated sending of offensive messages. Other authors also use the term cyber-, online or Internet harassment. Ybarra and Mitchel define Internet harassment as an “overt, intentional act of aggression toward another person online. Actions can take the form of purposeful harassment or embarrassment of someone else or making rude or nasty comments toward someone else while online” (Ybarra & Mitchell, 2004a, 1308). As approved by Beran and Li (2005), harassment is the only form Willard lists that fulfills all the criteria of cyberbullying.

Denigration is described as the spreading of rumors or offensive information to expose a person and to destroy his or her reputation or friendships (Willard, 2007, 255-265). Denigration meets the criteria of intentionality and the imbalance of power between perpetrator and victim. However, various authors doubt whether the criterion of repetition is applied in the case of denigration, since the concrete act may be limited to individual assaults by the perpetrator. As already explained, several authors such as Menesini (2012); Nocentini et al. (2010); as well as Vandebosch and van Cleemput, (2008), attested that the repetition aspect does not necessarily have to be the same act or to be done by the initial perpetrator, whereas it can be the result of the reflection of one-act on different social media platforms or the high number of victimizations that result, for example, from the repeated reactions on an offending video.

Impersonation or fraudulent appearance describes the pretending of a false identity in order to post defamatory texts, pictures or videos in the name of the person that the perpetrator claims to be. Impersonation occurs, for example, when an offender gains access to his or her victim’s passwords and thus to his or her profile on a social network or when an offender creates a new account on a social network in the name of his or her victim and pretends to be that person. Impersonation undoubtedly with- holds an intention to harm by the perpetrator. Even if some authors indicate that the power gap between perpetrator and victim is only temporary since the victim can regain control of the situation, for example by changing the password, it should be noted that in reality, it can still prove very difficult to have a profile in a social network set up by another person deactivated via the provider or to regain access to one’s own profile after the perpetrator has changed the access data. It is also important to bear in mind that it is difficult, if possible at all, for the victim to gain

control over harmful information that has been circulated and may have been dis- seminated by other people in the meantime.

Outing describes the dissemination of private, confidential, or intimate information with the aim of shaming or humiliating the victim. It is similar to the phenomenon of ‘trickery’ (breach of trust), which is therefore often mentioned together with outing, and is characterized by the extraction of confidential information in order to spread it online later. In both cases, ‘outing’ and ‘trickery’, the intention of the perpetrator is clearly visible. The same objections and justifications apply with regard to the aspect of repetition as well as the power gap as in the case of denigration and impersonation.

Exclusion describes the exclusion of a person from common online activities such as chat groups, online communities, or online games. Exclusion from a group is also widespread in the context of traditional bullying and like harassment, it fulfills all the criteria of bullying.

Cyberstalking refers to the repeated, intense harassment or denigration of a person. Cyberstalking can include threats and cause profound anxiety in the victim. Cyber- stalking meets all the criteria for cyberbullying; therefore some authors argue that cyberstalking should be classified as cyberbullying. For example, Riebel and Jäger (2009), referring to Spitzberg and Hoobler (2002), emphasize that stalking often originates from strangers and is not related to the school context and, therefore, is a phenomenon sufficiently different from bullying.

Willard’s taxonomy seems to make better sense and has proved to be practical in working with children and adolescents. Riebel and Jäger (2009) examined to what extent the given taxonomy is also empirically practicable. For this purpose, they had descriptions of cyberbullying incidents of a total of 470 students who were assigned by independent persons to the categories postulated by Willard. Almost 97 percent of the described cases could be assigned to one of Willard’s categories. However, more than 70 percent were assigned to a single category harassment and nearly 16 percent to the category denigration.

In addition to the categories postulated by Willard, other authors often suggest ‘happy slapping’ as yet another form of cyberbullying behavior. ‘Happy slapping’ is a

purposefully staged action that is usually recorded in the form of a video and then shared via content-sharing web sites such as YouTube or other channels. By combining elements of traditional bullying and online media, Steffgen and König (2009, 1041- 1047) regard ‘happy slapping’ as a crossing point between traditional bullying and cyberbullying. Even if the term ‘happy slapping’ suggests a playful character, the consequences for the victim can be very far-reaching and dramatic due to the high number of potential recipients of the widespread video and the often extraordinarily humiliating character of the assault.

Slonje et al. (2013) state that in recent years new forms of assault have been observed and, as a result, new concepts have entered the literature of cyberbullying. The term ‘sexting’, for example, denotes the dissemination of sexually oriented images via the Internet or mobile phones (Mitchell et al., 2011); ‘cyber-grooming’ denotes the sexually motivated contacting of children or adolescents by adults via the Internet (Wachs et al., 2012); ‘trolling’ is used in connection with persistent, abusive comments on web sites (Nicol, 2013), and ‘griefing’ describes the harassment of another person in an online game or digital world (Chesney et al., 2009).

1.4.3 History of Cyberbullying and Cyberbullying Research Research on cyberbullying is in many respects rooted in bullying research. This is reflected in the extensive overlapping of early definitions as well as in approaches to the prevention and intervention of cyberbullying and ‘traditional’ bullying. It is also striking that early cyberbullying research was largely initiated by the circle of researchers who had already researched the topic of ‘traditional’ bullying.

In the following, the origins of bullying research are described and how it has become increasingly popular in the wake of groundbreaking publications in the field and, above all, prevention programs and projects. It also explained how and against what background the first publications on cyberbullying emerged at the beginning of the millennium and how the first large-scale research and prevention projects and programs were subsequently launched.

Perhaps it is not baseless if I claim bullying and competition have always gone on hand in hand. It is common among all living species to compete for survival or reaching to

more affluent living quality. It is also a very common practice among human beings in all ages and classes of the society which have “flowed over into the educational, social, and economical realms” (as cited in Donegan, 2012, p. 34). From early ages, children are made to believe in this ideology. This competition becomes more real as a pupil enters elementary school. Pressures to be the best in study-related or even non- study related achievements such as sports competitions or to earn scholarships motivates pupils to consider bullying tactics to win over other competitors, e.g. by spreading rumors about fellow classmates. There are other events that historically have stim- ulated bullying practices such as pupils’ rituals of passage into adulthood, bigotry, re- ligious intolerances, and sexual identifications (Allanson et al., 2015).

Therefore, bullying as a term that is generally viewed synonymous with peer victimization is symptomatic of most social interactions that involve aggression or lack of tolerance for different behaviors or ideologies. However, for the most part, bullying has been and still is a peer victimization issue among pupils or at least that is the age when it starts. Regarding bullying as a rather normal behavior among pupils, most children are never educated against it; hence, they would not learn better, and they would carry that attitude to the later phases of their lives. Orpinas and Home (2006) emphasize that bullying is regarded as the most prevalent form of violence in Ameri- can schools; however, it is a problem which is not isolated to American schools only but found in schools all around the globe, in many different forms.

Here are some reports regarding the first reports of bullying in history. In the 19th century, bullying was neither a term to document violent behavior nor was it viewed as a noteworthy behavior. There are, however, a few mentions of bullying in the Vic- torian scriptures such as that of Thomas Hughes’ 1857 novel Tom Brown’s Schooldays. The novel explains bullying as an unofficially recognized misbehavior which was often regarded as normal behavior of young boys (Hughes, 1857, 117-149).

Bullying was officially reported for the first time by The Times in 1862 after a soldier died due to a series of events that were regarded as a systematic bullying event. This is how bullying was referred to on this occasion:

The bullying propensities of human nature have, generally speaking, these remarkable characteristics that they are not wandering, volatile, fluttering,

oscillating, unsteady appetites, hopping about and changing from one subject to another, but that they settle upon someone object and stick close and faithfully and perseveringly to it. They are about the most unchangeable thing that this fickle world possesses (Koo, 2007, p. 109).

Another incident where bullying is mentioned was about a young boy who died at the King’s School in Cambridge, U.K., in 1885. This boy’s death was due to being bullied by a group of older peers. At the time, the school council was pressured to run investigations on that account, but the council did not carry out any particular attempts in this regard since they traditionally believed bullying was a normal part of a young boy’s life.

However, by the late 20th century and after the publication of articles such as those of Dan Olweus (1991 & 1993), some prevention programs were introduced against bullying. Dan Olweus, a Norwegian scientist, was the person who began the study on the subject. Two of his most renowned works were published in 1991 and 1993 which particularly focused on bullying in schools. Beaty and Alexeyev are the other two scientists that have shown interest in this topic through their publication in 2008. Olweus, with his research on this topic, raised a strong awareness of the fact that there is a real underlining problem with bullying and its consequences. The method that he proposed to address bullying is known as the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP) and implementing this method has proved to have a significant reduction in school bullying. Olweus began to clarify his findings during the 1970s, and in these findings, he pointed out that bullying was not only a physical behavior but could include psychological consequences as well and it had to be continuous. He also pointed out that bullying includes the imbalance of power, which could be physical power, mental power or both, and unprovoked yet deliberate infliction of harm against others (Olweus, 1991, 411-448, as cited in Tritt & Duncan, 1997).

Bullying in the U.S. was not regarded as a serious issue prior to the 1980s. However, after having caused death, violence, and different mental health problems, it was regarded as a serious issue which demanded immediate attention. According to Wilson (2006), the victims of bullying could experience poor academic performance, low self- esteem, and on occasion take their own lives or the lives of the bully or others. In 1999, Columbine High School experienced an event that was deemed to be a consequence

of bullying and catapulted the hidden message of this behavior into the media. In this event, two students who were supposedly gifted, took 50 bombs to school, shot 23 students, and killed 13; at the end they took their own lives and did all of these because they had been bullied. In another event in 1982, a newspaper article in Scandinavia divulged that three young boys from Norway had committed suicide due to being bullied by their peers (Olweus, 1993, 150-160).

In our age, the mixture of technology and bullying habits has made the whole situation much harder to control. The ease of usage and the ability to stay anonymous has allowed cyberbullying to be an enormous problem. Donegan (2012) has addressed digital technology in research that encompasses case studies, statistical research, law cases, and news articles to provide a better understanding of cyberbullying and how to prevent it. There are several legal, clinical, and preventive measures addressed in this article as well as many future possibilities drawn up. Donegan (2012) emphasizes that the possibility of staying anonymous and not seeing the response of the victim provides a situation that motivates the bully to produce even harsher attacks. This is predominantly attention-worthy for services like America Online, Inc. (AOL), Yik Yak, Insta- gram, Twitter, Facebook, My Space, Google+, and Snap Chat, to name a few, where pupils and young adults get the opportunity of instant communication with each other via the Internet, which provides a sense of freedom and bravery, yet sometimes secrecy, and the choice to assault others (Subrahmanyam & Greenfield, 2008). Nonetheless, I believe it is fair to claim that in the last fifteen years much has been learned concerning cyberbullying, and much more is to be explored.

1.4.4 Psychological Approach to Cyberbullying It might come to our mind that the effects of bullying are all about the primary responses of the victim to the event, and all of that would fade away in a few days or a week, at most; but that is not how it happens. According to the researchers’ indications, the harm inflicted by bullying, either physical or psychological, has multiple consequences. Likewise, these effects can lead to other issues and result in snowballing effects with long-lasting and painful emotions impacts (Donegan, 2012).

Gender seems to play an undeniable role in bullying victimization and bullying research. It is undeniable that in order to understand bullying and cyberbullying it is best to rely on empirical studies on this field. These studies are based on the reports that come from the population under study. However, it is also known for instance boys find it much harder to admit having been bullied or cyberbullied. Even at points, boys tend to believe they have not been bullied and at all time they had the situation under control, or they could retaliate if they wanted which is merely a self-bias. Likewise, even though many pupils tend to deny the emotional harm caused by bullying tactics such as teasing, spreading rumors or name-calling, research suggests otherwise (Patchin & Hinduja, 2006).

In a study that was done on a sample of over 3,000 students, the researchers found that 24% felt helpless, 37% felt angry, and 38% of bullying victims felt vengeful. In another study, conducted by the Cyberbullying Research Center over a sample of 468 students, illustrated that female participants were typically more emotionally affected by cyberbullying than male participants. The feelings that female participants in this study reported included frustration at 39.6%, anger at 36%, and sadness at 25.2% more often than male participants who reported lower percentages in each category at 27.5%, 24.3%, 17.9%, respectively. An explanation to these results, as mentioned earlier, is that boys are in general reluctant to admit their weaknesses, particularly once it comes to emotional weaknesses. However, in reality, it is expected that boys are at least equally affected and have gone through emotional responses concerning anger and frustration (Patchin & Hinduja, 2006). In between, age seems to play a role as well since the older pupils reported to have experienced more anger and frustration, the pupils at the elementary level were more likely to feel sad as a result of being bullied (Patchin & Hinduja, 2006).

The emotional consequences of bullying can go beyond the initial emotional reactions to bullying. These emotions can continue and develop over time and cause serious clinical effects. According to an intensive survey which focused on the clinical effects of cyberbullying, the emotional distress of the victims of cyberbullying increased throughout time. This study was based on the reports of 512 professionals in psychology, psychiatry and social work. It indicated that one third (34%) of the pupils and young adults who referred to these professionals reported having suffered from

Internet problems (Mitchell, et al., 2007). This evidence proves that cyberbullying is having noticeable clinical effects on today’s youth. Robert Agnew has gone a step further and has hypothesized that the burden of stress exerted on an individual and can manifest itself in problematic emotions leading to deviant behavior and possibly delinquency (Agnew, 2006, 659-660).

Research confirms that both bullying victims, as well as offenders, are emotionally harmed by the act of cyberbullying. According to the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, loneliness, humiliation, and insecurity were each reported as further manifestations of the initial emotional responses to the bullying process. These feelings have the potential to cause students to fear going to school, to feel constant instability, and to find it difficult to adjust socially and emotionally, focus on their studies, and develop in a healthy mental fashion. These responses can lead to more serious clinical implications, such as depression, which can continue to develop into even worse problems (Ericson, 2001). The statistical evidence proves the fact that both cyberbullying victims and perpetrators are likely to attempt ‘bullycide’, the act of com- mitting suicide due to the effects of bullying (High, 2007, 60-71).

1.4.5 Criminology of Cyberbullying In the United States of America, the legislators in different states have passed laws to control cyberbullying. In California, state legislature in August 2008 passed Assembly Bill 86 2008, a law that directly deals with cyberbullying and gives school administrators authority to deal with student discipline for bullying online or offline (Allanson et al., 2015).

In Germany, one of the organizations that are very much active in making the public prosecutors regard cyberbullying as a crime is the Thuringian State Media Institute (Thüringer Landesmedienanstalt TLM)2. However, despite all efforts made by TLM,

2 Thüringer Landesmedienanstalt (TLM) or Thuringian State Media Institute, has been directed by Jochen Fasco, a member of the Kommission für Jugendmedienschutz (KJM) or Commission for Pro- tection of Minors in the Media, since 2007. In addition, he has been Deputy Chairman of the Directors’ Conference of the State Media Authorities (DLM) since 2008, as of 2011-2013 Commissioner for Media Literacy and Civic Media and since 2014 has been coordinating the Committee of Experts on Media Literacy, Protection of Users and Minors, Local Diversity.

in most cases, the relevant public prosecutor’s offices did not classify the offers and comments submitted as criminal offenses. The reasons given by the public prosecutor’s offices for discontinuing the proceedings show that the criminal law is only con- ditionally suitable for prosecuting and containing hate comments on the Internet. How- ever, pupils and young adults as well as other members of the society must be aware of reporting structures and help pages if they themselves or third parties become victims. Help services include, for example, the counseling service and peer-to-peer projects such as juuuport.de of the Lower Saxony State Media Authority. Contents relevant to criminal law or youth protection can also be reported to jugendschutz.net or the online police stations.

As a result, one can claim that cyberbullying in itself is not a crime in Germany, but there are a number of regulations that can make a cyberbullying perpetrator liable in terms of the civil or criminal law of Germany as mentioned by Mekonet (2012), e.g.:

➢ The general right of personality is affected when the private and intimate sphere of a person is encroached upon. Part of this is the right to one’s own picture (§22 KunstUrhG), which is violated when photos or videos showing a person in a recognizable way are published without their consent. ➢ An insult (§185 StGB) which is a deliberately defamatory statement toward a person. ➢ Slander (§186 StGB) is punishable by law if you claim or spread a fact in relation to another person, which is suitable to disdain that person in public opinion if this fact is not provably true. ➢ Defamation (§187 StBG) when such allegations are made against better knowledge and aim at disdaining or damaging the credit of the person concerned. ➢ Coercion (§240 StGB) is a punishable offense if a person is unlawfully coerced into an act, acquiescence, or omission by force or by threatening of a sensitive evil. Even the attempt is punishable.

Since the beginning of 2018 KJM has been chaired by Dr. Wolfgang Kreißig, the President of the Landesanstalt für Kommunikation Baden-Württemberg (LFK). He is also a member of the expert committee of the DLM.

➢ Threat (§241 StGB) exists if a person is threatened with the commission of a crime directed against him or a person close to him. This also applies to the simulation for forthcoming crimes. ➢ The so-called Anti-Stalking Act (§238 StGB) makes persistent stalking, including through means of communication, punishable if the victim’s lifestyle is seriously impaired. This also includes, for example, deliberately providing false information to third parties to invite them to harass a potential victim. ➢ A violation of the highly personal sphere of life by taking pictures (§ 201 StGB) is given if unauthorized pictures of a person are taken, transmitted or made common to third parties in a flat or a room that is especially protected against viewing. A classroom is not a specially protected room, but changing rooms or toilets are. ➢ In contrast to criminal law, which focuses on the protection of victims and the punishment of the offender, the Interstate Treaty on the Protection of Minors in the Media (Jugendmedienschutzstaatsvertrag, JMStV) protects children and adolescents (in some cases also adults within the scope of Article 4(1) JMStV) from or when receiving inadmissible content on the Internet that impairs their development. However, there is no explicit provision of bullying in the JMStV (Borngässer et al., 2019).

Going through different state laws and regulations might be confusing, but to solve a problem, the most primal step is to recognize the issue as a problem and in case of cyberbullying to recognize it as a crime. From what I know so far, in most cases parents, teachers, or even law enforcement officers, have minimal or no information about their specific state laws with regard to cyberbullying. While most American and German states have some regulations against bullying or cyberbullying, it is important for every person who deals with children, be it teachers, parents, or law enforcement officers, to know the bullying and harassment laws that are specific to their own region. It is also important for such people to know the physical and emotional signs of cyberbullying, and the community or school prevention plans so that they would know how to detect it, who to report it to and how to deal with it (Donegan, 2012). Here, I would like to add while most people hope that cases of cyberbullying will never happen to their loved ones, and some may even have some protective measures if it happens, this is

not the right way of addressing cyberbullying or bullying. The best way, however, is to have comprehensive plans and to implement them. We should take constant and concentrated efforts and form a partnership among families, schools, law enforcement and related communities and organizations against cyberbullying.

1.5 Cyberbullying in Schools From the mid-1990s onwards, extensive research programs on bullying were developed which were characterized by intensive international cooperation. Such researches were accompanied by a massive increase in articles, books and other publications on the phenomenon of bullying. Within the framework of the project “CONNECT UK- 001 – Tackling violence in schools on a European-wide basis” (1998-2002), funded by the European Union, the situation was described for 15 of the 17 European countries participating in the project (Smith, 2005, 136-145). According to Smith (2010, 7-19), some significant approaches, such as addressing bullying as a group process and examining the roles of involved in this process, date back to this time.

In the following years, a number of research and practice-oriented projects on the topic of violence and bullying at school were supported by various EU-funded programs, such as the initiative “Violence in School” and the programs “Socrates” or “Daphne” (Kane, 2008). This led to a large number of further projects funded by the European Union, such as the EU projects VISIONARY (Jäger & Amado, 2005) and VISION- ARIES-NET (Jäger et al., 2003). Likewise, the establishments during this period include far-reaching international networks such as the European Observatory on Vio- lence in School which expanded into the worldwide International Observatory on Vi- olence in Schools. They regularly hold world conferences with national offshoots in many European countries as well as a working group within the framework of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development OECD such as the Pro- gram on Educational Building (PEB) (OECD, 2005).

Today’s cyberbullying research has been significantly influenced by bullying research, which originally goes back to Olweus (Smith, 2010, 7-19). The actual ‘breakthrough’ in the field of bullying research can probably only be seen as the national anti-bullying campaign in Norway, which Olweus initiated and coordinated from 1983 onwards.

The “Olweus Bullying Prevention Program” is a school-wide approach involving various actors in the problem of bullying and has been extensively evaluated. Although a reduction of bullying of up to 50-70 % was achieved in Norway by the “Olweus Bul- lying Prevention Program” (Olweus, 1997), such results could not be achieved in later national adaptations of the program (Baldry & Farrington, 2007); however, a significant improvement in the situation was apparent, so that the “Olweus Bullying Preven- tion Program” inspired a first intensive exchange between researchers at the international level (Smith, 2010, 7-19). The “Olweus Bullying Prevention Program” inspired a number of programs carried out at the national level, such as the “Sheffield Anti- Bullying Program” in Great Britain (Smith, 1997) or the “Seville Anti-Violencia Es- colar (SAVE) Program” in Spain (Ortega & Lera, 2000).

1.5.1 Pedagogical Approach to Cyberbullying As Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the President of Germany, stated in a gathering of the State Media Authorities, Direktorenkonferenz der Landesmedienanstalten (DLM), we live in a time that parents and teachers often feel overwhelmed. They want to help children and pupils with taking most of the opportunities that digital media are offering, yet they often lack the appropriate equipment, technical know-how or effective methods for pedagogical support. Teachers and parents constantly ask themselves: How many hours of smartphone use per day are appropriate for an eight- or fourteen-year- old? How can we use tablets sensibly in everyday school life? How and at what age do you teach children and how to deal responsibly with personal data? How can we protect young people effectively from cyberbullying? He stressed that many educators throughout Germany are dealing with these important questions and these topics de- serve more concrete help from professionals and society as a whole. Likewise, the German education system must educate and enable the pupils to classify and evaluate information (Borngässer et al, 2019).

Cornelia Holsten, the Chairperson and Director of the State Media Authorities (DLM), also points out that media convergence on a technical and content level is increasingly urging the German pedagogical society to offer new and innovative media education projects to the young generation and people of all ages to enable them to use digital media competently, reflectively and safely. According to her, the current network

problems in Germany are the result of the three main themes of hate speech, bullying and extremism which demand further attempts on the protection of minors and improvement of media literacy. That is why media literacy education and the protection of pupils in digital Media go hand in hand and are inseparable.

The words of Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Cornelia Holsten become even more attention-worthy when we realize how low the inhibition threshold is getting when it comes to undervaluing and attacking others on digital media. For example, teachers, parents, and educators in the extracurricular programs for pupil and youth very often report insults and exclusion in digital media-based interaction groups such as WhatsApp group chats. It seems that hostile expressions, which would be unthinkable for most people to express face to face, are easily typed into a phone. A fourth-year German teacher reports that some students in his class made a WhatsApp group which they called “All against Leon!”. He then mentions that the student in question was also a member of this group long enough to see what was written about him. Then he was excluded and removed from the group. This is how systematically the cyberbullying and online violation can take place (Borngässer et al, 2019).

Cyberbullying can take place due to a variety of events such as frustration, lack of self- esteem, ignorance, harsh communication culture, lack of awareness of the consequences or lack of empathy, which can get even more exacerbated by digital distance. But how could pupils and young adults develop an appreciative communication culture and respectful interaction on the Internet? There is a wide range of strategies and methods for educating the pupils and the young adults on how to deal with exclusion, hurtful behaviors and cyberbullying. However, as a rule, the aim of all these methods should be educating and preparing people to learn and appreciate coexistence in the virtual world (Borngässer et al, 2019).

Some methods that are tried in this regard are role plays, discussion groups or creative media work but the central element in all these trainings should be reaching to children and young people on an emotional level. Especially effective is a sensitive inclusion of affected persons and peer-related work. Young people pass on their knowledge to their peers, and they regard this form of knowledge sharing more acceptable and au- thentic due to their similar media experience. However, even in peer-to-peer training approaches, there is a need for training adults who in turn accompany and support

pupils and young people. Media educators need background knowledge and methods, but they also must take structural and school-organizational or extracurricular conditions into account. A firm anchoring of mentoring programs in schools can be promising, especially if the prevention of violence and social learning is at the interface of media education (Borngässer et al., 2019).

Just in line with the methods of controlling cyberbullying proposed by Borngässer et al. (2019), an initiative by Grimme Institute is also presently implementing education and training programs for teachers and parents alike to improve their knowledge about cyberbullying and methods of preventing it. A number of these institutes are located in North-Rhine Westphalia (NRW) a state in Germany. This attempt is based on multiple studies such as that of Medienkompetenz-Netzwerk NRW (mekonet) which is done in collaboration with Grimme-Institut and Landesanstalt für Medien NRW (LfM). This report points out that, instead of issuing bans, it must be made clear for the pupils that even on the Internet the day-to-day social and legal rules do apply.

According to the report from Mekonet (2012), a good way to tackle cyberbullying in schools is to educate the pupils in a way that they can jointly determine what behavior is not tolerated in the group and, in case of breaking the rules, what consequences can be expected. Likewise, both parents and pupils must learn about the proper models of dealing with their own private data and opinions as well as that of others whether it is online or offline. This study proposes that in every school a potential contact person should be available in this regard. Such a person must be aware of the psychological effects of cyberbullying victimization for both victims and perpetrators, as well as the legal consequences for the perpetrators and options for helping both victims and perpetrators (Mekonet, 2012).

Currently, Grimme Institute is actively implementing trainings for teachers in NRW who have signed up for such training programs either on their own or by request from the schools where they teach. Special parent evening programs on the topic of cyberbullying where parents get to improve their knowledge about cyberbullying are also a strategy that is proposed in different schools.

1.5.2 The German School System and its Federal Regulations The school system in Germany is rather unique, so I would take this opportunity to briefly explain it. It is worth mentioning that in all stages of this system, teachers can incorporate digital media in order to use digital aids and various applications related to their subject to improve their own performance and their pupils’ learning skills. At the same time, as mentioned before, digital technology provides the ability to reach out to the pupils in times that attending the school in it conventional form is not possible. As a result, teachers’ digital literacy and digital competence in terms of how to use digital media for improving the education atmosphere is ever more essential.

The compulsory education in Germany begins with ‘Grundschule’ or primary school. Grundschule is the first part of the mandatory education through mixed-ability classes for children aged 6 until they complete grade 4 (or 6 in some states). There are two primary school education systems in Germany. In a 5-day school week pre-education system, there are 188 teaching days per annum, and in a 6-day school week preschool system, there are 208 teaching days per annum, including teaching on 2 Saturdays per month. Primary school courses normally last up to 45 minutes and in every school-day, where up to 6 courses can be taught. The core objective of German primary education is the development of essential understanding, skills, abilities and key competencies amongst pupils.

Subjects taught in German primary schools are German language, mathematics, general studies, foreign language, art, handicrafts/textile design, music, sports, and reli- gion/ethics. They also teach intercultural, MINT, media, health, musical-aesthetic, sustainable development, English, and values education. Learning objectives in primary schools are attained through the engagement of pupils in planning, running, analyzing study subjects (lessons) in an adapted way, which goes along with their knowledge, interest, curiosity and concerns. Pupils are also encouraged to take part in organizing initiatives and interdisciplinary projects of the school.

German secondary education takes place after primary school, and it is separated into lower secondary level, i.e. ‘Sekundarstufe I’, and upper secondary level, i.e. ‘Sekundarstufe II’. The lower secondary education is the education offered for pupils aged 10-15/16 in grades 5-7 to 9/10. Lessons at this level are of a general nature and serve as preparation for the upper level of secondary education. The upper secondary

education is the education that pupils aged 15/16-18, who have completed lower levels of secondary school, receive for the purpose of obtaining a university entrance qualification or a vocational qualification.

This level resumes all the courses of lower secondary level which built the basis of knowledge of the participating pupils. Germany has various types of secondary schools attended by children of various abilities and various prior qualifications received in primary education. After grade 4, pupils are separated according to their academic ability, the teachers’ recommendation and the wishes of their families, and attend one of four different kinds of schools: Hauptschule, Realschule, Gesamtschule or Gymna- sium (Figure 1).

Source: Studying in Germany. (n.d.). Figure 1. Germany’s Education System (Studying in Germany. n.d.)

Gymnasium or Gesamtschule provide intensive and in-depth general education, general knowledge for university studies, and for scientific work. It normally covers schooling years from grades 5-12 or 5-13, leading to ‘Allgemeine Hochschulreife’ known as ‘Abitur’.

Hauptschule provides basic general education, leading to a vocational or college qualification. Education in such school lasts from grade 5-9 and sometimes includes the grade 10 as well, and at the end one would gain a ‘Hauptschulabschluss’.

Realschule offers more extensive education, leading to a vocational or college qualification. It usually covers schooling years from grade 5 to 10, ‘Realschulabschluss’ or ‘Mittlere Reife’.

General upper secondary schools in Germany aim to prepare pupils with the needed understanding to obtain the Abitur or other university entrance qualifications. With a university entrance qualification, they can apply for further academic studies in any German higher education institution or apply for a professional education and training study course.

In Germany, school is compulsory until children turn 18, i.e. they become of age; even when doing an apprenticeship or vocational training, young people are obliged to attend vocational school. It can be stated that until the age of consent, children are always under some form of educational supervision provided by the teachers. Basically, from the beginning of the secondary school be it Realschule, Hauptschule, Gymnasium or Gesamtschule, German pupils would have several teachers for different subjects and teachers would see their classes for up to maximum 6 lessons of 45 minutes per week. However, it is still possible for the teachers to train their pupils on how to use the apps that are related to their own subjects and in the meantime inform them on how to protect themselves against events of cyberbullying.

It is also true that in some cases the pupils might have the possibility of receiving counseling which is usually done by the liaison teacher “Vertrauenslehrer”, class teacher “Klassenlehrer”, social workers or in very rare cases psychologists who are only employed at some schools (statistics: just under 5,000 social workers in 2014 compared to over 750,000 teachers). However, such services cannot be generalized on all schools and pupils in Germany and that is the reason why from the perspective of this thesis teachers could play the key role in helping prevent or mitigate cyberbullying among their pupils.3

3 Further information on this topic shall be traced in the following websites:

1.5.3 Parents’ Regard for Cyberbullying After an overview on the pedagogical approaches toward cyberbullying and the ways that teachers and school authorities can and in some countries such as Norway, Ger- many and England do try to handle this issue; it is time to have a look at parents’ potentials and the way that these prime caregivers of the pupils, regard cyberbullying.

Mesch reports parents’ monitoring and controlling attempts on their children’s interactions on a social networking site have a negative relation with experiences of cyberbullying on such platforms. Having a parent as a friend on a social media platform is a strategy which can give the monitoring possibility to the parent and seems to reduce the probability of falling victim to cyberbullying. Hence, it could be concluded that parents’ attempts to monitor and supervise their children’s social media-related interactions could protect them against cyberbullying and other forms of online victimization (Mesch, 2018).

Likewise, in a study conducted by Baldry et al. on a total of 4390 Italian pupils and young adults aged 13-20, it was determined that parental control of online activities could facilitate parents’ awareness of their children’s involvement in cyberbullying or cyber-victimization. This study also proved that parents’ engagement with their children’s online interactions can reduce cyberbullying or cyber-victimization. As a result, this study concludes that parents can play a positive role in minimizing pupils’ negative experiences online by actively supervising and monitoring online activities or by restricting what their children are doing. The justification of these scientists for this conclusion is that monitoring, supervising or even controlling children’s online interactions will enable them to see whether they are involved in some way in cyberbullying (Baldry et al., 2019).

On the contrary, Cesaroni et al. (2012) assume that parents also have an insufficient understanding of the concept of cyberbullying due to their often-inadequate understanding of cyberspace compared to pupils and young people. It is evident that in most cases parents consider cyberbullying to be a form of bullying that is similar to traditional bullying but is carried out online. They assume cyberbullying attacks occur

https://www.dji.de/fileadmin/user_upload/bibs2017/64_Schulsozialarbeit.pdf and https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schullehrer_in_Deutschland.

particularly in social networks. An intention on the part of the perpetrator is not regarded as decisive, but rather how a cyberbullying attack is perceived and classified by the victim. An imbalance of power between perpetrator and victim is also considered less important for classifying a situation as cyberbullying. However, the criterion of repetition is seen as more important (Jäger, 2018).

In a study of the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health of the University of Michigan (Davis et al., 2015), 611 representatively selected parents of adolescents aged 13-17 were asked whether they would consider various hypothetical situations as cyberbullying. For the situation “Social media campaign to elect a certain student for homecoming court, as a mean joke”, 63% of the parents surveyed said that they would definitely classify this as cyberbullying. In the situation “Sharing a photo altered to make a classmate appear fatter”, 45% stated this as a form of cyberbully. Furthermore, 43% of respondents rated the scenario “Posting online rumors that a student was caught cheating on a test”, and 65% “Posting online rumors that a student had sex at school” as cyberbullying. The proportion of parents who were unsure whether they would regard these situations as cyberbullying was between 30 and 50%.

By referring to the above-mentioned studies, with regards to the parents’ role in com- prehending and making the effort to protect their own children against cyberbullying, I could say parents’ approach to this matter can be as biased and in cases as successful as any other untrained caregiver. The point is that once we need a systematically trained caregiver to help control a very complex behaviour, we shall not simply say that a particular group of people due to their undeniable desire to protect the best interest of the pupils, can effectively help them with their cyberbully protection needs as well. As a result, I would say the undeniable desire to protect the pupils’ best interest needs to be paired with cyberbully protection related trainings to gain the ability of providing the desired objective.

1.6 Current State of Research At this point we know the age when children start using the Internet is decreasing day by day. As a result, ever younger children start using the Internet in different aspects of their social and personal lives. It is also mentioned and reiterated that this social

phenomenon requires further attention to the protection of children and pupils from the threats that are associated with proliferated usage of digital media, high-risk behaviors and exposure to the unsuitable content. Unprotected attempt of roaming in the digital world or the virtual society that most children, pupils, and young adults find more appealing to their lifestyle, is a problem. More so, the fact that this digital society in most cases is not necessarily following the civic regulations of the actual society that pupils live in, is yet another concern. There are basically no law-enforcement units to make sure that the regulations of every country are implied in the digital activities of the people of that region. Factual issues as such have most certainly urged the experts in the field of digital education and child protection to suggest possible solutions.

One of the proposed solutions to control cyberbullying is restriction of Internet use at home, at school or other social venues where pupil can have access to the Internet. The other method is trying to be part of the digital community of the children as a co-viewer which has been suggested by assimilating digital media to audiovisual media such as television and radio. However, in practice most of the times these protection methods turn to function far less effective in tackling the problem of child protection in the digital world than expected. For instance, it was believed that most children ask their parents for permission before using the Internet but even then with such an optimistic view, some children can and do use internet with multiple internet provider possibilities and multiple digital devises that they have at their disposal.

To confirm this claim a study by Feierabend et al. (2017), proposed that at least one third of the young Internet users could go online alone with no permission by means of smartphones or other mobile devices, as well as mobile data, or free Wi-Fi networks. This means internet use can escape parental control every second. Figure 2. shows an array of social media and instant messaging services that were available to children of all ages through smartphones since 2017 and is some cases even before 2017. These services and their availability through smartphones put this particular smart device at the center of attention for studies that go against cyberbullying and digital media perpetration.

Figure 2. Activities on the Internet (Feierabend et al. (2017). JIM-Studie 2017)

Such protection strategies have even moved parents to use technical solution for the prevention of children and young adults from unauthorized Internet use and hence, in their belief, the prevention of digital threats. Therefore, the use of technical youth protection solutions has become increasingly important in the eye of the experts and practitioners such as parents and school authorities. Based on a study that a group of my colleagues and I did from 2012 until 2014, we realized that in Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia and basically in Asian culture, not dominantly but mostly, the restriction methods are considered as the most effective methods for prevention of digital media threats and protection of children and young adults against cyberbullying (Benrazavi et al., 2015)4.

However, it did not take long until I realized that Asian parents are not the only people who believed in the protective qualities of restricting software programs. Kindheit, In- ternet, Medien (KIM) 2016 has conducted a study (assuming that pupils use the Internet at least rarely, n=831) in which they asked parents whether in general, they used some

4 This publication is not the only result the study that was done in the afore-mentioned period of time. Below you can find another publication, out of the same study, which you might find relevant to the topic at hand. • Griffiths, M. D. et al. (2016). Parental mediation and adolescent screen time: a brief overview. Ed- ucation and Health, 34(3), 70-73.

kind of software, filter or app for the protection of minors on the various end devices in the family. As a result, 20% of parents confirmed having installed software on their computers or laptops; one in ten has installed a corresponding app on their smartphone; seven percent on their tablet PCs, and appropriate options for game consoles were used among two percent of the population.

The results of the KIM study 2016 showed that, in the age group of primary school pupils, watching television was still the most dominant media activity. Computer, In- ternet, and smartphone usage started to gain importance in daily life from the age of ten onwards, and after pupils start secondary education. After pupils turn ten, the rep- ertoire of media devices they used expands quickly. Pupils then increasingly use computers, the Internet as well as smartphones to research and communicate. This study also indicated, even though Internet use is exploding among young pupils, most parents are not turning to technological restricting techniques to control their children’s digital activities which turned to be mostly due to their unfamiliarity with such possibilities rather than believing in freedom of Internet use and the best behavior of their pupils online. In all fairness, there were also parents who did not see the need for taking such measures.

Despite the apparent necessity of receiving proper education on media competence, while many pupils indicate that they use their computer at home to do their homework and school projects, most schools do not offer practical guidance on how to use computers or the digital media. This raises the question of who is providing pupils with criteria on how to structure and evaluate search engine results. Who shows pupils the potentials of the Internet as a medium for education and information, and who teaches them rules and borders for communication over the Internet and smartphone? Most pupils make their first experiences with the Internet at primary school age. This phase offers a good moment to make pupils acquainted with the fundamentals of this medium – before it dominates their day-to-day life or turns into a magic rod to facilitate their daily activities or become an ever-present companion in their lives.

1.6.1 Prevalence of Cyberbullying: A Common Digital Media Threat The investigation of the prevalence of cyberbullying has been the subject of a good number of studies both within Germany and internationally in the recent years. Alt- hough various authors conclude that the prevalence of both cyber-victimization and cyber-perpetration across different studies is around 10% (Smith et al., 2008; Corcoran et al., 2012; Vandebosch & van Cleemput, 2010), a closer look at the findings of individual studies reveals a much more heterogeneous picture. In an international comparison, prevalence rates for cyber-victimization ranged from 0.4% to over 70%, and for cyber-perpetration from 0.4% to over 50% (Mora-Merchán et al., 2010, 271-282). It elevates the importance of paying further attention to this topic once we realize those who are subjected to cyberbullying, either as a victim or a perpetrator, come from a variety of problematic social and psychosocial backgrounds, and are prone to critical psychological issues such as depression, anxiety, social isolation, social deviation, and loneliness (Gámez-Guadix et al., 2013; Landstedt & Persson, 2014; Olenik-Shemesh et al., 2012).

In this between, as mentioned before, parental mediation which is commonly considered as the most effective protection and prevention method against cyberbullying has not proved to be effective in controlling cyberbullying. Teachers and peers as other providers of care and protection are increasingly incorporated in the context of online risk protection in recent years, (Handysektor, 2017a; Medienpädagogischer For- schungsverbund, 2016).

The report from Handysektor (2017a), provided a firsthand approach to the ways that pupils tend to handle cases of cyberbullying and from whom they preferred to seek assistance in cases as such. The percentage that this report indicates are as follows: 59% turned to their parents, 40% trusted their peers to seek assistance from in the cases of cyberbullying, and 11% asked their siblings for help. In this between only 6% reported to get support from their teachers or the police and 4% would have tried to deal with it on their own. Counseling centers, relatives and other care providers are mentioned in this report and in this regard by only one percent each (Figure 3).

Figure 3. I Got Help/Would Get Help from …(Feierabend et al. (2016). JIM-Studie 2016)

Boys and girls seek assistance to handle cyberbullying differently. Girls are more likely to turn to parents, peers, and siblings than boys. Boys, on the other hand, prefer to turn more to teachers or the police than girls do. At the same time, the proportion of those who would not take any help is higher among the boys.

From whom the young people sought help also seemed to be an age-dependent factor. The pupils aged 12 to 13 years clearly focus on the parents with 74 percent, only just about one in three would have turned to the peers. Among older adolescents, this relationship has then reversed, where only 46 percent sought support from the parents and one in two (49%) would entrust themselves to their circle of friends.

Likewise, the attention to the role of teachers as figures of protection and prevention of cyberbullying has been relatively minimal on a global scale (Blackwell et al., 2014; Lee & Thomas, 2011; Nijs & Leman, 2014). Likewise, the approach toward the mediation of parents, teachers, and peers in online child protection varies across countries, and therefore, the effects of these individuals as mitigating agents might differ based on the pupils’ cultural background (Edwards et al., 2006, 23-51).

Obviously, the lack of a unified and systematic method of providing care and approaching this phenomenon of cyberbullying, and leaving it to the pupils to find their way around it, adds to the ambiguity of this issue considering the fact that their gender, age, and cultural demographics would also shift their approaches to the problem. This thesis by no means claims that any method of approaching cyberbullying should be facilitated over the others, however; it does claim that taking on one unified approach can help with further and faster investigation and development of that method and thus a more effective way of controlling this phenomenon.

Alongside many other related studies and reports that this study could access all around the world, this thesis has taken on reviewing and investigating the German research and studies as well to investigate in the field of online media and child protection. However, this study is neither claiming to have been entirely based on German studies in the field nor is it focusing on any specific German region or Bundesland for collect- ing its related data. Nonetheless, I do intend to contribute to the local and global knowledge by the achievements of this thesis.

Studying cyberbullying, a globally common digital media threat, demands a revision of other European and global studies in the field. This approach is also approved by Medien Daten Südwest (2017), under the topic of Federal and European cooperation of the Landeszentrale für Medien und Kommunikation (LMK), which states: to effectively promote media competences, cooperation is essential beyond national boundaries. The LMK, therefore, cooperates with various media institutions and companies across borders to provide a safer online experience for the children and young adults (Medien Daten Südwest, 2017).

1.6.2 Related Studies and Practices in Germany: The reports and studies conducted through the LMK or its affiliates such as Me- dienpädagogische Forschungsverbund Südwest (mpfs), provided this study with unique and independent basic data on the media circulation of children and adolescents in Germany since 1998. The studies of the mpfs serve as a discussion point and a working basis for media education, politics and educational institutions for all who live and work with pupils and young people (Medien Daten Südwest, 2017).

In order to draw attention to the dangers of online and mobile media, the mpfs is concerned with different executive and research studies that this thesis has also taken into consideration. The major studies that the mpfs is involved in are four bodies of study, namely, “Jugend, Information und (Multi-) Media” (JIM study),” Kindheit, Internet, Medien” (KIM study), “Kleinkinder und Medien” (miniKIM), and “Familie, Inter- aktion und Medien” (FIM study). At the same time, the mpfs is involved in a joint project with Landesanstalt für Medien NRW (LfM), which is called “Handysektor.de” project (Medien Daten Südwest, 2017).

The goal of the project “Handysektor.de” is to provide security in mobile networks, with an ad-free web site that provides information about hidden costs, customer rights and health risks that can arise in mobile networks (Handysektor, 2017a). This online source of service and protection introduces itself as a mobile phone sector and an independent point of contact for the digital concerns which provides tips and information not only around smartphones but tablets and apps as well. It is, in fact, a useful platform if children know about it, and they feel fine bringing their digital media-related concerns to the attention of experts that make themselves available through such platforms. So, the first step in making such platforms reach their full potential in terms of providing services is to be effectively introduced to their target audience. They also need to provide as many approaches as they can to break the ice between them and their audience which will then count on them as a point of reference in case of a threat.

Was tun bei Cyber(Mobbing)? Intervention und Nachsorge by Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Kinder- und Jugendschutz is another initiative and research program under klicksafe.de and LfM. Was tun bei Cyber (Mobbing)? is an example of systematic intervention in German schools concerning cyberbullying. One of the most significant attempts of this initiative is putting schools at the center of its attention to curb and control the negative effects of cyberbullying. Was tun bei Cyber (Mobbing)? always regards cyberbullying as a group-dynamic process that can only be understood with a systemic perspective that captures more than the relationship between perpetrators and victims. It regards cyberbullying and cybermobbing as a complex conflict that many actors contribute to its creation and maintenance. Thus, only a systemic intervention, which involves the whole group, their communication structures, their network of relationships and their framework of values and ethics, can

bring about a sustainable solution.5 In this approach the main aim of the intervention is logically not the identification and punishment of the perpetrators, but

➢ the de-escalation of the conflict,

➢ re-actualizing the formal pro-social framework of values and norms in the minds of pupils such as empathy, and

➢ the establishment of a peer-related helper system in order to have a lasting effect in the subsequent follow-up.

Specifically, this means empowering compassion and pro-social behavior, stopping the bullying and securing a sustainable pro-social climate in the environment with the long-term commitment of the class leader, class and special classmates who were chosen as helpers.

This systematic approach also explains why addressing cyberbullying in schools and especially by school authorities seems to have far better-controlling results than any other method. Their proof of claim lies in the nature of cyberbullying. Bullying pref- erably emerges in groups where compulsory behavior such as compulsory attendance, compulsory team activities and compulsory interactions are inevitable. An example of compulsory contexts can be compulsory education context. Consequently, if the compulsory nature of school education gives way to cyberbullying, it makes sense to seek methods of tackling this phenomenon where it originates. However, the systematic approach does not explain how the educators should approach the pupils in order to improve the mutual trust between the educator and the pupil so that the pupils would contact them, instead of any other point of contact, once cyberbullying happens nor does it explain the qualities that the educators must have to appear more approachable and knowledgeable, particularly for pupils’ digital concerns such as cyberbullying.

Was tun bei (Cyber)Mobbing? also regards bullying as a phenomenon that is happening not only in direct personal contact in class, but in the schoolyard, on the way to school or in the sports field as well. This initiative regards cyberbullying as an event that can happen in parallel with all Internet, social media and telecommunication

5 In line with the aforementioned academic and research facilities there are other German institutes such as Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung that are also focusing on and publishing related books, platforms and studies such as “No blame approach-Mobbing-Intervention in der Schule”, “Berliner Anti- Mobbing-Fibel”, http://www.schueler-mobbing.de/, http://www.juuuport.de however due to the time frame of this study not all such studies could be looked through.

activities of the pupils. Likewise, there would be no more physical bullying without cybervictimization into it. Cyberbullying makes bullying even more effective and even more appalling for the victims. The findings of this initiative narrow down on the fact that cyberbullying should be the occasion for everyone, especially educators, to pause, take a close look and act more consciously to control it to the best of their abilities.

“Safer Internet Program” is also an initiative of the EU since 1999, which focuses on combating illegal and harmful content on the Internet as well as educating pupils and adults on how to avoid possible risks. LMK coordinates the Safer Internet Center in Germany as part of the “Safer Internet Program” which includes the “klicksafe” initiative. Since 2004, LMK has been responsible for the coordination and administration of “klicksafe”. In addition to that the web site klicksafe.de promotes media competency in dealing with the Internet and digital media, the compilation of numerous man- uals on current Internet topics such as cyberbullying, data protection, and pornography as part of the permanent work area of this web site.

However, despite all these measures, according to the JIM study (2016), 34% of Ger- man pupils aged 12-19 report knowing at least one cyberbullying victim in the circle of their acquaintances. This rate was 37% among girls and 31% among boys, and it seems to swell as the pupils grow older (12-13 years: 26%, 14-15 years: 30%, 16-17 years: 39%, 18-19 years: 39%). In JIM 2017 there was an interesting piece of information provided in the same context that further highlights the importance of studying cyberbullying and trying to come up with methods of controlling this phenomenon more effectively.

Based on the reports of this study, once the pupils are asked directly whether they have ever been victims of cyberbullying, 8% of all pupils under this survey answer yes.6 This figure in the magnitude of about 500,000 pupils in Germany alone would mean approximately 40,000 pupils are either suffering from cyberbullying or have at some point in their lives suffered from it, which is very alarming (Feierabend et al.,2017, Figure 4).

6 This rate was consistent in 2019 as well based on JIM Studie 2019 (Feierabend et al., 2019).

Figure 4. A Scale of Oneself Who Has Been Affected through Mobile Phone (Feiera- bend et al. (2017). JIM-Studie 2017)

In the report of JIM-Studie (2019) this figure has slightly decreased but it is still alarming. This study also reported that if the 12 to 19-year-olds are asked whether they have already noticed someone, in their circle of acquaintances, who has been bullied by a smartphone or online, 31% confirm this (2018: 34%). Girls at (35%) are more likely to have noticed this than boys (26%) and bullying is most common in the 16-17 age group (37%, 12-13 years: 20%, 14-15 years: 31%, 18-19 years: 33%). As in the previous year, eight percent have already become victims of cyberbullying themselves (Have been bullied themselves by smartphones/on the Internet). Girls (11 %) are affected more than twice as often as boys (4 %). The percentage of those affected increases with age (12-13 years: 3%, 14-15 years: 7%, 16-17 years: 9%, 18-19 years: 10%) (Feierabend et al., 2019).

One probable explanation for the growing rate of cyberbullying as the pupils grow older might be due to the increasing rate of activity on social media and digital media among pupils which can potentially increase conflicts and disagreements, and once these conflicts are not handled amicably, they would lead to cyberbullying. Another reason behind this phenomenon might be due to the fact that pupils become more socially active as they grow to become young adults. However, the fading boundaries

between online and offline activities might motivate some pupils to bring their unre- solved offline disputes to the digital society and try to resolve it through cyberbullying. A third possible reason might be due to the nature of online communication which is mostly through texting or at most recording the voice and since such activities increase the possibility of misunderstanding. Eventually, misinterpretation of a single message plus lack of proper education about such possibilities and lack of empathy and compassion can lead to more disorderly communication and therefore cyberbullying one another online.

JIM-Studie continued running research on the effect of smartphones on pupils in 2018, 2019, and 2020. This rate shows a steady increase in these years as illustrated in a comparative manner in Figure 5. (Feierabend et al.,2020).

Figure 5. A Scale of having one’s Embarrassing/Offending Photos/Videos Spread (Feierabend et al. (2020). JIM-Studie 2020)

The growing rate of cyberbullying among the pupils in the recent years might also be due to the widespread application of personal digital devices such as smartphones and tablets. This assumption, however, finds more justifiable grounds and becomes more

disturbing once we realize that the digital device of choice in 2020 has become smartphone by a considerable margin (Feierabend et al., 2020) (Figure 6).

Figure 6. A Scale of Different Means of Using the Internet (Feierabend et al. (2020). JIM-Studie 2020)

As pupils grow up so does their digital capabilities and the omnipresence of digital devices such as smartphones in pupils’ lives and the multifunctional image recording and image processing capabilities of such devices provides the ability to take multi- media images and passing them directly to third parties which can cause serious issues if these images are in any way inappropriate or they are captured or sent without consent. This application of smart devices and digital media can cause more trouble if the content of these images is offensive or they are deliberately sent to offend someone. Different futures of technology allow bullies to exclude their victims from their peer groups or, even worse, they can make groups and initiate mobbing attempts where the victim would know about this whole process once it is too late (Medienpädagogischer Forschungsverbund, 2016).

At the same time, the interactive nature of digital media and instant messaging platforms, combined with a lower threshold of inhibition for communicating derogatory

stuff that pupils would not tell each other in a face-to-face communication, can result in the escalation of bullying and mobbing process much faster. As a result, even though buzzword bullying, as it is often used by pupils, does not always mean what experts subsume under it, it remains a problem that is present among pupils and young adults. For instance, offensive or discriminatory statements that in most cases do not consti- tute as bullying are still a burden from the perspective of those affected (Medienpäda- gogischer Forschungsverbund, 2016).

The boiling tempers of pupils as they are growing up and the possibilities that social media and smart devices provide to them are one thing, but the great expectations from parents to supervise and control this complex phenomenon is a whole different thing point of concern. Such expectations sound rather unreasonable since pupils sometimes do not get enough parental supervision on their non-media related activities let alone their online activities. According to a research on German households, even at the pick of parent and child interaction, on average parents spend about four hours with their children on a working day (Behrens, & Rathgeb, 2012). While the descending rate of parental supervision can be considered as one cause of ascending rate of cyberbullying as children grow older, there seem to be other causes contributing to this issue such as lack of attachment between pupils and their school teachers in the event of cyberbullying as well as lack of Internet literacy in both parents and teachers.

Digital literacy has been highlighted in the FIM study 2011, indicating that with media education and media competence, one can take advantage of the chances that digital media has to offer while being able to confront the unfavorable event positively (Beh- rens, & Rathgeb, 2012). Other projects have focused on improving the level of digital literacy in parents, peers or schoolteachers, most specifically with regard to confronting cyberbullying 7 (Medienscouts NRW (2016): “Train-the-Trainer Programm”, “Selbstzahlermodell”, “Aufbauworkshops”). However, the missing link in this chain seems to be the focus on methods of building attachment between pupils and their

7 The Grimme Institute is another active service provider in the field of media competence. Recently they are focusing on the improvement of the theoretical and practical media competence of educators and schoolteachers by providing related events, sending experts to the schools that show interest in improving their students and teachers’ media competence and hold digital media competence workshops. The Grimme Research College at the University of Cologne has initiated an interdisciplinary discourse on “Media and Society in the Digital Age” and focuses on research and development. This initiative aims to contribute to the transfer of knowledge from research to society - and back - guided by its education-oriented founding concept. It sees itself as a mediator between science and practice.

caregivers. Presumably, once attachment building and improving the Internet literacy of the trainers happen hand in hand, pupils would choose to approach their trainers in the event of online threats. The trainers would also get the chance to provide educated guidance accordingly. The need to rely on school trainers in the event of threat is well explained under the topic of “Tipps gegen (Cyber-) Mobbing” (Tips against (cyber-) bullying, Handysektor (2017b), an initiative under LfM.

This initiative even goes further by explaining that a pupil’s intermediate teachers and liaison teachers need to be specifically trained for such events as the first point of contact so that the pupils can even go to school with their parents, should both parties need assistance (Handysektor, 2017a). It is reported that two-fifths of German pupils use a computer at school and 20% of German pupils use computers and the Internet at school, something that only school authorities can monitor. Majority of schools do not offer practical digital literacy or guidance on how to use the computer and Internet for school purposes. There is no official reference to provide pupils with education on how to structure and evaluate search engine results, the potential of the Internet as a medium for education and information, and the rules and borders for communication over the Internet (KIM-Studie 2016).

Now even if all these initiatives work perfectly in terms of upskilling teachers’ media competence, building a trusting relationship between teachers and students is hardly ever mentioned in any of these initiatives. It is given that in a case of cyberbully the pupils receive the first hits of perpetration attempts and that is when they decide whether they should ask someone for help. At this point if they decide to ask for help who could that person be? Consequently, the pupils need to feel a sense of attachment to their teachers in order to approach them with their digital media concerns. The concerning problem is that in none of these initiatives, there are not any extensive explanations on how teachers could build attachment with their students so that in the event of a threat, a pupil would regard his or her teacher as the first approachable and knowledgeable caregiver to seek help from. Building this mentality, which seems to be quite crucial in terms of linking the pupils and trainers, seems to be an attention-worthy topic. Focusing on this missing link and trying to explore new possible methods of building attachment among trainers and pupils base on concepts of attachment theory is one of the main focus points of this thesis.

1.6.3 Related Studies and Practices in Europe The present thesis also provides an overview of other European investigations in the field of online media and child protection; to fulfill this objective the focus of this study is on, but not limited to, the studies by EU Kids Online. EU Kids Online is a multinational research network seeking to enhance the knowledge of European pupils’ online opportunities, risks, and safety. It uses multiple methods to map pupils’ and parents’ experience of the Internet, in dialogue with national and European policy stakeholders (Haddon & Livingstone, 2012).

One of the most significant outputs of EU Kids Online is the figures that it provides for pupils and young adults’ exposure to different forms of risks around Europe. The other interesting data that this research organization provides is the impact rate of different child protection and risk prevention methods that are tried or surveyed in Eu- rope. According to a survey by EU kids regarding the exposure to inappropriate online content, almost half of the German pupils (48%) believe the Internet contains certain contents that can be very disturbing for pupils of their age. Similar to the European average of 15%, 16% of German 11-16-year-olds report that they have already received messages with sexual content (‘sexting’); 2% have even sent such messages.

In this case, parents underestimate the frequency of this risk while only 6% of the parents believe that their child has received sexual messages. These figures become rather critical once we learn that 38% of all German pupils have had online contact with people they did not know personally and 11% have also met such online contacts in person while only 7% of the parents believe that their children have engaged in such experiences. Both values for online communication with strangers and meeting them later are slightly higher in Germany compared to the European average (Haddon & Livingstone, 2012).

Studies show parents in most cases either overestimating or underestimating the online risks their children are going through. This concept is true in most places in the world and Germany is not an exception. For instance, once German parents were asked whether their children have been bullied online or had any experience on the Internet that bothered them, only 6% of German parents thought that their child has had such experiences while 8% of the children affirmed having had such experiences. This indicates that some parents have no idea their children are undergoing unwanted and

harmful experiences on the web (Haddon & Livingstone, 2012; Livingstone et al, 2015).

Haddon and Livingstone consider it very hard to underestimate parents’ role in terms of providing vital care in the protection of their children against potential online threats. However, one of the policies that they recommend for the protection of pupils against online threats is taking benefit from the education system to improve the digital literacy of pupils. The feedback by European pupils also justifies this claim while 77% of the European pupils indicate their teachers’ mediation with their online activities were positive (Haddon & Livingstone, 2012).

However, there are two missing links in these studies. The first one is that these studies do not give any clue on how to build or enhance pupils’ relationships with their school trainers for more effective collaboration between them in the case of online threats. The second thing is the lack of reference to protective measures that trainers should consider as well as methods or even the necessity of improving trainers’ digital literacy and social media competence.

1.6.4 Related Global Perspectives Despite the noteworthy studies that have been done in Europe and Germany as well as many other countries around the world and due to the wide and fast-changing landscape of the Internet, there is always the need for further research on the topic of child and youth protection against online threats. Providing the fact that Internet use and Internet security are global concerns, multinational comparative and collaborative projects that encompass the cultural and educational specifications of different nations can play an important role in safeguarding the wellbeing of pupils and young adults’ online interactions.

In line with this quest, exploring new policies and techniques and running research and evaluation on practicality and cultural specifications seems essential. In terms of global overview concerning youth protection against cyberbullying and other online media threats, studies such as that of Näsi et al. (2015), are good examples since they provide

a comparison between European countries including Germany and Non-European countries8.

According to Näsi et. al., (2015), lack of attachment to a caregiver, most specifically a parent, can increase the rate of falling victim to online crimes such as cyberbullying. Based on the same study, even though Germany by 6.3% has a lower exposure rate to cybercrime victimization compared to UK (7.4%), USA (6.3%), and Finland (6.2%), but the rates of such crimes in all these four countries are not significantly different and therefore they demand further attention.

There are studies that indicate positive effects of parental mediation on children’s online activities as well as reducing the involvement in risky online activities (Law et al., 2010). However, the effect of control and solicitation are not consistent across studies. Restrictive mediation such as actively seeking information about youngsters’ online activities through social or technological devices is perceived as intrusive and an invasion of the child’s autonomy which in turn can increase adolescents’ risky behavior online (Lee, 2012; Kakihara et al., 2010; Kerr et al., 2010; Law et al., 2010; Stattin & Kerr, 2000).

Eventually, it can be said that a great majority of the research done on the topic of online media and youth protection has focused on identifying methods that might reduce the negative consequences of cybervictimization. Among these methods, parental mediation in adolescents’ engagement with digital technology is by far among the most prominent methods in reducing the risk of cybervictimization against pupils and young adults. The attention focused on other protection and prevention agents such as teachers and peers and their influence on adolescents’ cybervictimization is less than that of parental mediation (Wright, 2015).

Nonetheless, once scientists do pay attention to teachers as potential agents in mitiga- tion of online risks, the missing links that earlier on were referred to seem to fail at- tracting enough attention. These missing links that the present thesis focuses on them, are clues on building or enhancing child-teacher attachment for more effective

8 For the purpose of this study a combined four-country sample (Finland, US, Germany and UK; n = 3,506) is constructed from participants aged between 15 and 30 years. According to the findings, online crime such as slander and threat of violence were the most common forms of victimization and sexual harassment the least common. Male gender, younger age, immigrant background, urban resi- dence, not living with parents, and less active offline social life were significant predictors for cybercrime victimization.

collaboration between them in the case of online threats and lack of reference on protective measures, tackling methods and the need for digital literacy on the trainers’ side. These two issues and further investigations on methods of implementation are the major concerns of this thesis.

Therefore, this thesis has focused its attention on this missing link and tries to explore new possible methods of building attachment among trainers and pupils base on concepts of attachment theory. I are also looking into practical methods to further improve trainers’ digital literacy so that they could provide more educated advice to their pupils in circumstances related to cyberbullying. At the same time, through the integration of Attachment Theory and Protection Motivation Theory, this thesis is making the attempt to improve the perception of self-efficacy in pupils and response efficacy from the teacher’s side to gain the ability to face online threats through the support that they receive from their trainers.

1.7 Statement of Problem As mentioned before cyberbullying, or cybermobbing as it is better known in Germany, is one of the most prominent Internet threats that has become even more prevalent in recent years due to the proliferation of Social Networking Sites (SNS) and Instant Messaging (IM) platforms. Digital natives and digital immigrants use such platforms not only for their formal and informal communication but also for most of their social interactions. In the virtual world of the Internet, concepts such as bullying have mostly lost their conventional meaning. Online bullying is no longer about a stronger person picking on a weaker person. The Internet and social media have turned bullying into a 24/7 online problem, capable of victimizing different people around the world.

This new form of bullying is growing at a significant rate due to the increasing expan- sion of social media, chat rooms, Instant Messaging, emails, blogging, and web-based interaction and communication. Pupils, young adults, and even adults who use social networks have either become victims of cyberbullying themselves or know cases among their friends or family who have had firsthand experience with it, and therefore they have to bear the damage done by cyberbullying (Cassidy et al., 2013).

While the great benefits of digital media including the social interaction that is going on in social media and the educational, informative and social properties of the Internet shall not be forgotten, it is important to know that the rise of digital media and online

communication is functioning like a two-edged blade. It provides our world of social interaction with magnificent opportunities, but it has its devastating risks as well. For many youths and adults, turning on digital devices and going online are the first and the last things to do in their daily routine. There is no doubt that the increasing application and dependence on the Internet and social media provides an abundance of benefits and opportunities for digital natives but on the other hand, it should not be taken for granted since this trend is not risk-free either. Increasing exposure to the Internet means increasing exposure to the risks that are associated with it (Benrazavi et al., 2015). Thus, studying and investigating such risks, demands increasing attention from scientists and academicians alike while such felonies are varied, unknown and fast- changing.

The studies that are focusing on similar issues further prove the necessity of significant investigation in the field of social media and risk. Based on a study by the EU Kids Online network (2011), among 25,142 European pupils aged 9-16, an average of 6% fall victim to cyberbullying at least once a year (Livingstone et al., 2011). High levels of personal and/or mobile Internet access in some countries produce new challenges for safeguarding. In Norway, the UK, and Germany, smartphone access is high. In Greece, Bulgaria, Cyprus, and Austria, access via ordinary mobiles is high and, in comparison to the European average (34%), the pupils in some countries enjoy a far greater rate of Internet use through their smartphones e.g. Germany where a relatively large proportion of pupils (56%), access the Internet via mobile phones and smartphones. Now even though accessing the Internet via one’s smartphone is not harmful in nature, it can increase the probability of the risks and make the act of child protection and prevention of cyberbullying way harder as pointed out (Haddon & Liv- ingstone, 2012).

Likewise, the emergence of various Social Networking Sites (SNS) and the provision of novel communication platforms for the Digital Natives where they can possibly satisfy most of their social needs have added to the complication of digital threats such as cyberbullying. The increasing number of SNS applicants and the decreasing age of those engaging in online interaction have instigated a need to scrutinize all possible impacts of SNS-based communication on the pupils. It is needless to mention that the impact of online interaction and SNS communication is positive to a great extent,

however, there are also unfavorable impacts that have rightfully gained the attention of experts in the field of media studies and online communication (Wartberg et. al., 2015).

Privacy and a less mindful approach of pupils and the youth to it, plus communication on SNS which can involve nearly all aspects of one’s life, have provided a new platform for bullies to find, pick on and harm more victims. Studies over this issue show that slightly more than half of the German pupils (51%) aged 9-16 have set up at least one profile on a social networking site while 22% of them make their profiles publicly available and 12% revealed personal information such as an address or telephone number on their online social network sites (Haddon & Livingstone, 2012).

The substantial role of the Internet and computer use in pupils’ everyday life and its gender-related impacts is also a noteworthy topic. Based on a German study by Fei- erabend et al. (2013), 95% of households (with 6 to 13-year-old pupils) have at least one computer or laptop while 21% of pupils have their own devices (Feierabend et al., 2013). Boys (23%) more often have their own computers than girls (19%). About three-quarters of pupils use a computer (though not all do so very often). In the same study, the rate of German pupils who are registered in a social network is reported to reach 44% in 2012 with Facebook taking the first place (55%), followed by Schülerver- zeichnis (schülerVZ)9 (46%), a platform especially conceptualized for pupils (it ceased in 2013). Exposure to inappropriate online content is regarded as another example of Internet-related risk. While German pupils experienced sexual content, as only one form of inappropriate online content, relatively rarely at 36% of the sample population in the same study, in most cases the subjects reported having felt fairly upset when they did encounter such online content at a rate that is slightly above the European average (34%).

Protection and prevention are the first topics that come to mind after all this information regarding the risks that the Internet and social media can have for the pupils and young adults. So far, parental mediation is greatly taken as a remedy to all

9 schülerVZ (short for Schülerverzeichnis or pupils’ directory) was an online community for pupils and students and in addition to studiVZ and meinVZ a project of the VZ networks. This social media was based in Berlin, Germany, and founded in February 2007 as the second of the three VZ networks. On April 8, 2013 schülerVZ announced its shutdown as of April 30, 2013, in a message, to all users. The users were thus given time to save their data. According to the VZ networks, the reason for the closure was the migration of many users to competitors like Facebook or Twitter. SchülerVZ was suspended on May 1, 2013 (Reißmann, 2013).

unexpected or negative consequences of online communication by scientists and experts in the field. The obvious reason for this matter could be the clear attachment between pupils and their parents. On the contrary, parents’ overestimation or underestimation of the online threats provides little effective protection or preventive measures against online threats (Haddon & Livingstone, 2012; Livingstone et al., 2015). At the same time, parental mediation can have negative effects on the parent-child relationship. Parents can overestimate the online threats and trying to prevent them through skepticism, by using software programs and other means of restriction which can lead to breaching pupils’ autonomy in digital use and therefore undermine the good relationship between the parents and their children.

As mentioned before, research projects such as the Medienscouts NRW project under Landesanstalt für Medien NRW in Germany have investigated how to empower schoolteachers and peers to help other pupils or schoolmates who are undergoing online difficulties such as cyberbullying. However, the school trainers have proved to have a more effective role in regulating the proper application of the Internet among their pupils. It is also pointed out by the pupils that their teachers can play a more effective role in mediating their Internet use either by helping in difficult situations or with online difficulties. School teachers, in this case, explained the consequence of different online activities or provided suggestions on alternative ways of how to use the Internet safely. In other cases, talking about online activities or making rules for Internet use in school were also considered by the school faculty to regulate pupils’ online activities (Haddon & Livingstone, 2012).

As a result, the present thesis has turned its attention to school faculties and teachers who mean to improve their media competence and their efficiency to tackle risks of online media and protect their pupils. The reason for this selection is due to the higher level of practicality in increasing schoolteachers’ level of digital literacy and digital competence through training them to detect the occurrence of issues such as cyberbullying among their pupils and protect them against unwanted consequences. Another reason behind this selection has been schoolteachers’ closer and longer contact with the pupils as well as their education records compared to the parents, while they can better detect a sudden drop of performance and change of behavior among the pupils and find out if this is caused by cyberbullying or not.

One more reason that this thesis regards schoolteachers to be more effective protection providers against cyberbullying is that often both abusive and victimized pupils come from distressed families where parents hardly play any protective role in their lives. In such cases, teachers or school faculties can view pupils who are experiencing family difficulties (whether temporarily or overtime) as particularly vulnerable cases to online threats and take proper actions to protect them (Whittle, 2014).

In order to identify pupils’ online risk patterns and suggest the best course of action to protect them against cyberbullying, this thesis applies an integrated Protection Moti- vation Theory and Attachment Theory10 to:

1) examine the possibility of building attachment between the pupils and schoolteachers to prevent cyberbullying among them,

2) highlight the importance of improving digital literacy and social media competence among schoolteachers to comprehend and prevent potential cyberbullying against pupils,

3) define possible protective policies that schoolteachers can take into account to detect and protect cyberbullying victims and perpetrators among their pupils and young adults under their care.

As a result, I mean to formulate practical policies to improve school trainers’ digital literacy and to find contextually and culturally viable protection and prevention methods against cyberbullying while motivating the establishment of attachment between schoolteachers and their pupils, aiming at mitigating online risks.

1.8 Objectives The central aim of this thesis is to find a way to further control the phenomenon of cyberbullying among pupils. This thesis aims to provide strategies for the school teachers to improve their level of digital literacy and media competence and build more effective attachment with their pupils so that they can detect both cyberbullying perpetrators and cyberbullying victims and help them out of the vicious cycle of cyberbullying. This thesis will also draft strategies to help schoolteachers to educate their

10 The motivation behind using these two theories and their relevance to this study is explained in the second chapter in the section dedicated to the justification of theories.

pupils on the necessary protection and prevention skills so that the pupils can, in turn, gain enough knowledge and confidence to help both themselves and other peers in similar cases.

To achieve the general objectives that are mentioned above, I need to gain confirmation on the following specific objectives based on the past researches and studies.

1. To investigate schoolteachers’ possibility of proximity maintenance with their pupils 2. To investigate the impact of teachers’ proximity maintenance on pupils’ self-efficacy 3. To investigate the impact of teachers’ proximity maintenance on response efficacy 4. To investigate schoolteachers’ possibility of standing as a safe haven for their pupils 5. To investigate the impact of teachers’ stand as a safe haven on pupils’ self-efficacy 6. To investigate the impact of teachers’ stand as a safe haven on response efficacy 7. To investigate schoolteachers’ possibility of standing as a secure base for their pupils 8. To investigate the impact of teachers’ stand as a secure base on pupils’ self-efficacy 9. To investigate the impact of teachers’ stand as a secure base on response efficacy 10. To investigate the possibility of improving schoolteachers’ digital literacy 11. To investigate the impact of teachers’ digital literacy on pupils’ self-efficacy 12. To investigate the impact of teachers’ digital literacy on response efficacy 13. To investigate the impact of pupils’ perceived self-efficacy on handling cyberbullying 14. To investigate the impact of response efficacy on pupils’ ability to handle cyberbullying 15. To investigate the teachers’ best course of action in defeating cyberbullying

1.9 Theories 1.9.1 Protection Motivation Theory Application of Protection Motivation Theory (PMT), one of the fundamental theories of this thesis, provides a better understanding on the severity and probability of online threats as well as the capacity of teachers and pupils in applying protection measures against online threats such as cyberbullying. The concepts of Protection Motivation Theory offer a systematic policy for the execution of protection and prevention measures against online risks and most specifically cyberbullying. At the same time, Theory of Attachment, the other theoretical foundation of this thesis, sheds light on the characteristics of a trusted caregiver who can play a significant role in enabling a child, a young adult or, in the case of this thesis, pupils to build a better understanding

of the cyberbullying process and to deal with this phenomenon in a more effective manner.

These theories are mostly regarded as psychological and behavioral theories that have been long used to explain and control IT and computer-related behaviors of human beings (Pechmann et al., 2003; Bada et al., 2019; Dang-Pham, & Pittayachawan, 2015). PMT is a model that explains why people engage in harmful practices and offers suggestions for changing those behaviors. It is an educational and motivational theory. The primary prevention practice of this theory lies in its measurements to combat the risk of falling into a dangerous situation where one can hardly control its consequences (Daniel et al., 2014).

To explain the applicability of PMT when addressing cases of cyberbullying victimization, one can refer to the study by Doane et al. (2012), which demonstrates the PMT- based model accounts for a substantial proportion of the variability in cyberbullying victimization. Thus, there are several behaviors that one can engage through online activities or while using a smartphone that can enhance or increase a person’s risk of falling victim to cyberbullying. Notably, these factors are predicted through PMT by appraisals such as threat and coping appraisals which are promising targets for interventions designed to decrease the incidence of cyberbullying victimization. (Doane et al., 2012)

Chen, Beaudoin, and Hong applied protection motivation theory and social capital theory, to investigate factors that determine teens’ online privacy concerns, online privacy protection behaviors, and subsequent online information disclosure on social network sites. Their study revealed that teens’ online privacy concerns were primarily influenced by caregivers’ interpersonal trust and concerns about teens’ online privacy, whereas teen privacy protection behaviors were primarily predicted by teens’ cost- benefit appraisal of online interactions (Chen et al., 2016). In turn, teens’ online privacy concerns predicted increased privacy protection behaviors and lower teen information disclosure. Finally, restrictive and instructive parental mediation exerted differential influences on teens’ privacy protection behaviors and online information disclosure.

Another study by Marett et al. (2011), also takes advantage of the Protection Motiva- tion Theory in order to address cybervictimization among pupils. They indicate that

some people, particularly females, do take information about online threats seriously and are at least willing to consider adaptive behavioral responses or the advice that may come from a trusted caregiver to protect themselves (Marett et al., 2011). This result is encouraging, as women are more likely to be targeted by online predators, but men tend to be rather careless about taking such responses seriously if they view themselves to be immune from being victimized.11

Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) was originally created to help clarifying fear appeals. PMT proposes that one protects himself or herself, based on four factors: 1) the perceived severity of a threatening event; 2) the perceived susceptibility or probability of the occurrence, or vulnerability; 3) the efficacy of the response or recommended preventive behavior, and 4) the perceived self-efficacy or one’s perception of how efficiently the target can use the recommended measures to protect himself or herself against the prevalent threat (Rogers, 1975). Protection motivation stems from both the threat appraisal and the coping appraisal. The threat appraisal assesses the probability of the situation and examines how serious the situation is. The coping appraisal defines how one responds to the situation (Figure 7).

SOURCES OF IN- COPING FORMATION COGNITIVE MEDIATING PROCESSES MODES

Factors Affecting Response Probability ACTION OR

Increasing Decreasing INHIBI- ENVIRONMENTAL TION OF Maladaptive ACTION Severity Threat Verbal Persuasion Response Intrinsic Rewards Vulnerability Appraisal Extrinsic Rewards Single Act Observational Learning Reloaded Fear-Appraisal Protection Acts

Motivation INTRAPERSONAL Adaptive Response Multiple Personality Varia- Acts bles Response Efficacy Response Coping Ap- Self-Efficacy Cost praisal Repeated Prior Experience Multiple Acts

. Figure 7. Protection Motivation Theory (Adapted from Rogers, 1983)

11 These are just a few examples to showcase the prevalence and application of Protection Motivation Theory in the context of cybervictimization and child protection.

Protection Motivation Theory12 was initiated to explain the reason why people in a target group refuse to take on recommendations that can potentially help them out of a serious difficulty such as an epidemic disease or why they would put themselves in trouble while they have been clearly instructed against it. After much speculation, R.W. Rogers in 1975 (and later other scholars such as Monat, A., and Lazarus, R. S. in 1991, 99–109) devised the Protection Motivation Theory that could explain this human be- havior13. This theory comprises of three main sections that are sources of information, cognitive mediating processes, and coping modes.

Under sources of information, the scholars focus on the sources that help people or the target group gain the knowledge to handle the issue at hand. Some people tend to gain related information from experts in the field but, unfortunately, this is not always the case. People educate themselves about any issue that concerns them through a series of information that they gain from their environment: this Environmental Information comprises of a series of persuasion that they receive from media or people around them which establish Verbal Persuasion and their personal achievements through Observa- tional Learning. There are also pieces of information that they deduct and put together through the interpersonal interactions they have with one another in their society which establishes their Interpersonal Information and that shall be broken down to the perceptions that they make from the information based on their Personality Variables and Prior Experience.

Once a particular person comes in contact with a challenging phenomenon in his or her environment, he or she tends to comprehend it by all sources of information that he or she already has as well as the sources of information that he or she can further gain access to. Here is the place where the cognitive mediating process initiates. At

12 PMT is an educational and motivational theory to prevent a threat and its primary prevention practices lie in its measurements to combat the risk of falling into a dangerous situation that one can hardly control its consequences (Daniel, Enoma, & Omobude-Idiado, 2014). 13 Protection motivation theory was founded by R.W. Rogers in 1975 in order to better understand fear appeals and how people cope with them (Rogers,1975). However, Dr. Rogers would later expand on the theory in 1983 where he extended the theory to a more general theory of persuasive communication. The theory was originally based on the work of Richard Lazarus who spent much of his time researching how people behave and cope during stressful situations. In his book, Stress, Appraisal, and Coping, Richard Lazarus discusses the idea of the cognitive appraisal processes and how they relate to coping with stress. He states that people “differ in their sensitivity and vulnerability to certain types of events, as well as in their interpretations and reactions” (Monat, & Lazarus, 1991). While Richard Lazarus came up with many of the fundamental ideas used in the protection motivation theory, Rogers was the first to apply the terminology when discussing fear appeals. Today the protection motivation theory is mainly used when discussing health issues and how people react when diagnosed with health-related illnesses.

this phase, the subject is falling in a crossroad of choosing between Maladaptation and Adaptation processes until the person concludes whether he or she must choose to adapt to the given procedure (Adaptation), or he or she can still ignore it and work around the issue unharmed (Maladaptation).

It is clear that every person in a sound mind would rather escape the challenging situation that he or she has fallen in or is likely to fall in, in order to return to his or her normal life. However, the question is which procedure is the one that he or she must consider and which procedure must be ignored; however, ignoring all suggested strategies and going on with one’s life believing that he or she can get through the situation without being obliged to take any of the suggested measures would also seem like a probable strategy to deal with a challenge.

At the cognitive mediating stage, the subject might conclude not to adapt to the suggested strategy and therefore follow the maladaptive strategy based on his or her present level of information. This conclusion happens after considering the level of probability for either relenting to the challenge or being able to work around the challenge. This conclusion is made based on the evaluation of one’s susceptibility or vulnerability to the threat as well as the severity of the consequences. If the subject considers a low probability of falling in trouble or having to deal with the challenge and therefore a low rate of susceptibility, then he or she might simply ignore the challenge and all the suggested solutions. The other element that has a significant role in selecting to ignore the challenge at hand and therefore not to adapt to it is the perceived severity of the challenge.

Perceived severity is all about how severe the consequences of the difficulty are regarded to be. By that, if the target concludes that the challenge at hand is not that much of a serious issue after all even if he or she has to face it and he or she can work it out with no serious damages caused, then he or she might stick to the maladaptive strategy that he or she had selected. However, if the subject finds the consequences of the challenge quite destructive, even a mild percentage of the risk of relenting to the challenge would motivate him or her to consider an adaptive strategy should he or she have to face the issue.

The selection of the adaptive strategy happens once, in the cognitive process, our target person concludes that the probability of having to face the problem is high and/or the

severity of the consequences are quite destructive or perhaps unbearable. In this case he or she chooses to adapt to the situation by selecting an adaptive strategy. At this point, the question is what strategy is going to be taken from the pool of available strategies and what are the specifications of the strategy that can often win the approval of the subjects. The two specifications that often help a strategy to win the approval of the subjects, as mentioned in the framework of the PMT, are, firstly, the trustworthi- ness of the recommender (Response Efficacy), and, secondly, the subjects’ belief on their capacity to undertake the suggested response and reach the presumed outcomes (Self-efficacy)14.

Consequently, since the final results of a recommended strategy would not be met until it is applied by the subjects, the experts in the field while focusing on finding a solution for the matter at hand should also focus on building adaptive strategies. To do so, they should focus on familiarizing the subjects with the experts and the experts’ knowledge in the field to win their trust as well as build confidence in the subjects over their capacities to follow the necessary instructions to help themselves and others out of the challenge that is upon them.

The third stage of PMT is coping moods (Figure 7). This stage indicates that the implementation of a successful protective strategy can take different forms such as Single Act, Reloaded Acts, Multiple Acts, or Repeated Multiple Acts. This means that a selected strategy can have different implementation methods. For instance, in the case of one disease, receiving a single shot of a vaccine can put an end to the whole challenge, but in the case of different diseases, multiple shots are needed to provide the necessary results. In the case of this thesis, the subjects are the pupils and the challenge at hand is cyberbullying. The sources of information about cyberbullying vary from the pupils’ personal assumptions to what they might have read about it or heard from media or peers. In any case, it is presumably the responsibility of the experts in the field who are deemed to be the trained schoolteachers to give more thorough information to the pupils about cyberbullying and guide to take the adaptive strategy of PMT. This happens with the education that pupils would receive about the good level of probability of

14 Efficacy is the individual’s expectancy that carrying out responses which come from the experts in the field can in fact remove the threat. Self-efficacy is the belief in one’s own ability to execute the recommended courses of action successfully, and response efficacy is the belief on efficiency of the response to prevent and provide protection against the alleged threat (Rogers, 1983).

facing cyberbullying as well as the challenging consequences of cyberbullying. The consequences of cyberbullying for victims and perpetrators can range from lower school performance to avoiding group activities, as well as psychological issues that are mentioned before. The schoolteachers are meant to improve the pupils’ regards on their expert knowledge by maintaining proximity and providing constant education in the field (Response Efficacy) while improving pupils’ confidence in themselves to help protect themselves and their peers if they follow the instructions accordingly (Self-efficacy).

1.9.2 Attachment Theory In practice, it does not seem very likely for the pupils to consider paying attention or following the protective and preventive instructions that they receive from any source of information, be that schoolteachers or parents if, in fact, they feel no levels of attachment to the source of information. In other words, the element of trust plays such a crucial role in conveying the necessary instructions to the subject, and without this, no effort can initiate the protection process. That is where Attachment Theory comes in.

To execute a better level of protection for the pupils, a base should be provided for them to build a more meaningful attachment with their caregivers. The most important essence of Attachment Theory is that pupils need to develop a relationship with at least one primary caregiver to experience successful social and emotional development. Parents, peers, and schoolteachers are likely to become principal attachment figures if they replicate and follow the attachment factors and related social interaction (Holmes, 1993).

Attachment theory provides an understanding of the connection between the quality of a pupil’s relationship with parents, peers or teachers as well as the relationship quality with all of those across the lifespan. Bowlby (1982) proposed four distinctive characteristics of the attachment theory: (a) Proximity Maintenance, (b) Safe Haven, (c) Se- cure Base, and (d) Separation Distress (Figure 8).

Characteristics of Reaction of the Subject Attachment Provider

Proximity Maintenance

Safe Haven Perception of Safety and Security Secure Base

Separation Distress

Figure 8. Conceptual Framework of Attachment Theory (Adapted from Hazan, & Shaver, 1994).

In this theory, Proximity Maintenance is a mutual desire between the caregiver and the subject of attachment where they try to stay as much in contact with one another as possible. In the case of pupils and teachers, it is logical to think that this relation might not start as a mutual desire, but it shall be initiated by the teachers and, as time goes by and the need for the particular care that is provided by the media competent teachers is felt by the pupils, the latter might also get engaged and make this relation as mutual as it can go among a teacher and a pupil.

Safe Haven is one of the key qualities of an attachment figure which gives a sense of safety and security to the subject of attention so that he or she would know this is the person he or she can return to whenever fear is nearby. By providing the necessary information about how one can stay safe during digital interactions and trying to make the information as case sensitive as he or she can apply it to his or her target group, a teacher can exhibit the position of a Safe Haven and the pupils would get in touch with him or her to better cope with their digital interactions should they feel the need for it.

Secure Base is a quality that occurs by providing canceling effects on the threats that are already effective. In the case of an actual threat, trying to scare away or cancel the source of threat can bring about this quality for the caregiver but in the case of cyberbullying, this is not as simple and straightforward. There are needs for specific upskilling of digital media literacy and competence in this field to provide the practical support for the pupils in the case of cyberbullying threats, and then only a teacher can function as a secure base in the case of pupils’ digital activities. Likewise, once the attachment figure serves as a digital security advisor and a secure base in the field, this

allows pupils to explore their digital environment more securely and productively. In this thesis, I will explore the possibility of whether an educator or a schoolteacher as a caregiver and an attachment figure can help a pupil cope with cyberbullying and if that is the case, what are the specific elements of training that the teacher should receive to improve his or her efficiency in the field.

Attachment Theory was developed in order to investigate infants’ attachment to dominant caregivers. Yet, through the years, it has been used to explore other areas such as adult relationships, romantic partnerships, emotional functioning (Fraley & Shaver, 2000; Mikulincer & Shaver, 2007, 411-439), and social self-efficacy (Wright & Per- rone, 2010). Further studies linked attachment with interpersonal communication and social behavior in college pupils (Kenny and Rice, 1995), and with interpersonal skills as well (Wei, et al., 2005). Likewise, this theory has been applied to explain the attachment that people build with one another through the usage of digital media.

Addressing social media sites, Trub et al. explored the relationship between Attach- ment Theory and blogging behavior (Trub et al. 2014). Other studies focused on At- tachment Theory and Facebook, e.g. Oldmeadow et al. suggested that Facebook may offer advantages for people who have high attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance (Oldmeadow et al., 2013). Nitzburg and Farber (2013) noted that anxious attachment was related to the individual’s use of social network sites in order to avoid personal face-to-face communication and that it also reflected feelings of intimacy. More- over, Yaakobi and Goldenberg (2014) reported that attachment security level predicts a person’s number of social ties and willingness to initiate web-based relationships with a decrease in avoidance scores predicting an increased willingness to deliver information to others.

The aforementioned studies confirm the applicability of Attachment Theory in the field of digital media and social media. Likewise, numerous studies have shown an insecure attachment to caregivers shall increase the rate of bullying, cyberbullying, aggressive behaviors, antisocial traits, etc. (Becerra, 2017) whereas research on middle school pupils has shown pupils who reported positive attachment to their caregivers displayed fewer cyberbullying behaviors (Burton, et al., 2013). As a result, the application of Attachment Theory in this thesis will provide a better understanding of elements which can improve pupils’ level of attachment with their caregivers and, in turn,

by empowering these elements in the context of digital media interaction, help to decrease the rate of cyberbullying perpetration.

At the same time, the application of Attachment Theory in order to build a more robust tie between pupils and their schoolteachers seems rather essential, providing that practicing the four distinct elements of the Attachment Theory in the case of parent and children is more of a natural phenomenon, but in the case of schoolteachers and pupils it is more of an acquired skill and I need to know which elements to focus on to build such relationships. In terms of basic definition in this thesis, the practice of Proximity Maintenance happens through teachers’ availability for the pupils to provide them with necessary information on protection against and prevention of cyberbullying; Safe Ha- ven happens through providing safety measures and giving a sense of comfort to pupils about their ability to prevent cyberbullying; and Secure Base occurs when the teachers serve as a base of security to cancel the threat and allow pupils to explore their environment.

1.10 Significance of this Thesis 1.10.1 Practicality As mentioned before, victims of cyberbullying are more likely to suffer from psychological issues compared to non-cyberbullying victims. Allanson et al. (2015) mention that bullying, and cyberbullying have a major contributing factor in rising the violence among American students which at points leads to school shootings across The United States. According to Meehan and Kerig (2010, 121-146), many factors should be considered as I reevaluate the issues pertaining to cyberbullying such as patterns of violence, risk factors, protective factors for the bullies and the victims, and the manner of causation (Allanson et al., 2015). Hence, it is very important to make learned attempts aiming at reducing the incident of cyberbullying which is one of the most fundamental practices intended by this thesis.

Among many practical methods of reducing cyberbullying among pupils, this thesis proposes a strategy by which schoolteachers could weigh in to provide protection and prevention measures against cyberbullying. By this method, teachers would also train the pupils so that they could face such hazards of social media more efficiently. The results presented in this thesis are meant to provide further awareness and protection

measures, through schoolteachers, for pupils against the risks that are associated with social media such as cyberbullying. This thesis is focusing on cyberbullying as the most common risks of social media; however, the results of this thesis shall be adapt- able and extended to provide prevention and protection measures against a number of other social media hazards such as cybermobbing, cyberstalking, online child grooming, passive aggression, and game addiction.

I cannot stress enough that the results of one single study shall not be applicable for providing protection against more than one threat but it is the education and training of the teachers and the pupils on the nature of different threats and the adaptability of the recommended solutions that can facilitate the possibility of extending some of the recommended policies to approaching a good number of other digital media related threats.

1.10.2 Policy Formulation This thesis takes on the related regional and international literature in the field of cyberbullying protection to identify practical policies for the schoolteachers to protect their pupils against social media risks such as cyberbullying through providing awareness and prevention techniques. In terms of policy formulation, this thesis, on the one hand, will suggest methods of improving the level of digital literacy and media competence for schoolteachers. On the other hand, I will outline practical instructions for the teachers to build more effective attachment with their pupils to gain their trust so that the teachers can provide their pupils with more effective and case-related protection instructions when needed. This thesis will also provide a list of specifications for high-risk pupils, as well as bullying victims and bullying perpetrators so that the schoolteachers can approach such pupils with all the specific care that they might need and help them out of trouble.

1.10.3 Extension of the Theories One of the major significances of this thesis is in terms of theory extension. The results of this thesis are yet another evidence to confirm the applicability of the above-mentioned theories in the context of digital media, psychology, digital threat prevention, and child protection. Likewise, the inherent confirmation of these two theories on some of the relations that are fundamental in proving the main objective of this study help

to formulate pedagogically and psychologically practical policies to prevent cyberbullying in schools.

Putting these two theories in the extension of each other not only confirms and extends their practicality but helps to have a rather practical view over the situation we are facing regarding cyberbullying in schools and to find practical methods to prevent it. The contributions of this thesis in extending the applicability of these theories become more evident when realizing that the application of these theories in the context of cyberbullying prevention has not been as common as their application in the context of education and threat prevention. Likewise, the link that can be made between media studies, media pedagogy and behavioral psychology of teachers and pupils by means of these theories enhances the interdisciplinary nature and practicality of this thesis.

In the next chapter, based on the review made over the related literature, I will point out that the application of these theories in the context of digital media is not very unheard of; however, while there are studies that have used these theories in the education and digital media-related context, the specific scope of this study will further extend the significance of Protection Motivation and Attachment Theory in the context related to the prevention of digital media threats like cyberbullying.

1.11 Definition of Variables Pupils refer to the subjects of this study who are basically those school students between 9 and 18 years of age. Having conducted this study in Germany, it takes into account the outline of the German school system given in chapter 1.5.2 regarding the pupils or students in the aforementioned age category (WENR, 2016).

Teachers from the perspective of this thesis could be either the elementary school teachers who lead a class for the entire education year or the teachers in higher levels of study who take charge for one or two special subjects at a time. However, the tasks of a caregiver as outlined by this thesis for the purpose of protecting pupils against cyberbullying can be performed by school principals as well.15

15 The discipline that has perhaps undergone the most significant changes is teacher education. Many German states have introduced bachelor’s and master’s programs that supplant the old curricula. Yet, government examinations remain in place even in these states. The degrees of Bachelor and Master

Digital native is a term initially coined by Marc Prensky in an article entitled “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants” (Prensky, 2001). It refers to pupils raised in the age of digital media and in a media-saturated world. This article postulated the arrival and rapid dissemination of digital technology in the last decade of the 20th century and how it would change the way these pupils and young adults think and process information. Prensky (2010) states that pupils and young adults have inhabited the virtual world long enough to be entitled to its entire effects and side effects.

Proximity maintenance explains the desire of a subject of attention to be near his or her caregivers. In Bowlby’s words, it is about maintaining the proximity to an attachment figure whose function is to protect the infant from danger. This variable always has its own motivations, such as protection of a child until he or she can have a better understanding of his or her surrounding environment as well as the risks and benefits that come with it (Bretherton, 1992). As a result, proximity maintenance is the most primary attachment factor to an attachment figure. By this, the attachment figure protects a newborn baby through the early phases of introduction to the new world. Later on, this child stays in close proximity to that primary caregiver(s) until he or she can look after his or her best interests in his or her living environment.

This role is often played by the parents of a child but, in the context of this thesis, the environment in question is digital media which is totally different from the actual living environment that a child is born to and, quite ironically, the child might know more about its specifications than his or her parents. In such a context proximity to one’s parents might not necessarily provide the necessary protection that a pupil needs against digital media threats such as cyberbullying and, therefore, either the parents must gain the particular training to provide the essential protection for the child, or another figure in relatively close proximity, who has to acquire such education, should be introduced to the pupils' digital activity environment to provide the required protection.

Except for the aforesaid logic, the concept of introducing a totally new attachment figure to the interaction environment of a pupil benefits from theoretical supports as well; while it is said even though pupils might initially direct proximity-promoting

of Education generally do not entitle to work as a teacher. To become licensed, degree holders must still complete a preparatory teaching service and take a final state examination.

signals fairly and indiscriminately to all caregivers16, these behaviors become increasingly focused on those primary figures who are responsive to the infant’s safekeeping and help with engaging the infant in social interaction (Schaffer & Emerson, 1964). Conclusively, once the pupil recognizes his or her schoolteacher as the primary caregiver once it comes to his or her online interactions, he or she would learn to appreciate the proximity of this person rather than his or her parents. This analogy, however, needs to be supported by the related literature in the field as well as the arguments that are made about them to be considered as a practice in this context.

Safe haven defines a quality that makes returning to the attachment figure give a sense of comfort and safety to the subject of attention. Once attached, pupils are able to use the attachment figure as a safe haven to return to for reassurance (Ainsworth, 1967, 340-350; Schaffer & Emerson, 1964). This is, in fact, a very essential and unique quality that an attachment figure shall only exhibit after gaining his or her subjects’ trust on the fact that he or she is knowledgeable and capable enough of providing safety and security for his or her subjects of attachment while keeping the threat at the distance.

It is very important to know that this quality has nothing to do with the ability to defeat or to cancel the threat. In the context of this thesis, this quality would be gained through the schoolteachers acquiring digital literacy and media competence in order to know exactly what kind of threat they are dealing with once their pupils approach them to gain comfort and advice. The schoolteachers or any attachment figure who means to exhibit this quality must also know that all the awareness features and all the education on digital media threat prevention that he or she has brought to the attention of his or her pupils are majorly meant to give him or her this quality in the eye of his or her pupils, and their improvement of self-protection only comes second.

Secure base is another attachment quality that an attachment figure must be able to execute to provide safety and security for his or her subjects of attention. Unlike safe haven, this quality is more of an executive and threat defeating ability through which a child would feel safe to go out to explore his or her living environment and, at the same time, have such a sense of assurance that if a threat emerges in his or her environment the caregiver is capable enough to cancel the threat. In line with the context

16 The concepts of Attachment Theory are very much interrelated with the notions of Developmental Psychology. However, due to the wide dimensions of this discipline, we have only approached it as far as our theoretical framework required.

of this thesis, it is mentioned by scientists who have studied this particular quality that a therapist or a caregiver other than a parent can function as a secure base by serving as a reliable, secure base from which an individual can begin the difficult task of exploring and reworking his or her interaction environment (Waters & Cummings, 2000; Bretherton, 1992).

To execute this quality in the context of providing protection for the pupils against cyberbullying, a caregiver must have the media competence and field specialty to know the specifications of the particular pupil that he or she is dealing with as well as the stage of threat that he or she is undergoing while possessing enough authority to pursue the case until he or she finds out the source(s) of cyberbullying. The importance of finding the source of threat or the cyberbullying perpetrator(s) is particularly important because in the process of cyberbullying both the victim and the perpetrator need attention; in most cases, the perpetrator suffers more severe issues which lead to the bullying perpetration and, if not attended to, he or she can potentially harm himself or herself as well as society in a more devastating manner. There are several investigation techniques that a caregiver can perform to find out the source of cyberbullying, from co-viewing the process of cyberbullying to approaching the peer groups and even asking the authorities to intervene in a rare yet critical case. However, in each particular case, the caregiver must have enough motivation and field knowledge to act properly in order to restore the safety and security of online interaction for the troubled pupils.

Separation distress is a form of anxiety that occurs in the absence of the attachment figure. Robertson, and Bowlby (1952) identified three phases of separation response: protest (related to separation anxiety), despair (related to grief and mourning), and denial or detachment (related to defense mechanisms, especially repression). Bowlby maintained that children experience separation anxiety when a situation activates both escape and attachment behavior, but an attachment figure is not available (Bretherton, 1992).

Digital literacy is specifically defined by Livingstone as “the ability to access, understand, critique, and create information and communication content online” (Living- stone, 2004, pp. 3). This definition is divided by Livingstone in four different dimensions namely Access, Analysis, Evaluation, and Content creation (Livingstone, 2004):

I. Access: Literacy is a form of knowledge which combines different forms of communication. It is about being able to access the content of the text. This encompasses knowledge about utilizing the hardware and software to gain access to the content (Livingstone, 2004; Livingstone et al., 2005). Social media, however, has its own rules; the simple act of using social media would not enable a teacher to help his or her students against threats such as cyberbullying. The type of access that I am talking about in this study should encompass the ability to understand the ground rules and regulations of those social media platforms that are mostly used by the pupils, the protection measures that the platform provides to the applicants and the type of access that the pupil has provided to the general community. There are also events in which the teachers might need to have partial access to the profile of the pupil by joining his or her friend group to follow his or her online behavioral patterns or (in a rare case) to gain control of that pupil’s social media platform for some time. II. Analysis is about the ways that people engage themselves with print, audiovisual and digital media. Throughout such engagements, people rely on a range of analytic competencies. In the case of audiovisual media these analytical competencies include an understanding of the agency, categories, technologies, languages, representations and audiences for media. The problem with digital literacy is that the internet-related analytic skills of internet users is rather underdeveloped, and the public can only make the most of online opportunities once such analytical skills are developed (Livingstone, 2004). III. Evaluation raises, difficult policy questions about specifying and legitimating appropriate bases of critical literacy which encompass Aesthetic, Political, Ideo- logical, and/or Economic aspects of media products. The scopes and purpose of evaluation tend to dispute whether media literacy intended to promote a democ- ratized, diverse, anti-elitist approach to online representations, or it is supposed to reinforce a more traditional, hierarchical discrimination of good from bad, au- thoritative from unauthorized, information and communication? (Livingstone, 2004). IV. Content Creation which is not always a criterion to define media literacy, includes the requirements to create symbolic texts. Here it needs to be argued that people achieve a deeper understanding of the qualities embedded in a

professionally produced material. Likewise, as the internet is a medium which offers unimagined opportunities for ordinary people to create online content, such producers need to take this aspect of media literacy in to close consideration.

Other scholars such as Brown, (2001, 681-697), emphasis on the context of media to gain a better grasp on media literacy which I believe it to be applicable on digital media literacy as well. Context literacy is also about being aware of the context in which content is produced. The consumer must be aware of the different factors that influence the final product. In the case of this thesis, I propose that not only consumers or pupils but more importantly, teachers and trainers should be aware of the context of social media as well as the context that the pupils live in. It is also very important to know that this context is under the positive and negative influence of the peers. The nature of the threat that a teacher is fighting against is also another determinant of the context which indicates the policies that one should adapt to cancel the threat. The following categories define the contextual aspects of media literacy from a more general point of view.

a. Production context necessitates awareness about the institutions that produce mediated messages. This is what I can call the language of digital media and the structure according to which the media content is formed. The purpose of the language is supposedly to communicate a set of messages which would first and for most satisfy the best interest of the media producers. Literacy from the viewpoint of production context is about approaching media content with a critical view, while “being aware of the forces shaping media content, including advertising, economics and government regulation and public interest groups” (Brown, 2001, 681-697).

b. Social and cultural context: the ability to identify what is shown in the media as a reflection of the values, attitudes, and points of view of the ones who produce a media product or control a media platform (Thoman & Jolls, 2004). Basically, all products of media have a producer, and every producer comes from a particular social and cultural background. Pouring one’s social and cultural background into his or her media products is a splendid act, but over- domination of that media can potentially dominate that sociocultural background on other cultures in other societies. Except for the fact that such

practices can underestimate cultural diversity, they can also undermine the socio-cultural values of the people who are less involved in media production and cause a loss of esteem and social confidence. This can, in fact, have major so- ciopolitical effects and therefore media literacy in terms of social and cultural context, might explain the reasons why we are mostly exposed to sociocultural values other than our own while highlighting our own socio-cultural backgrounds to neutralize the dominating effects of a particular social and cultural background over others.

c. Economic context refers to the awareness of the commercialization of the media (Rosenbaum, 2007, 11-25). This indicator helps us better understand who the intended audience of a media message is and, more importantly, who has financial ties with that media wing or platform. In essence, media should be free from bias but in practice, media is a profit-based business and in the absence of financial income they cease to exist. As a result, most media platforms and media wings are in the business of contributing to the best interest of a social or political system that has financial and economic ties with them. Knowing about such ties one can better interpret the message of any media platform and hence gain better media literacy. d. Political context is an item that I believe to be noteworthy as well. I could argue that this contextual specification has a significant role in shaping the media content and internet content since most of the rules and regulations that a social media platform follows are based on the laws of the country where it was initially established. For instance, Facebook was generally abiding the United States laws until 2016 when it decided to incorporate the regulations passed by the European Union for social media and digital media. As a result, it is very helpful if one tries to gain literacy over the basic rules of a social media platform before diving into it. However, if you have a general knowledge about the basic governing system of the country where that platform is established, then you realize the fundamental governing regulations of that social media are also very similar.

Digital literacy differs from other kinds of literacy because the specific skills and experiences that are associated with the Internet are different from the skills and

experiences that are associated with other forms of media such as printed or audiovisual media (Livingstone et al., 2005).

Self-efficacy is one of the determining factors of coping appraisal or the behavioral options that aim to diminish the threat. Self-efficacy is the belief in one’s ability to execute the recommended courses of action successfully (Boer & Seydel, 1996, 95- 120). It is also regarded as an individual’s belief in his or her ability to not only perform a set of behaviors but the behaviors that are necessary to produce specific performance achievements (Bandura, 1977). Self-efficacy echoes confidence in the ability to control one’s own motivation, behavior, and as a result one’s own social environment.

Here, self-efficacy is defined as a coping appraisal strategy which is meant to provide our subjects with a belief in their abilities to prevent the threat of cyberbullying and, in case of falling victim to it, to be able to minimize the consequences of this threat and eventually get rid of it by following a set of controlled behavior. Through education that the pupils shall receive from their schoolteachers, they are meant to develop a skill set to understand the type of behaviors that can motivate the threat so that they could avoid them, find out about the nature of cyberbullying, how it forms and turns into mobbing, and how it affects the victim and the perpetrator so that they would know if it happens in a setting. Once they learn about it they should know what they can do to cancel it and, if it happens to them, what they could do or who they can reach out to in order to seek help to minimize the damage caused.

It is perhaps worth mentioning that some scholars believe increasing Internet self-efficacy can make fake beliefs in one’s ability to clean his or her digital footprint which in the case of cyberbullying perpetration can even escalate the harm done. However, the instructions of this thesis are intended to improve cyberbullying prevention self- efficacy which is different from Internet self-efficacy, and it is proved that such training structures even curb the level of perpetration as the peers learn about the invisible effects of cyberbullying on the victims which otherwise would go unnoticed.

Response efficacy is yet another determining factor in this thesis which defines the individual’s expectancy that carrying out recommendations can remove the threat (Boer & Seydel, 1996, 95-120). Here, response efficacy is all about how literate the schoolteachers are in the field of digital media as well as in protection and prevention

against cyberbullying so that their pupils can trust their response as a prevention and protection measure against cyberbullying.

Response efficacy is another coping appraisal in Protection Motivation Theory, and its successful execution is mainly up to the people who take on the responsibility of being the figures of threat prevention and protection. In the case of biological disease, the response of a physiologist in the form of medical treatment shall be regarded as efficient if it helps to treat the disease as well as having responses on how to prevent the occurrence of that disease. If, however, the recommended treatment from that physiologist fails to carry out the expected outcome, people will lose their trust in him or her and the responses given, and therefore his or her response would not be regarded as an efficient response.

We deal with cyberbullying in the same manner and expect the schoolteachers who intend to take on the responsibility of becoming the protection figure against this digital media threat to gain enough training on this topic and have case-specific responses to cyberbullying that they would be able to help their pupils prevent this threat and protect themselves against having it happening to them. In this manner, the response of the related schoolteacher would gain efficacy, and he or she would have his or her pupils’ trust to help them in subsequent cases.

Cyberbullying is defined as any behavior performed through electronic media by individuals or groups of individuals that repeatedly communicate hostile or aggressive messages intended to inflict harm or discomfort on others (Tokunaga, 2010). It is also described as deliberate and repeated harm performed via mediums such as mobile phones, e-mails, Internet chats, social media and personal blogs (Patchin & Hinduja, 2006). Olthof et al. (2011), define cyberbullying as the strategic behavior of an individual to dominate another individual or a group of individuals. Cyberbullying may take various forms, such as, sending mean messages to a person’s mobile phone, e- mail or social media accounts, spreading malicious rumors or messages of sexual content about a person with the intention to hurt or humiliate someone (Olthof et. al., 2011). As a common ground, it is defined here as any action done through the Internet or digital media which is aggressive and repetitive while maintaining an imbalance of power with the intention to harm another individual.

There is, however, a slight confusion on the differences between cyberbullying and cybermobbing since in the German language these two terms are generally used as the definition of one another. A simple explanation to this matter is that cyberbullying is an act of perpetration committed by one individual against another. However, according to Elliott (2004, 4-7), mobbing is a common phenomenon in the form of group bullying at school. It is about “ganging up” on someone by spreading rumors, innuendo, isolating, attacking a victim’s reputation, threatening him or her, and above all putting it in the form of victim-blaming which is making the whole event look like it is the victim’s fault that he or she is going through this. It is worth mentioning that cyberbullying can easily turn into cybermobbing, often because not all the perpetrators know how many of them attack one person at the same time, and the effect of the perpetration activities are often invisible until it is too late.

Cyberbullying as a present and evolving phenomenon in society which is predominantly affecting pupils and young adults is in essence similar to traditional bullying. It is a hurtful behavior happening in a repetitive manner that involves power imbalance. In most cases, this behavior leads to psychosocial issues that not only affect the victims and the perpetrators’ physical and mental health as well as their school performance but also it may have severe social effects. The availability of digital platforms and smart devices such as smartphones, Internet, gaming and instant messaging platforms further contributes to the risk of falling victim to cyberbullying and cybermobbing perpetration (Williams, & Godfrey 2011). The most alarming reality about cyberbullying is that it can cause physical and mental health problems and it can be caused by similar issues; therefore, the victims of cyberbullying have the potential to carry out perpetration activities of their own.

1.12 Limitations of the Thesis Due to time limitation and lack of practicality in including the concept of Separation Distress in relationship with other variables, this variable is not included in the scope of this thesis. However, providing the fact that this factor might help the subjects to learn the importance of an efficient point of attachment and therefore look for a replacement in the event of absence or loss of the previous attachment figure, this factor stands as a noteworthy variable for further study.

More so, with regard to the possibility of conducting this study in the form of an empirical study, it is worth mentioning that a study at this scale does not seem very feasible to have been done empirically by one person and during one study period. That is basically the reason why this matter was not pointed out as an option in the section for further studies.

1.13 Assumptions This thesis assumes all pressure that most cyberbullying studies are putting on parents regarding the protection of children against cyberbullying may come to little practical results since parents are generally unaware of the nature of this phenomenon and the measures they incorporate are generally far from effective. In this study I assume that schoolteachers can act against cyberbullying threat more effectively if they receive the necessary training on how digital media works and how pupils use it as well as knowing how cyberbullying starts, how it continues, how to stop it and how to prevent it from happening as much as possible. School teachers can also raise awareness among their pupils about the ways in which cyberbullying affects the victims and perpetrators alike so that they would be assisted by the bystander students to spot and resolve any emerging cyberbullying cases among their pupils.

1.14 Summary of the Chapter In this chapter, the scientific and empirical studies that led to initiating this thesis were outlined in part as well as the ways that they addressed the objectives of this thesis. The general and specific objectives of this thesis were pinpointed. Likewise, an introduction to the theories that are utilized in this thesis and the relevance of these theories to the objectives at hand were discussed. In the section dedicated to the definition of variables, the definition of each of the key variables was clarified in the context of this thesis.

Chapter II Methodology

2.1 Introduction to Materials and Methods In this chapter, I will explain the method based on which the underlying study of this thesis was conducted. In this chapter, I have also tried to justify the theoretical bases of this study by tracing examples where Protection Motivation Theory and Attachment Theory were used in similar studies. Related German and global literature were reviewed and highlighted in this chapter in order to prove the conceptual and contextual appropriateness of utilizing these theories to explain the scopes and objectives of this study. Next, I have provided an illustration of the conceptual framework as a schematic model of the way that the variables in this study are placed in relationship with each other. The explanation of the phases in accordance with which this study was conducted is the last section of this chapter.

This thesis is done on the basis of an interpretive study. This question has been raised about why I did not do it in the form of an empirical quantitative study. The answer to this question lies in the time and practical limitations that I had to cope with while undertaking a study on as many variables and relationships as this study had: basically, to do a study at this scale in a quantitative method was not feasible and practical to be done in a single study period by a single researcher. This was also the reason why, even in the section of recommendations for further research, I did not propose an attempt to run this study in a quantitative method.

More so, in this chapter, I will explain how different sections of this study were shaped. This will enable a better understanding for other researchers who might want to follow this structure or would like to get a better grasp of it. In line with that, I have explained the way that the objectives of this study were formed, the ways I compiled the literature-based data to investigate the relationship between variables, as well as arguments and formulation of the policies.

As mentioned earlier, this study follows an interpretative method of focusing on and understanding a phenomenon in a comprehensive, holistic way and of using related literature including empirical and analytical studies as well as the outcomes of govern- mental and nongovernmental organizations in the field. The applied literature was

meant to help with a better understanding of whether or not schoolteachers can stand as effective caregivers for their pupils once it comes to online safety, and if so, how they can improve their level of efficacy. At the same time, this study meant to find out the different ways in which pupils, in the context of this thesis, could react to the feedback they received from their teachers about their online safety practices and how to improve their attention and reliance on the feedback that their teachers would give them in future.

The interpretive method allowed this study to recognize the connection between cyberbullying, as a prevalent online threat, and the ways that teachers can upscale their pupils’ potential in minimizing the negative effects of this phenomenon for themselves and other peers. All interpretive investigations in this thesis took place with no underestimation of the careful interpretation of variables, placing great effort on staying objective to the applied information and later in formulating policies.

In this regard a search for published literature was conducted through various data- bases including Academic Search Complete, Education Source, E-Journals, Psychol- ogy and Behavioral Sciences Collection, and reference lists from key studies as well as published outcomes from the German government and nongovernmental organizations such as Landeszentrale für Medien und Kommunikation (LMK), Medienpäda- gogische Forschungsverband Südwest (mpfs), JIM-Studie (Jugend, Information und (Multi-) Media), KIM-Studie (Kindheit, Internet, Medien), miniKIM (Kleinkinder und Medien), and FIM-Studie (Familie, Interaktion und Medien), as well as outcomes from Landesanstalt für Medien NRW (LfM), were also used to find information relevant to the topic at hand

Approximately 900 documents were reviewed, with over 341 being used in the final literature review. Articles included but were not limited to primarily peer-reviewed journals, with scholarly works included to provide background and support information about the topic. Since some theory related articles date back to 1944, I can say in reviewing related literature I looked at articles published between 1944 and 2020. In the process of investigation for the related literature the following keywords were searched: ‘cyberbullying’, ‘proximity maintenance’, ‘safe haven’, ‘secure base’, ‘digital literacy’, ‘self-efficacy’, ‘response efficacy’ and ‘cyberbullying in schools’, ‘teachers’ support + cyberbullying’, ‘cyberbullying + social media’, ‘cyberbullying statistics among pupils and young adults’, ‘bullying among school pupils’, and

‘cyberbullying consequences’. Several articles detailing the rise in cyberbullying among pupils and adolescents were included in the literature review for historical perspectives and for demonstrating patterns of cyberbullying behavior and cybervictimization that pupils are exposed to.

The articles applied in this study were selected among the articles focusing on the importance of teachers’ maintenance of proximity, standing as a safe haven, and standing as a secure base for their pupils. These articles were specifically reviewed to illustrate the possibility of building a trusting attachment between teachers and their pupils in order to help them in the case of cyberbullying threat. There are also articles that focus on the importance and methods of improving teacher’s digital competence. These articles refer to the benefits that the teachers could get out of improving their digital competence both in terms of improving their own career opportunities and reducing the probability of cyberbullying among their pupils.

Next, I looked into the articles that focused on the possibility of improving the coping appraisals among the pupils through the establishment of attachment between them and their teachers. The first coping appraisal in this study was self-efficacy. Concern- ing that, I investigated if the improvement of teachers’ digital competence and the establishment of attachment elements would help with the improvement of self-efficacy among pupils. In this quest, I collected and reported different viewpoints. The same process was applied to finding the relationship between teachers’ media competence, and the establishment of trusting attachment between them and their pupils on pupils’ perception of their teachers’ response efficacy.

After that I investigated the relationship between pupils’ self-efficacy in handling cases of cyberbullying as well as their perception and teachers’ response efficacy on protecting themselves against and prevention of cyberbullying perpetration. The argumentation and conclusions that are made based on the reviewed literature have led to the suggestion of methods which teachers and school authorities can use to reduce the risks of cyberbullying perpetration among their pupils. These arguments are then concluded in the fourth chapter. Based on these arguments I can formulate policies that could be used by teachers and school authorities to control cyberbullying perpetration. These policies are presented in the fifth chapter of this thesis.

Due to the unescapable and world-wide usage of social media, and the fact that it is becoming one of the most popular venues for cyberbullying besides email and instant messaging services, most of the articles and topics that were reviewed in this study encompassed social media as the medium of choice for the subjects of the study to communicate and perpetrate cyberbullying attempts. There are also statistical reports about smartphones and the ways that they are used to mediate cyberbullying perpetration. In this thesis, the literature from the German context was at the center of attention alongside other noteworthy global research findings. With regard to policy formulation, the viewpoints of an expert panel were taken into consideration to approve the validity and practicality of the formulated policies.

2.2 Location and Population With regard to the focus group, it must be mentioned that I focused on the literature around school-going pupils age 7 to 18. This particular age limit was assigned to this study due to the complexity of preschool children’s psychology and the distinct connection between pupils and lecturers in colleges. So basically, I could not expect the kindergarten teachers to venture into their trainees’ online activities because basically such activities at such early ages are deemed to be inappropriate. Likewise, the line of attachment between college lecturers and their pupils was also less vivid; therefore, they could not be urged to incorporate the policies formulated in this thesis which would have made an extraordinary extracurricular commitment. Therefore, I focused on school-attending pupils. In this age group, the pupils are naturally active online, and schoolteachers have a better possibility of building attachment with their pupils.

With regard to the location of the study and the region where the official literature and the government reports were collected, the official reports and researches that I have reviewed made the state of North-Rhine Westphalia (NRW) in Germany an ideal study location in the context of this thesis. That was the reason most official entities and research organizations that are reported in this study are either based in NRW or have close collaboration with research facilities in this state. However, I have taken advantage of official reports and academic studies from all around Germany and the world to enrich the scope of the study.

2.3 Theories and Models Through the integration of Attachment Theory and Protection Motivation Theory, this thesis intends to first and foremost find a practical way for teachers to build a reliable link of attachment with their pupils. This will help pupils to accept their teachers as a go-to person in cases of cyberbullying and accept teachers’ advice once it comes to online protection and prevention of online threats such as cyberbullying. At the same time, through the utilization of Protection Motivation Theory, I probe a way to improve response efficacy from teacher’s side to provide more educated assistance for their pupils in dealing with cases of cyberbullying and improve pupils’ self-efficacy in terms of dealing with cyberbullying after receiving proper guidance from their teachers’ side. There are reasons why I considered the application of both these theories in combination with each other.

Basically, this thesis intends to motivate digital competence in both teachers and the pupils. However, no matter how competent the teachers are, as long as the pupils do not see any trusting attachment between themselves and their teachers, they would not take on accepting the teachers’ advice. As a result, I had to explore teachers’ possibility of standing as a trusting attachment figure for their pupils. After that, I investigated the impacts of teachers’ standing as an attachment figure on building up pupils’ self- efficacy in handling cyberbullying and response efficacy, which is about pupils’ perception of their teachers’ words of advice. Self-efficacy and response efficacy are the variables that were taken from coping strategies of Protection Motivation Theory. Ba- sically, this study was trying to find a way to improve self-efficacy and response efficacy in handling cyberbullying among the teachers and the pupils.

2.4 Justification of Theory As mentioned before, this thesis uses Attachment Theory and Protection Motivation Theory as its fundamental theories due to their inherent confirmation of some of the most fundamental relations and behavioral applications of this thesis. The psychologically practical nature of these theories and their effects on controlling the behaviors of their subjects indicate that the results of this study can also have controlling effects of behaviors that lead to either cyberbullying victimization or falling victim to cyberbullying. In this thesis, I approach the basics of teacher-pupil interactions where it

concerns the utilization of digital media in order to enhance the pedagogical effects that teachers can have in cyberbullying prevention. Likewise, the link between media studies, media pedagogy and psychological application of these theories are deemed to enhance the interdisciplinary nature and practicality of this study. There are other reasons that justify the application of Attachment Theory and Protection Motivation Theory that I mean to elaborate on.

2.4.1 Justification of Attachment Theory Since Attachment Theory was introduced, it has majorly focused on parent-child relationships as a context for pupils’ development. In 1992, Robert C. Pianta revolution- ized this concept by editing an article titled “Beyond the Parent: The Role of Other Adults in Children’s Lives” (Pianta 1992, 81-107). Ever since Attachment Theory and scientific researchers have influenced the conceptualization of teacher-child relationships in a number of ways including the significance of the affective quality of dyadic teacher-child relationships (Verschueren, 2015).

Verschueren claims that the traditional focus of Attachment Theory has been on the attachment bond between parents and children in the home environment (Verschueren, 2015). Nonetheless, in the past two decades, the considerable body of literature on the relationship between pupils and their schoolteachers has suggested that the way teacher-child relationships function at school also set up meaningful areas for attachment research. In line with this claim, the importance of effective, dyadic relationships between teachers and individual pupils is highlighted in Attachment Theory which offers a new, multifaceted conceptual model in related assessments. Such approaches consider the role of a secure base for the teachers as well, from which pupils can explore new learning environments. Moreover, Attachment Theory provides the empirical and theoretical basis for hypotheses that look into the backgrounds and consequences of teacher-child relationships, and, more importantly, explains the mechanisms or pathways of improving this relationship. However, in order to extend the promising findings that encompass teacher-child relationship outcomes based on At- tachment Theory, there is a need for further investigations on the condition that teacher sensitivity continues to buffer the relational functioning of at-risk pupils and young adults as well as possible boundaries of these protective effects (Verschueren, 2015).

Apart from that, Attachment Theory has been the source of inspiration for many researchers whose focus has been on relationship development and interventions in schools. So far, this has led to promising findings in early childhood which may stim- ulate researchers to invest in programs for middle childhood. This confirms the link between social relationships in school and pupils’ academic engagement and achievement, which demonstrates the importance of further research on related topics. Schol- ars have argued that the quality of teacher-pupil relationships is influenced by the interrelated factors concerning children and teachers as well as factors in surrounding contexts. Attachment Theory also offers guidance with regard to specific matters that concern teacher-pupil relationship as well as the effects of contextual variables, such as class size, classroom climate, family socioeconomic status, and family-school contact (Verschueren, 2015).

Verschueren’s regard for Attachment Theory is in the line with that of Grossmann and Grossman (2014a), who have a high regard for the possibility of building attachment among teachers and pupils at school. They explain that with children, there is no committed education without personal commitment or at least personal involvement. If you want education, you have to get involved in attachment. If not at home, then at school.

Bei Kindern gibt es keine engagierte Bildung ohne persönliche Bindung oder zumindest persönliche Anteilnahme. Wenn man Bildung will, muss man sich auf Bindungen einlassen. Wenn nicht zu Hause, dann in der Schule (Grossmann & Grossman, 2014a, pp. 3).

Studies such as that of Verschueren (2015), Grossmann and Grossman (2014), and the present study made clear that to study teacher-child relationships with regards to social media threats such as cyberbullying we need other complementary conceptual frame- works such as Attachment Theory. By combining insights and hypotheses from attachment-based models with other theoretical perspectives, the understanding of teacher- child relationships and its role in middle childhood will progress significantly. How- ever, this must not disregard that as a focus on academics increases in upper elementary education, it becomes more and more challenging to convince teachers and schools to invest in interpersonal resources.

In order to further refer to the applications of Attachment Theory in the context of child protection against online threats, I refer to a study by Whittle (2014) who suggested that young adults’ interaction with their parents/caregivers is fundamental in developing attachment, and that a consistently supportive relationship from one or more caregivers assists in establishing an individual’s resistance against external threats such as cyberbullying or traditional bullying. This study also indicates that the majority of young people with records of vulnerability toward online treats comes from acrimoniously separated families. It further suggests that teachers, practitioners and other people in positions of responsibility (e.g., sports leaders) should view young people who are experiencing family difficulties (whether temporarily or overtime) as particularly vulnerable to online threats and take proper actions to protect (Whittle, 2014).

On the contrary, Herbst (2012) argues that, in the tradition of academic psychology and pedagogy, attachment and education do not belong together. This hinders the understanding of the biographical conditions that enable interested, attentive and successful learning. Attachment Theory tends to consider the existential needs of pupils about feeling attached to their source of learning, which can be taken as the basis for any kind of human learning. This concept seems to be also in contrast with the common, and often technical, educational approaches as well as the didactics based on older behaviorist concepts which ignore the link between learning and attachment (Herbst, 2012).

As many empirical studies have shown, education and learning are demonstrably pro- moted or impaired by both positive and inadequate attachment experiences of pupils at home and at school. However, teacher’s attachment experiences play a significant role in the transfer of knowledge from teacher to the pupil (Grossmann & Grossmann, 2006; Herbst, 2012; Grossmann, & Grossmann 2014b, 365-376).

Working on the basis of Attachment Theory confirms attachment qualities which play an important role in social exchange processes with lasting influence on the quality of social interaction. Such qualities, from the point of view of attachment research, are essential keys to understanding the learning processes in school and among the pupils. As the attachment researchers Grossmann explain for pupils, there is no committed education without personal commitment or at least personal sympathy. If you want education, you have to get involved in the attachment (Grossmann, K.E. & Grossmann E. 2014b, 365-376).

2.4.2 Justification of Protection motivation Theory Protection Motivation Theory is brought to this study since it explains the way that people on a general basis approach a threat and the suggested ways of defeating it. Protection Motivation theory is a successful method of addressing a problem that comprises a dynamic process of threat appraisals and coping appraisals whereby the individuals start to consider coping with stressful events after taking threat appraisals into consideration (Rogers, 1975).

According to Doane et al. (2016), in order to develop effective preventions to reduce cyberbullying, an important next step is to identify and test theoretical models that may aid understanding of the antecedents to risky (or safe) electronic communication behaviors. Protection Motivation Theory (PMT; Rogers; 1975; 1983, 153-176) posits that threat appraisal (perceived severity and perceived susceptibility) and coping appraisal (response efficacy and self-efficacy) are cognitive processes aroused when one is confronted with a threat, which in turn are related to engagement in behaviors aimed to reduce the threat. In a sample of adolescents in Singapore (ages 12-19), Lwin et al. (2012) used PMT as a theoretical framework to explain motivations behind intentions to adopt ‘online safety behaviors’. In support of PMT, perceived severity of cyberbullying, response efficacy, and self-efficacy regarding online safety behaviors (but not perceived susceptibility) were significant predictors of online safety behavioral intentions.

When facing a threat such as cyberbullying, the coping process is activated. Coping refers to conscious efforts that individuals use to regulate emotion, cognition, behavior, internal states, or situation to reduce threat (Kokkinos et al., 2013). Coping begins with threat appraisal, which is the individual’s perceptions of how stressful the event is and how probable it is to threaten his or her wellbeing (Taylor et al, 2013). Appraisals occur at two levels: 1) the primary appraisal, which includes assessing the situation to determine whether it is a threat (i.e., whether the posted message is cyberbullying); and 2) the secondary appraisal which assesses whether or not the situation might change or one has the power to change it, along with the person’s resources to manage the stress caused by the threatening situation (Lazarus & Folkman, 1987).

In the 2014 draft of the Global Cyber Security Capacity Centre, Protection Motivation Theory (PMT), alongside a number of other behavioral theories, is incorporated as a

means of identification for the factors which potentially lead to failure of security awareness in changing the information security behaviors (Bada et al., 2019). In 2015, in a study by Dang-Pham, and Pittayachawan, the utility of PMT in reducing risks of falling victim to computer and Internet related malware was put into trial. The results of this study indicate that proximity to a training source or even developing a training community and repeated training sessions to maintain the users’ confidence in their own abilities to cope with malware threats improved their practical competence in protecting themselves against such threats. This study also indicates that designing an informative society which disseminates warning messages focusing on the threat consequences could improve the users’ intention to avoid malware. Moreover, these implications particularly address information and Internet security management at educational institutions where using one’s own smart device has been more common (Dang-Pham, & Pittayachawan, 2015).

Similarly, Shillair et al. (2015) took advantage of PMT as an attempt to understand the mental model of the users who followed safe practices through their online interactions and avoided activities that hindered their online safety. As a result, they reported that enhancing a user’s sense of personal responsibility (self-efficacy) appears to be a necessary precursor to effective online safety interventions, but it does not seem sufficient unless it is accompanied by the intervention strategies (response efficacy) that matched the knowledge level of the user to enhance online safety behaviors.

In another study by Youn concerning the application of PMT as the theoretical framework in determining young adolescents’ level of privacy concerns in online activities, it was determined that perceived risks of information disclosure increased privacy concerns. It was also indicated in the same study that privacy concerns had an impact on risk-coping behaviors such as reaching out to provide advice or additional information from more expert sources which in turn stresses on the role of knowledgeable trainers to provide advice (Youn, 2009).

The utility of PMT in the context of youth and online safety is supported by Waddell et al. (2014, 133-157) who have also devised protection solutions that are similar to the strategies suggested by this thesis. These scientists propose a number of strategies based on interactive mastery training programs to enhance adolescent users’ ability to protect themselves from online risks. One of these strategies has been to split the subjects of the study into two groups and to train one group about online threats in order

to increase their awareness of their vulnerability toward online risks. This intervention was made to find out whether such trainings could improve that group of pupils’ self- protective and self-efficacy and increase their response efficiency.

Later on, upon being asked about the likelihood of these trainings about protective behaviors to help them stay safer on the Internet and their intentions to engage in protective online behaviors, the participants in the interactive mastery program demon- strated increased intentions to engage in safe online behavior in the future, offering a foundation for the development of future theory-based online safety interventions. What makes the study by Waddell et al. (2014, 133-157) noteworthy, most particularly in the context of the present research, is that it stresses the importance of applying such training programs by teachers and administrators to help their pupils with their online safety concerns, a concept that is very much in line with the concepts of Attachment Theory as well as the objectives of this thesis.

At the same time, to add to the above-mentioned justifications for the applicability and prevalence of using Attachment Theory and Protection Motivation Theory as the theory bases of this thesis, two other fundamental approaches are also taken into consideration. Firstly, as this thesis takes on referring to the role of schoolteachers and to identify practical methods that enable teachers to approach pupils and young adults, more effectively, and help them with their online concerns, I needed models that are tested for their practical and psychological applications rather than media related theories only. Secondly, these theories are both behavioral theories and this thesis, by referring to pupils and young adults’ online behavior and online-threat coping behaviors, intends to suggest possible protection and coping strategies to amend and improve pupils’ coping behaviors once they encounter online threats such as cyberbullying. At the same time, to confirm these claims I have referred to examples of cases in which these theories are used to approach and amend digital applications of different group of people as well as their online behaviors.

2.5 Conceptual Framework The conceptual framework of the study (Figure 9) demonstrates the conceptualized relationship between the variables of this thesis. This framework is also an illustration of the way how integration between Attachment Theory and Protection Motivation Theory can help with the prevention of cyberbullying among pupils. In this framework,

the hypothesized relationships between selected PMT variables and selected Attach- ment Theory variables are illustrated as well as the ways that these selected variables from both theories are hypothetically meant to improve the efficiency of pupils to defend and protect them against cyberbullying. Digital Literacy is regarded as an important indicator when it comes to providing educated responses to the subjects in line with protection and prevention against cyberbullying. Thus, this variable is added to the main framework of this project to study its practical significance.

School Instructors’ Pupils’ Protection Prevention of Social Protection Measures Measures Media Threats

Proximity Maintenance Self-Efficacy Safe Haven Cyberbullying Prevention

Secure Base Response Efficacy

Social Media & Internet Liter- acy

Figure 9. Conceptual Model of the Study

2.6 Execution Phases 2.6.1 Phase I This thesis has initially looked into the previous surveys and empirical studies to ensure the practicality and meaningfulness of the proposed measures and methods of protection and prevention against cyberbullying. At the same time, it was important to consider the possibility of applying and generalizing the proposed method on other forms of online risks. Information processing of Phase I:

To identify theoretically and contextually relevant literature which in turn would support the fundamental concepts and assumptions of this thesis, it was necessary to review the related German literature concerning the domestic studies, statistics and improvements in this area. After building a foundation on the necessity, applicability and

practicality of this thesis, there was a need for the global literature to be incorporated in this topic. Reviewing and incorporating the global literature helped to strengthen and improve the hypothesized method in this thesis concerning child protection against cyberbullying. The final result of the first phase led to the formulation of specific objectives of this thesis. The fulfillment and approval of these specific objectives would place this thesis on a more solid ground to formulation practical policies that can help with controlling the risks of cyberbullying among pupils.

2.6.2 Phase II At this step, this thesis has taken on reviewing the German and global literature as well as the results of related organizational projects in similar contexts to support and justify the hypotheses of this thesis while fulfilling the formulated objectives. Two of the major steps in this phase were the justification of the theoretical bases of the thesis in accordance with both global and German pieces of evidence and findings related literature to support the relationship between the variables of the thesis.

Information processing of Phase II:

In this phase, the hypothesized relationship between the variables of the study were justified by means of the references from related German and global literature. Justi- fication of these relationships led to the fulfillment of the specific objectives that were based on each of these relationships. Finding valid and practical reasons to justify the relationship between each pair of variables provides a primal understanding based on which this thesis will take on formulating policies that can help in providing prevention and protection measures for the pupils against cyberbullying. Likewise, to justify the theoretical bases of this study the application of Protection Motivation Theory and Attachment Theory in similar studies have been traced. The conceptual and contextual appropriateness of these theories have been justified based on German and global literature.

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2.6.3 Phase III The last step in this study would be formulating policies and guidelines for schoolteachers and school social workers and/or psychologist on how to detect high-risk pupils and protect the entire pupil population under their care. On top of that, there have been policies that help schoolteachers, teachers or counselors present themselves in a way that pupils would find them more approachable and in order to freely approach them in a case of a threat. At the same time, there have been also policies formulated on methods of improving the level of digital literacy that help teachers understand the context of digital media and social media much better and therefore make more educated decisions in order to support their pupils’ in their digital media-related concerns.

Information processing of Phase III:

The formulation of policy took place in two steps. In the first step, the results that were obtained from German and global literature in confirming the relationship between the paired variables would be placed together to establish a unified structure. This unified structure comprises particular policies and strategies that confirm and complement each other rather than undermining or defying each other’s values in any possible way. In the second step, the formulated policies and strategies would be brought to the attention of an expert panel who in the case of this thesis would be the supervisory committee of the study.

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Chapter III Elaboration on the Study Objectives Based on the Availa- ble Literature

3.1 Introduction After a recap of the general background on the concepts and proof of assumptions, the third chapter of this thesis focuses on the specific relationships that are drawn between different variables of this thesis and are presented in the form of objectives for the thesis. Looking into the past literature that proves or challenges the drawn relationships provides evidence on how likely these variables are to function in the context of this thesis. The summary of the chapter is the last section of this chapter.

3.2 Review of Related Literature According to a survey by the Statistisches Bundesamt (German Federal Office of Sta- tistics) on the private use of information and communication technologies (ICT), 83% of pupils aged 10-15 years and 97% of pupils and young adults aged 16-24 years used the Internet in 2016 and according to Feierabend et al., (2019), the rate of internet use in Germany as of 2019 has reached 98%. Once it comes to young people’s Internet applications, a great deal of Internet usage is related to instant messaging platforms like WhatsApp and social media like Facebook. In 2016, the rate of social media pen- etration in Germany was reported 36% which is slightly above the global average (Statistisches Bundesamt 2016). In 2019, WhatsApp was the leading platform of online communication in Germany whereas 93% of the young people exchanged information with others at least several times a week (86% daily). Three quarters of the German pupil (73%) have a WhatsApp group with their family (girls: 80%, boys: 67%), and 69% have such groups with their peers (girls: 72%, boys: 66%). The High rates of Internet and social media usage shall be considered as a sign of social development and an opportunity if it means taking advantage from all the benefits that the World Wide Web offers. However, as mentioned before taking the productive and informative side of digital media and internet for granted would cause underestimation of the escalating risk of exposure to online risks such as games addiction, cyberbullying, cybermobbing, cyberstalking, home-grown terrorism etc.

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Cyberbullying has been established as a threat to victims’ well-being (Machmutow, et al., 2012; Ortega et al., 2012; Perren et al., 2010). It is most consistently associated with low levels of self-esteem (O’Brien & Moules, 2013; Patchin & Hinduja, 2010) and high levels of depressive symptoms (Nixon, 2014; Perren et al., 2010; Raskauskas, 2010). Cyberbullying victimization has also been related to suicidal ideation and, in extreme cases, suicide attempts in both victims and offenders17 (Foody et al., 2015; Gini & Espelage, 2014; Patchin & Hinduja, 2010).

The effects of cyberbullying on the victims and perpetrators are more versatile than what is generally assumed, therefore it is true to say that both victims of cyberbullying and the perpetrators suffer from the severe effects of this phenomenon (Foody et al., 2015; Raskauskas, & Huynh, 2015). How victims cope with cyberbullying is different between those who suffer from the negative effects of past cyberbullying victimization, those who are in the midst of the problem and those who actively protect themselves against cyberbullying. Unfortunately, research on coping with cyberbullying has suffered from design shortcomings including inconsistent measurement of coping strategies, lack of theoretical framework, and failure to assess the process of coping and related factors like self-efficacy (Bauman & Newman, 2013; Chi & Frydenberg, 2009; Pieschl et al., 2013; Singh & Bussey, 2010; Vollink et al., 2013; Raskauskas, & Huynh, 2015). This has limited understanding of the coping process, i.e. how youth select coping strategies to respond to cyberbullying and whether the strategies selected are effective.

Meanwhile, to take most of the opportunities that the Internet can offer and to provide a safer and richer online world for the pupils and young adults, it is important to have a clear picture of online risks and risks patters. To give a fair estimate on the risks and opportunities of the Internet, the Global Internet Report of 2015 by Internet Society on mobile evolution and development of the Internet states that it is necessary not to underestimate the changes that have taken place in the past ten years and not to

17 It is true that cyberbully perpetrators are also at risk of physical and psychological health hazards that are associated with cyberbully however, this does not mean that the perpetration attempt is affecting the perpetrator more than the victim. An explanation to this phenomenon is that the perpetrators might have been subjected to a range of social and family issues including physical bully and cyberbully which leads to mental issues and later self-assumed or at points practical experience of prejudice and discrimination. Once these issues are not addressed, they manifest themselves in the form of perpetration attempts which also contribute to further social isolation and self-stigmatization. A combination of such issues puts the perpetrators in a much greater danger than the victims whereas both groups demand close attention and protection.

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overestimate the change that can take place in the years that follow (Brown, 2015). It is also important to have a clear picture of the ways that victims of online risks can be assisted and who could function as an impactful care provider for such victims. It also seems essential to identify the best course of action in terms of detecting the risks, the ways of helping the victims as well as training the people who can effectively provide the necessary assistance for a safer and more advantageous online experience.

I could also attest that it is also a valuable education for the pupils to know the nature of digital media and trying to be more selective and aware users of social media and the Internet. Before the advent of the Internet, television and films were the only au- dio-visual media to which most pupils were exposed. The risks of exposure to the content of those media were primarily limited to pupils’ exposure to sexual and violent content. At the same time, the nature of these risk factors was known and approachable. However, in the present era, pupils and the youth are surrounded by a variety of digital media and are exposed to different risks, many of which are still unknown.

The Internet is fully integrated into pupils’ daily lives along with its potential risks. A study by Teimouri et al. (2016) showed that pupils were more exposed to unwanted negative impacts of the Internet such as exposure to pornography and less to conducted risk such as accidental illegal downloading or creating profiles on inappropriate web sites. Boys and older pupils were more exposed to the risks compared to girls and younger pupils. The study detected and validated five dimensions namely inappropriate materials, sexting, contact-related risks, high-risk online sexual behavior, and bullying/being bullied as the most common online risks to pupils.

In another study by Shin and Huh (2011), teens and the youth are presently considered to be affected by the Internet and related industries such as social media. The same study indicates that parental mediation model is generally employed to control pupils and young adults’ online activities. This model, in general, entails three strategies to discipline pupils’ Internet application namely ‘active mediation’, ‘co-viewing’ and ‘restriction’. The results of Shin and Huh’s study in 2011 illustrated a weak and negative correlation between teenagers’ age and parental mediation. In addition, the findings showed that parents who presumed negative influence of social media and were more skeptical about the effects of digital media on their children were more likely to restrict usage of social media, therefore, restricted their children from exposure to all the benefits that may come with the digital media as well. Such studies show that the impact

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of parental mediation on children’s online behavior is diminishing as children grow older, and even where their mediation is impactful there are chances that they restrict the Internet opportunities alongside risks.

At the same time, the unnecessary restrictions that come from parents or caregivers make children and young adults lose their belief in them with regard to using the In- ternet and protecting oneself against Internet threats such as cyberbullying. Eventually, loss of trust makes the pupils seek help from inappropriate sources once they are facing a high-risk situation such as cyberbullying, cyberstalking or being approached by un- solicited affiliations. Parents’ generic and sometimes unsuccessful strategies to regulate pupils’ online activities is mainly due to their lack of digital media competence and literacy and having less or no time to equip themselves about such environments (Sasson & Mesch, 2014).

Such uneducated approaches toward children’s online behavior have led to the assumption that if the source of attachment changes from parents to schoolteachers with regard to the usage of digital media, pupils may receive more educated instructions regarding risk prevention and opportunity motivation. At the same time, training and therefore improving social media competence and digital literacy among schoolteachers is way more practical when such activities happen in an education context. As a result, bringing the teachers and trainers together for some training and upskilling sessions is part of their job. Likewise, schoolteachers spend considerably longer periods of time with the youth or pupils due to their job requirements.

Now considering the fact that digital media can have educational and interactive qualities as well as harmful impacts, the question is whether schoolteachers can function more effectively, compared to parents, in protecting pupils against cyberbullying perpetration in the light of their upskilled digital literacy and social media competence. The other important question is whether schoolteachers can build a trusting relationship between themselves and their pupils so that the pupils would refer their cyberbullying concerns to them rather than internalizing them or referring them to their parents or peers. To provide a proper response to these questions, this thesis is looking into the past researches and studies to investigate about teachers’ possibility of building attachment with their pupils to improve the pupils’ efficacy in coping with and prevention of cyberbullying.

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3.2.1 To investigate schoolteachers’ possibility of proximity maintenance with their pupils Kerns, and Richardson (2008), believes that pupils have different expectations from their attachment figures. As the attachment goal changes, the pupil will look in his or her close proximity to satisfy his or her new concerns a phenomenon that highlights the role of a teacher as a more available caregiver compared to parents. This, however, is only in the case of pupils who have the privilege of being brought up in normal caring families whereas the pupils who are brought up in unstable families would need and show a greater level of attachment with their teachers if the teachers stay in their proximity long enough to win their trust (Verschueren, 2015). Boer and Seydel (1996, 95-120) have confirmed the positive and well-needed effects of proximity maintenance through the concepts of PMT. They pointed out that only through long term maintenance of proximity and close interaction on a particular matter the subjects will build a trusting relationship with their caregiver and only then accept to follow his or her lead.

Likewise, even if the entire concern of a teacher for building attachment with a pupil is to decrease the likelihood of online aggression, it is proved that maintaining proximity with the pupils can reduce the likelihood of exhibiting online aggression while building up pupils’ confidence about the ability to defend themselves against such issues (Ybarra & Mitchell, 2004b). Other empirical studies highlight the positive effect of teacher-pupil relationships. Such studies have regarded both Asian and Western pupils illustrating that proximity maintenance and trusted relationships between pupils and their teachers can also reduce offline aggressive behaviors (Ang, 2005; Hughes, & Cavell, 1999; Ooi et al., 2006).

Apart from a decreasing aggression which can be achieved by building trusted relationship and maintenance of proximity, a more significant quality such as showing empathy can be transmitted to the pupils by the teachers who have received proper training about controlling cyberbullying (Lazuras et al., 2013). Davidson and De- maray’s (2007) belief seem to be relevant to the concern of this thesis. They believe in the possibility of building a trusting relationship between pupils and schoolteachers, but more importantly, they point out that the more supportive the schoolteachers, the less pupils internalize the effects of bullying. It is fair to say that physical bullying and cyberbullying are not entirely similar, but these two are in fact similar if the concern

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is whether or not the victim, for whatever reason, is internalizing the problem or is reaching out for help.

At the same time, the efficiency of practicing proximity maintenance in order to build teacher-pupil relationship seems to be gender-motivated. This practice is reported to work better with boys than girls: girls seem to have a harder time shifting from their primary attachment figure such as parents to the teachers, even if it is only to express their cyberbullying concerns, but this process happens more easily among boys. At the same time, cyberbullying victims who have the benefit of receiving support from their teachers or peers report having higher life satisfaction compared to those who do not have this privilege (Flashpohler et al., 2009). It is needless for me to mention that proximity maintenance and providing support go hand in hand and the latter cannot take place without the former.

Frohn (2013) points out two other positive qualities for proximity maintenance that are lowering the chance of internalizing symptoms of victimization and increasing levels of participation in group activities. Schneider et al. looked at the same issue from the victims’ point of view and pupils whose levels of attachment with the schoolteachers or the school authorities were lower (Schneider et al., 2012). These scholars illustrated that such pupils are more likely to fall victim to either cyberbullying or school bullying. They also reported a great overlap between cyberbullying and school-bullying victimization and called for greater attention to predominantly more vulnerable populations, including non-heterosexual youth.

3.2.2 To investigate the impact of teachers’ proximity maintenance on pupils’ self- efficacy Providing care and protection and, as a result, sustaining a sense of safety and security in a child is one of the primary outcomes of proximity maintenance in the process of attachment building. Staying in the close proximity of a child provides the caregiver with the opportunity of developing a belief in the child that the world or the digital world, in the case of this thesis, is generally safe; that the child has all the necessary competences to stay safe in the world; that he or she is lovable, and that the caregiver such as parents or teachers will be available and supportive in times of need (Shaver & Mikulincer, 2014, 273-290). According to Bowlby (1982), the innate attachment

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seeking system in human infants is to motivate them to seek proximity to a stable caregiver to be safe from physical and psychological threats. This behavior would, in turn, promote a sense of well-being and increase the sense of self-efficacy in dealing with the environment and the environmental issues on one’s own. It is also worth mentioning that although the attachment system is most critical during the early years of life, Bowlby (2005, 30-35) assumed that it is active over the entire lifespan and under- lies the formation and maintenance of relational bonds in adulthood. This is also highlighted in a study by Shaver and Mikulincer, (2014, 273-290). Likewise, Feeney (2004) claimed the availability of the caregiver plays a significant role in developing the level of self-efficacy. Therefore, the more available the source of care in the proximity of the pupils, the better and higher the development level of their self-efficacy; consequently, pupils would behave less support-seeking during the interaction with problems.

Looking at this information from the point of view of this thesis it can be concluded that the presence of a stronger and wiser or more digitally literate caregiver, who can defend the child or a young adult against cyberbullying, can also support the development of cognitive qualities such as self-efficacy and self-esteem in pupils. This claim is approved by Bowlby (1973) and Ainsworth’s (1991) view over the reciprocal association between proximity to the source of attachment and the exploration and affilia- tion system. They viewed attachment insecurity or the absence of an attachment source as a hindering factor for the normal development of self-efficacy, self-esteem, and coping skills. Therefore, being harassed or distracted at school or, in general, being forced by one’s social environment to focus only on threats and insecurity interferes with social development and normal cognitive development (Kruglanski, & Higgins, 2013, 647-653).

By this I could conclude proximity to a source of protection can improve the normal cognitive development of self-efficacy, self- esteem and coping skills. Considering the fact that in most cases the bullying threats that potentially decrease the level of efficacy in pupils and young adults come from school or peer group(s), it seems rather logical to expect a teacher or school authority to function more effectively as a source of protection or support and boost efficacy among the focus group due to their proximity to the system and therefore the victim and the source of the threat.

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3.2.3 To investigate the impact of teachers’ proximity maintenance on response efficacy Maintaining proximity is more about the period of time that a caregiver spends with his or her pupils than the distance between them. Consequently, I regard proximity maintenance as a time-sensitive quality which requires long term interaction and attachment building attempts to establish a trusting and firm relationship between the teachers and their pupils. Playing related age-appropriate games with the pupils, a reliable method of staying in touch with one’s subjects of care while the teacher is also developing the pupils’ skills that otherwise, they would have to develop through self- experience. The other function of playing such games and running challenging cases for the pupils is to improve their view over teachers’ potentials in addressing cyberbullying related issues from different perspectives. Playing related games or play therapy is a reliable technique for threat management and response efficacy.

This method can help the pupils and young adults understand the practicality of the responses they receive from their school counselors, or schoolteachers, regarding protective and preventive measures, against cyberbullying. School teachers and counselors can use a variety of interventions to address specific needs of pupils and train them on the topic of cyberbullying. Play therapy is an attachment-based intervention that utilizes a balance of structure, and engagement to form healthy attachments (Weir, 2007). Proximity maintenance, and its practice through related games, helps pupils and young adults to open up and deal with emotional and behavioral issues much easier. Such attachment-based intervention is age-sensitive mediums of receiving the appropriate advice while expressing feelings, exploring relations, describing experiences, disclosing needs, and self-fulfillment (Landreth et al., 2009).

In the safe and emotionally supportive setting of the counseling room or a classroom, the child can play out concerns and issues, which may be too horrific or anxiety-producing to directly talk about. In the counseling setting or in a special training program the school counselor or the trainer can help the child to feel the necessary bond between himself and the teacher (Drewes & Schaefer 2010, 3-5). However, it is the proximity between the teacher and the pupils that build the bases of trust and attachment. Play therapy helps pupils develop confidence in the efficiency of the massage and self- efficacy. This objective is accomplished through mastery of fear, skill acquisition, and learning new tasks (Curry & Fazio-Griffith 2013, 314-315). As a result, once pupils

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find the responses that are coming from their teachers rather efficient and practical, they would build confidence in these responses and pieces of training and hence build response efficacy. Continuing with such activities would develop qualities such as creative thinking to solve problems as well as learning about themselves and gain clarity regarding their skills and abilities in problem-solving and hence the development of self-efficacy. The games can help the pupils and the young adults internalize the skills and responses they need to prevent cyberbullying and protect themselves against threats as such.

3.2.4 To investigate schoolteachers’ possibility of standing as a safe haven for their pupils The act of standing as a safe haven for one’s pupils is not a remote possibility for the schoolteachers, and several scholars have provided empirical support for the phenomenon most specifically among teachers and pupils in primary/elementary school. No matter the cause of it, be it pain, sickness, fear, or threat, pupils are known to turn to teachers in times of distress as a safe haven (De Laet et al., 2014; Koomen & Hoeksma, 2003).

Nevertheless, there are contradictory viewpoints that shall not be ignored. The viewpoint of Verschueren and Koomen (2012) criticizes the viability and robustness of teacher-child relationship. They argue most teacher-child relationships cannot be regarded as attachment bonds since teacher-child relationships are usually neither exclu- sive, meaning that pupils must share the teacher with many other classmates, nor du- rable as in most educational systems pupils change teachers after every school year. Moreover, in a comparison between parents and teachers, the emotional tie between pupils and their parents is more intense than the one they have with teachers. Likewise, the primary role of parents is providing care, and the primary role of teachers, especially in late elementary school and beyond, is training and instructing (Rimm-Kauf- man & Pianta, 2000).

Despite this, attachment researchers have argued that teachers can be regarded as temporary or informal attachment figures for pupils, meaning that they may play the role of a safe haven and a secure base for the pupils in their classroom or with regard to specific matters. This argument implies that pupils may seek support and comfort from

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their teacher with regard to the matters that they believe teachers are more competent in, while the relationship with the teacher may help them feel more comfortable in their learning environment (Zajac & Kobak, 2006, 379-389). Bear, and Minke (2006), go even further in confirming this possibility by saying that “Children must view school as a safe haven that provides relief and protection from unhealthy experiences” (Bear & Minke, 2006, 807).

As expected, accepting the teacher as a safe haven happens more easily between younger pupils and their teachers more tangibly since attachment system in younger pupils is still developing and gets activated more frequently; therefore, they can accept their teachers as a care provider much easier than their older peers. At the same time, since their capacity for self-regulation is more limited, they would less frequently restrict themselves to stick to a particular caregiver and detach themselves from others. As the pupils grow up, their attachment network diversifies and, in turn, this diversifi- cation makes them more likely turn to attachment figures beyond parents. Especially in school settings or situations in which parents are not available, alternative adult caregivers such as teachers might temporarily play the role of attachment figures and function as a safe haven (Seibert & Kerns, 2009).

Seibert and Kerns ran a child interview survey to investigate the safe haven component of attachment. A considerable number of pupils spontaneously endorsed going to their teachers in the case of attachment-related situations such as bullying at school, although peers and parents were chosen more often (Seibert & Kerns, 2009). In a different study on a sample of 3 to 12-year-olds, Koomen et al. found that, in equal levels of teacher-perceived closeness with pupils, teachers rated older pupils to be less likely to seek comfort when upset compared to younger pupils. Despite the effect of age and its significant role on the level of child-teacher attachment in the form of safe haven, these findings indicate that such relationship is still present but the comfort that is sought, from attachment figures, is rather psychological than physical (Koomen et. al., 2012).

There are also other viewpoints over teachers’ possibility of acting as a safe haven which considers the limited effect of a safe haven among the teachers. Such claims were explained by pointing to the increased importance of peers to fulfill functions of a safe haven in early adolescence as well as to the increased self-regulating capacities due to major changes in the adolescent brain (De Laet et. al., 2014). Nonetheless, it is

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also believed that the safe-haven role of teachers continues to be important for vulnerable pupils, e.g. those with family problems or with self-regulation or emotional problems (Sabol & Pianta, 2012). Likewise, maltreated pupils reported more psychological proximity seeking than non-maltreated pupils, which may indicate a greater reliance on the teacher as a source of comfort and support (Verschueren, 2015).

3.2.5 To investigate the impact of a safe haven on pupils’ self-efficacy Secure attachment to a caregiver and developing a sense of security on the bases of attachment to a person in whose presence the pupil feels safe, provides the possibility of regarding one’s attachment figure as a safe haven. As a result, it develops cognitive models about one’s self in terms of responsiveness, caregiving, and self-efficacy. To be in the proximity of a caregiver, in whose presence a pupil would feel safe and secure, mitigates feelings of anxiety. In addition, if a pupil has the privilege of being securely attached to a caregiver, his or her expectations of others will be positive, his or her sense of self-efficacy will increase, and he or she will develop far more constructive social relationships. As a result, and in consistency with the notions of Attachment Theory, pupils who are more securely attached to their caregivers develop more positive relationships with their peers, cooperate more effectively with adults, and control their emotions more effectively (Kerns et al., 2015). This quality does reflect its effects on the interactions in both the actual and digital society.

Feeney (2004) reports that with an increasing perception of safe haven for the subject, support-receivers engage more willingly in exploratory activity, report a higher self- efficacy with regard to accomplishing goals, and perceive their goals as more achievable. Thus, the degree to which an individual perceives that his or her caregiver provides adequate safe haven is associated with the individual’s perception of self-efficacy in achieving his or her objectives such as controlling a high-risk threat.

Considering the positive effects of secure attachment and providing a safe haven for the pupils, it can be assumed that lack of such qualities would have negative effects. The teachers, however, can help to resolve these if they are detected correctly. The teachers who stand as the attachment figures or caregivers for the pupils, most specifically in cases of online threats or cyberbullying, should try their best to give a sense of comfort and security to their pupils. Insecure attachment and inability to use one’s

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caregiver as a safe haven develops negative beliefs about the availability and accessibility of caregivers and manifests these in different ways. Pupils with avoidant attachments can be overly self-reliant and maintain an emotional distance from a rejecting caregiver. Pupils with ambivalent or preoccupied attachments are chronically unsure of the caregiver’s availability, something which can lead them to be vigilant about remaining in close contact with caregivers. Likewise, pupils with disorganized attachments, who have experienced caregivers who are harsh, psychologically unavailable or unpredictable, may either lack a coherent strategy for relating to the parent or take control of the relationship through role reversal such as taking care of the caregiver rather than receiving care. Either way, they would not receive the necessary comfort that they need from their caregiver to trust their environment and the society in order to make effective relations (Kerns et. al., 2015).

3.2.6 To investigate the impact of a safe haven on response efficacy The key to response efficacy, or perception of response effectiveness in a pupil, is in accepting the source of response as a reliable and trustworthy person. Serving as a safe haven involves providing comfort, support, protection and advice when the attached individual is distressed. However, while staying in touch with the source of care who might have acted as a safe haven as well, the pupils and young adults tend to change their safe haven from parents to the field experts due to more effective and applicable advice that those can give in the case of a threat. Conclusively, one can say the need for a safe haven, security and protection from other people who are perceived as stronger and wiser does not disappear as the child grows but gets redirected toward a diverse set of figures such as mind leaders or teachers. This acceptance would eventually make pupils, or the young adults follow the responses that the providers of security, safe haven, and protection would give them (Popper & Mayseless, 2003). Similarly in the case of cyberbullying, if the pupil feels that the efficiency of the advice they can receive from their teachers, in dealing with the situation, surpasses the responses that their parents provide on how to cope with cases of cyberbullying, they may rather rely on the threat response given by the teacher and therefore transfer the perspective of safe haven from parents to the teachers, at least in this particular issue.

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The effect of safe haven on response efficacy is so great that leaders can continue serving as a significant person for the receivers of their care, despite their imperfec- tions and the mistakes that they would make along the way and even if their advice proves to be wrong from time to time. This view of a leader or a mentor becomes more vivid once a child or a young adult feel threatened and other sources of protection and comfort fall short in setting the right course of action to help the individual out of trouble (Mayseless, 2010). Therefore, I can conclude, the responses that come from the wiser and more knowledgeable person are perceived much better and more effectively by the pupils and young adults if this person stands as a safe haven among pupils and young adults. This indication reinstates the impact of safe haven on response efficacy and the need for a safe haven even once adulthood is reached; this relationship confirms the possibility of a teacher to stand as a provider of safe haven and therefore gain trust and reliance on his or her responses.

3.2.7 To investigate schoolteachers’ possibility of standing as a secure base for their pupils In the “Bremer Erklärung” (Declaration of Bremen) in addition to stating teaching as the core responsibility of teachers, there are phrases that enact the quality of the relationship between teachers and pupils. In this declaration it is mentioned that pupils need to feel that their teachers ‘have a heart’ for them, as well as their individual living conditions; they need to know that their teachers are interested in their learning opportunities and encourage them accordingly, but do not overwhelm the pupils. Based on this declaration teachers should be aware that improving the quality of their relationship with the pupils is part of their educational tasks and it is closely linked to their teaching and school life. Teachers’ training methods shall be regarded as the conscious and purposeful influence on the young pupils’ personality development process. Pos- itive value orientations, attitudes and actions can only be convincingly influenced when teachers are also role models for pupils and are aware of it (Bremer Erklärung 2000, p. 3).

The educational approach that is given in this declaration confirms that teachers should be concerned about issues such as cyberbullying that closely affect the performance and the psychological and physical wellbeing of the students. To further explain this approach, I could say the teachers who regard themselves as a secure base in cases of

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cyberbullying perpetration would know their educated advice for their pupils would mean the difference between staying in a sinking position and thriving and gaining self-efficacy to continue with one’s best performance. To provide the best approach to such cases, teachers would need to educate themselves to be able to provide the most suitable advice for the pupils should they fall victim to cyberbullying. This would then help pupils to stay positively active online and continue taking benefits from the digital media. At the same time, pupils can in turn extend such education to their peers and help them through their similar issues as well. This educational and productive approach can only if the teachers regard themselves as secure bases for their pupils cyberbullying concerns or as Declaration of Bremen put it, care for the wellbeing of their pupils.

This understanding has been highlighted in the research done by Sabol and Pianta (2012) who pointed out that once teachers play the role of a secure base the pupils receive the motivation to explore new opportunities online. Likewise, a study among early adolescents (grade 7) showed that teachers fulfil the role of the secure base even more than that of a safe haven. In this study adolescents strongly relied on their teachers’ company and encouragement on trying new things and pursuing their goals and future plans, but they relied less on teachers as a source of comfort when upset or worried (De Laet et. al., 2014).

Teachers’ possibility of standing as the secure base for their pupils is also seen in the works of other researchers (O’Connor & McCartney, 2006; Sabol & Pianta, 2012; Verschueren, 2015); however, they believe the quality of pupils’ primary attachment such as what they had experienced with their parents is likely to affect the attachment with the teacher. Likewise, Buyse et al., proved that insignificant mother-child attachment leads to a lower level of closeness in the teacher-child relationship (Buyse et al. 2011). However, this relation can be improved through high teacher sensitivity and continuity of the teacher-child relationship. These scientists claim a high level of practicality for their finding as they imply that teachers can redirect the relational development of pupils, who have experienced an insecure history of attachment, through maintaining a consistently supportive and caring relationship with such pupils. At the same time, age seems to have a role in accepting teachers as the secure base whereby elementary school pupils accept their teachers as a secure base much better than the young adults.

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3.2.8 To investigate the impact of schoolteachers’ standing as a secure base on their pupils’ self-efficacy There are studies on improving pupils’ resilience and studies on building attachment that prove at least one stable, secure and supportive relationship with an adult is needed for psychological and personal development of every child or adolescent in order to build more resilience and self-efficacy (Pianta 1992; Petermann et al., 2004, 437-481; Richter & Wächter, 2009). The relationship with the adult figure offers a secure basis for the child or adolescent and thus can positively influence his or her resilience and self-efficacy in facing difficulties in life. However, parents cannot always be trusted with this task due to long working hours, separation, drug, or alcohol consumption of one or both parents, violence between the parents or parents’ violence against the child or the young adult. In such situations, teachers can stand up to this role and provide the necessary bound and instruction for the pupils and young adults. The safe, trusting and supportive relationship with a teacher can mitigate the negative consequences of high-risk conditions on the development of a child or adolescents and help the child to go forward (Diers, 2015).

Even though the existence, building or maintenance of a secure base or any attachment between teachers and pupils is not a rule, various studies prove the possibility of its existence as well as its positive impact on the pupils’ social and psychological development. For instance, Vester (2006, 13-54) reports that teachers are the most frequent non-family caregivers once it comes to building resilience and self-efficacy in facing difficult situations in pupils. Likewise, biographical researcher Nittel (1992) describes secondary school teachers as significant others for pupils. At the same time, Pianta and Steinberg (1992, 81-107) confirm that teachers can offer a replacement for the resilience-building ties that pupils normally have with their parents.

Similarly, the results of multiple other attachment studies indicate that high quality teacher-child relationships foster pupils’ self-regulation capacities, which in turn improve their adaptive social and academic functioning (Cadima, et al., 2016; Rimm- Kaufman et al., 2009). Drawing from attachment theory, Ahnert et al. showed that pupils with close, non-conflicted relationships with their teacher showed more optimal stress regulation (Ahnert et al., 2012). This effect can be translated into personal capacity and a child’s belief in his or her ability to handle difficulties. It may also explain

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more positive developments in terms of learning from and cooperating with teachers in handling external threats such as bullying or cyberbullying (Hughes, 2012).

The unique consequences of receiving secure base support (both immediately and over time) are expected to be higher levels of self-esteem, perceived competency, self-confidence, and self-efficacy (Simpson et al., 2002). However, intrusive (overinvolved) support, which discourages the recipient’s exploratory behavior, is likely to result in less exploratory behavior, thus hindering the recipient’s development of new competencies and eroding that person’s self-esteem and perceptions of self-efficacy over time (Feeney, 2004).

3.2.9 To investigate the impact of schoolteachers’ standing as a secure base on their response efficacy Diers (2015) is a firm believer in the positive and effective influence of teachers on building up pupils’ resilience. Diers, in Chapter 8 of her book entitled Resilienzförder- ung durch soziale Unterstützung von Lehrkräften: junge Erwachsene in Risikolage erzählen, confirms the possibility of enhancing pupils’ resilience through social support of teachers. She then argues that, to make it to a level where pupils would regard their response to an issue as effective or achieve high response efficiency, teachers should establish a secure, trusting and supporting relationship with their pupils. She also mentions that maintaining an appraisal and recognition method of instruction shall help with response efficacy rather than ignoring and punishment methods. More so the teachers need to show interest in pupils’ personal living conditions.

Serving as a secure base means making an active attempt to restore the sense of security when the attached individual is in distress, thus fostering exploration, creativity, and personal growth (Mayseless, 2010). It is basically in the nature of the job of a teacher or a mentor to motivate a pupil to explore and learn; therefore teachers are better regarded as secure bases among the pupils while, again from the perspective of the pupils, the parents who are more efficient in the business of worrying for the pupils, play the role of a safe haven more effectively. Therefore, it is true to say that even though teachers can and do fulfill the role of both a secure base and a safe haven, they are better off playing the role of a secure base and the pupils also regard them better as such (De Laet et. al., 2014). Consequently, once it comes to response efficacy,

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teachers’ responses function as moderators or facilitators of the situation that the pupil is encountering at school, in interaction with their peers or in their context of study. Therefore, pupils can relate to their teachers’ responses as more efficient responses to deal with difficulties such as cyberbullying, which emerge at or are related to school activities and revert to exploring other possibilities (Verschueren, 2015).

According to Diers (2015), schoolteachers and the education that pupils and young adults receive from their teachers have a sustained high impact on the development of pupils and adolescents in a risk situation. Based on these findings, teachers’ response has great potential for inhibiting risk conditions and strengthening protective influences on their pupils. This finding further highlights the role of a teacher as a secure base and its meaningfully positive impact on teachers’ response efficacy. By the effect of such findings, I could conclude that the teachers’ role as a secure base not only increases their response efficacy but also leaves a lasting effect in pupils to follow these responses sustainably and seek further protective and preventive applications out of them. It is worth mentioning that such claims shall be theoretically substantiated after integrating different concepts from the areas of resilience, risk process, and protection factors, as well as attachment and social support with school pedagogical findings with a rather systemic view over the ways in which these fields affect each other. The necessity of keeping a view as such has been highlighted in much earlier studies such as that of Bronfenbrenner (1981, 50).

The personal relationships that are established between pupils or young adolescents and their teachers are therefore important resources for the child or the adolescent. As a result, in a case of cyberbullying perpetration, if the reliable relationship with parents fails to give the pupils a sense of security and efficiency to venture in their new social or digital context, the relationship with the teacher would. Consequently, for a child or adolescent, this may mean that he or she needs the support of teachers if parents are not available as primary caregivers (Diers, 2015). This would mean that pupils who are subject to teachers’ care and support are more likely to further explore their social or digital context. However, I could not stress this factor enough that the first step in this quest is for the teachers to prove their responses trustworthy and reliable to support their pupils in cases of social or digital threats such as bullying or cyberbullying, and that can only happen after receiving the necessary training in the field.

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3.2.10 To investigate the possibility of improving schoolteachers’ digital literacy Practical digital literacy seems to be a necessary requirement for teachers if they mean to help their pupils with online experience and online threats such as cyberbullying. However, at some point, it seems like a challenge for the teachers to even catch up with the skills for using such technological and pedagogical innovations in class, let alone helping and safeguarding the pupils in the application of digital media. Never- theless, the teachers who are more willing to keep up with the fast development of advanced technologies and try out innovative methods in a class are dealing with applications and difficulties of digital media more efficiently (Anastasiades & Vitalaki 2011). Therefore, there seems to be an urgent need for the teachers to equip themselves with higher digital competence for their personal development and to provide necessary assistance to their pupils with their application of digital media.

Livingstone et al. (2011), believe not only teachers need to improve their digital skills but, due to the descending age of using Internet among the pupils, there must be a systematic way of building young pupils’ digital literacy and digital citizenship. How- ever, this digital competency training must be based on the requirements of the given age groups. At the same time, they emphasize the fact that sustaining the existing efforts for older pupils must not be underestimated either. They report the implication of such pieces of training and their concentration on secondary school and secondary school teachers more than primary schools. They even propose including such trainings in the pedagogical curriculums of primary school teachers (Livingstone et al., 2011). This is yet another testament to the possibility and the necessity of teachers’ involvement with improving their own and their pupils’ digital competencies.

With regard to the possibility of pupils’ exposure to various dangers through the Web, and the limited amount of evaluative studies focusing on teachers’ involvement with pupils in promoting fundamental Internet awareness in or outside the school classroom, the literature itself highlights the vital role of schools in promoting and ensuring safety measures and pedagogical guidance of both pupils and parents in crucial Internet matters. Moreover, the need for providing teachers with higher technological competence (Chen, 2008; Al-Fudail & Mellar, 2008; Todman & Day, 2006; Reynolds et al., 2003; Chou, 2003; Leu, 2000) and innovative pedagogical guidance for Internet safety issues seems immense but is pretty much insufficient (Wishart & Morris, 2007; Valcke, et al., 2007; Wishart, 2004). This claim once again highlights the necessity of improving

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teachers’ digital competence and regarding it as part of their pedagogical and curricular activities. It should one of the basic tasks of teachers to improve their digital competence and pass it on to their pupils due to the ever-growing need for digital competence in society.

Likewise, other factors equally seem crucial in preparing the teachers for satisfying pupils’ Internet application needs. This preparation includes effective involvement and positive approach of teachers to new digital media platforms as well as their flexibility to take an approach that is relative to pupils’ developmental needs, beliefs, and cognitive standards. As a result, such preparations help teachers to seek, inspire, support and facilitate pupils’ critical thinking while setting the scene for an Internet safety pedagogical environment in class (Anastasiades & Vitalaki 2011).

3.2.11 To investigate the impact of teachers’ digital literacy on pupils’ self-efficacy Parent Zone and the Oxford Internet Institute found that a child’s level of digital skills and confidence were among the factors that were positively correlated to building online protection self-efficacy and online resilience. Thus, systematic upskilling of pupils’ and teachers’ level of digital literacy has proved to be positively related to pupils’ self-efficacy in handling technical and resilience-related undertakings. Such skills underpin a child’s ability to navigate the online world (Best, 2017). Correspond- ingly, UNICEF study reports such as The State of the World’s Children 2017: Children in a Digital World, confirms the role of schools and schoolteachers’ digital competence in building this perception of resilience for their pupils (UNICEF, 2017, 128- 129). However, it is worth mentioning the importance of improving digital skills and digital literacy among pupils is not only to provide them with a sense of resilience against online threats while they also play a significant role in pupils’ future careers.

At the same time, families, educators and children’s advocates are growing more concerned and more confused by the lack of consensus among experts on the rewards and risks of connectivity, as the time children spend on digital devices increases day by day. Many parents also struggle with conflicting messages that they should limit screen time, on the one hand, and get the latest devices for their children so that they can keep up with the fast-changing digital world on the other. This is perhaps a never-ending debate, but it is quite certain that the unlimited and especially unsupervised

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connectivity has the potential to cause harm, whereas access to the wealth of information, entertainment and social opportunity has the potential to benefit children around the world. Consequently, it is rather necessary to find a way to provide children with the necessary support and guidance they need to improve their self-efficacy in protecting themselves against cyberbullying and in terms of taking most of their online experiences. In order to meet this goal, there is a need for teachers who are digitally literate to help their pupils advance the opportunities and minimizing the risks of digital media (UNICEF, 2017, 128-129).

It is generally believed that improving teachers’ digital literacy at primary and secondary schools plays a significant effect on improving pupils’ competencies about the productive utilization of digital media. This strategy is most specifically applicable in the countries where there are no school counselors, such as Germany, to take charge of improving pupils’ knowledge of digital literacy through conducting workshops and extracurricular activities, and who eventually attend to the pupils affected by the negative effects of digital media. Improving teachers’ digital literacy not only improves their pupils’ quality of utilizing digital media but also it helps learners to better align with modern society and turn into leaders for the future labor market (Voogt & Roblin, 2010). This effect has been significant enough for the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science (Dutch: Ministerie van Onderwijs, Cultuur en Wetenschappen; OCW) to include digital literacy among the main domains that are put together to establish a more future-oriented education curriculum (Onderwijs 2032, 2016), for their next generation of primary and secondary school pupils. Consequently, the first step in the urgent need for improving digital literacy among pupils is for teachers to enhance their own level of digital literacy. Teachers’ confidence in their acquired digital knowledge helps the pupils to build up their self-efficacy in terms of dealing with digital threats (Voogt & Roblin, 2010).

Siero (2017), in a guideline for supporting teachers in teaching digital literacy, indicates that pupils are in a great need of education about the proper application of digital media. The research that is done in Stichting Leerplan Ontwikkeling (SLO, foundation for the development of curricula) in the Netherlands points out that although youths were surrounded by a multitude of electronic devices and applications, only 30% of the pupils in secondary education can gather and process digital information without additional guidance (Meelissen et al., 2013, 50-55). This suggests that education is

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lagging behind in this digital revolution. In line with this claim Thijs et al., and van der Hoeven indicate that despite the growing importance of ICT, large-scale implementation of teaching learners about the methods of how to effectively use ICT is still not achieved (Thijs et al., 2014). Schools, therefore, have to reconsider how teachers prepare their learners for the 21st century. The curriculum needs to be adapted to modern society, and teachers have to be supported in implementing this new curriculum (Izzo, et al., 2015, 109-119).

Another misperception that is rightfully highlighted in UNICEF’s 2017 study is about the false perceptions of digital natives’ ability to safely use digital media. This study indicates that it is right to consider the present generation of children as digital natives, but that does not mean they do not require guidance and support to make the most of digital media opportunities and connectivity. Similarly, they do not automatically understand their vulnerability to online risks or their own responsibility to be law-abiding digital citizens. Therefore, it is fair to say that both pupils and teachers need to enhance their level of digital literacy. Whether digital literacy is coming from teachers, parents or the media, it increases pupils’ self-efficacy in protecting themselves against online risks. Hence, it is important to teach pupils and build up their self-efficacy in protecting themselves from online dangers like cyberbullying, sextortion, loss of privacy and rep- utational risk as well as utilizing safety and protection features (UNICEF, 2017, 128- 129).

In this respect, Thijs et al. (2014) argue that both teachers and pupils’ lack of efficacy in addressing issues that are related to digital media originate from their limited digital literacy. This assumption is closely related to the self-efficacy theory of Bandura (1977), which concerns a person’s belief in his or her capacity and ability to accom- plish a challenge. Now, let us consider the fact that education and learning new skills is a task that traditionally is fulfilled at schools. As a result, one can claim that improving pupils’ level of digital literacy and therefore their self-efficacy in terms of dealing with issues that are related to digital media should be also addressed at schools. None- theless, to make this objective come true there is an urgent need to improve the level of digital literacy among schoolteachers so that they could carry on with improving their pupils’ level of digital literacy (Thijs et al., 2014).

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3.2.12 To investigate the impact of teachers’ digital literacy on response efficacy I could argue that improving teachers’ knowledge of digital literacy has a direct effect on their willingness to help and the efficiency of the responses they give to their pupils with regard to their digital media concerns. The interesting fact about this relationship is indeed in the improvement of teachers’ willingness to help with their pupils’ digital concerns; otherwise, the improvement of response efficacy is at least in part self-ex- planatory. The reason behind this argumentation and the necessity of improving teachers’ digital literacy and the core of the aforementioned relationship is best illustrated by Thijs et al. (2014) who state that teachers would not comment on matters related to digital media when they do not consider themselves competent in this field. Hence, teachers need professional development of their own knowledge, and skills about digital literacy as well as teaching matters related to digital literacy and only then they can support their pupils in improving their quality of digital media experience. This can even help teachers address the negative effects and threats such as cyberbullying that are related to digital media if any pupil of theirs is undergoing matters as such.

Similarly, Woo noted that the so-called “personal barriers” (Woo, 2016, 839-855), may hinder the professional development of teachers’ digital literacy skills. These personal barriers include confidence, technological and pedagogical knowledge and an individual’s motivation and additional engagement. All of these concerns bring this to mind that providing the teachers with sufficient means and motivation to improve their knowledge of digital literacy helps them not only to improve their confidence in practicing this field of knowledge but also it to improve the efficacy and efficiency of the responses that they give to their pupils in terms of safeguarding themselves against the threats of digital media such as cyberbullying.

In this context, according to Deci and Ryan (2000), a three-step stimulating process is needed for a person to successfully undertake any kind of growth or development and teachers are no exception. These three steps are the basic needs for competence, relatedness and autonomy. Competence is about the professional ability to implement a specific field of knowledge and skill set. Relatedness refers to being curious and motivated to comprehend and internalize a subject to the point that it becomes part of your mental model, and autonomy implies one’s freedom about what to learn and when to learn. A teacher’s three-step stimulating process in improving his or her digital media competence looks like this: gaining the professional knowledge or competence in how

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to use digital media in his or her own field and how to improve one’s resilience against threats such as cyberbullying; next, relatedness happens through understanding the developmental aspects of digital competence and problems that may come up along the way and feeling motivated to deliver this knowledge to his or her pupils; lastly, as per autonomy, the systematic approach to learning and teaching the technical and threat protection aspects of digital media utilization will be the goal.

Deci and Ryan (2000) claim that providing an environment where teachers can volun- tarily develop their competence, relatedness, and autonomy in digital media, can enhance their general confidence in teaching and advising their pupils about such concerns. Such conditions need to be taken into consideration when designing teacher support for digital literacy. Given the fast-changing landscape of digital media, as it is happening around us, teachers do relate themselves to – and should feel the motivation to – improving their competency in this field whether it is for their own benefit or that of their pupils or both. However, the lack of systematic opportunities to improve their digital competence and that of their pupils’ might hinder this development.

3.2.13 To investigate the impact of pupils’ perceived self-efficacy on handling cyberbullying Before further investigating and explaining on this objective, it is worth mentioning once again that social media threats such as cyberbullying affect both the victims and the offenders. Conversely, in the case of cyberbullying, the risk of negative effects such as depression, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts are rather significant among the offenders than the victims (Foody et al. 2015). Likewise, Foody et. al., (2015), report a lower level of self-confidence among bullying perpetrators. In line with this perspective, the present research regards the impact of self-efficacy on reducing the risks of involvement in cyberbullying in both victims and perpetrators.

In the words of Maddux, and Rogers (1983), we read:

As predicted the probability of a threat’s occurrence and the effectiveness of a coping response both had positive main effects on intentions to adopt a recommended preventive behavior. More importantly, the findings provided support for self-efficacy expectancy as a component of protection motivation theory: Self-efficacy had a direct influence on intentions and

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interacted with other indicators of protection motivation (Maddux, & Rog- ers, 1983, 469).

By this, and in order to explain the relevance of this quote to the present thesis and the objective at hand, I could underline the importance of self-efficacy in enabling pupils in handling the cyberbullying as an external factor. According to this quote, self-efficacy enables the pupils to believe in their own potentials and the response that is coming from their media competent teachers to protect themselves against cyberbullying. Therefore, The first step in the pathway of prevention and protection against cyberbullying perpetration is for pupils to employ all the faculties and methods in their environment to curb and control the negative effects of cyberbullying and possibly elimi- nate it from their system. However, neither the victims nor the perpetrators would make any active attempts to utilize these resources unless they felt absolutely confident in themselves and their abilities to incorporate the available coping strategies to neutralize the effects of cyberbullying.

The victims are very likely not to employ even the best strategies if they do not believe in their ability and their efficiency in helping to improve the system. As mentioned before self-efficacy is an individual’s belief in his or her ability to execute behaviors necessary to produce desired outcomes. It describes the confidence in the ability to exert control over one’s own situation (Bandura et al., 1999). Self-efficacy beliefs determine how people feel, think, and behave in order to employ their best efforts to restore the safety and security in their system (Armitage & Conner, 2001; Bandura et al., 1999). Self-efficacy is often the predictor of future behavior (Armitage & Conner, 2001; Poyhonen et al., 2010). Here I would like to underline, s it is explicitly included in the Protection Motivation Theory, self-efficacy functions as a cognitive perception of one’s capability aiming to apply the available strategies and resources to resolve the problem at hand.

Previous studies have found a direct relationship between traditional peer victimization and self-efficacy (Fitzpatrick & Bussey, 2014; Markward et al., 2008). Markward et al. (2008) found that pupils with higher level of self-efficacy in coping with conflict reported having less peer victimization and fewer depressive symptoms in a sample of early adolescent females. Further, Singh and Bussey (2010) used hypothetical peer victimization situations to show that self-efficacy could be used as a significant element in coping strategies in order to mediate depressive symptoms.

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Another potential importance of self-efficacy in coping stems from the understanding of coping with stress as a process rather than a static event (Batanova et al., 2014; Lazuras et al., 2013). When a stressful event activates a coping response, a social– cognitive process starts to select and mount a response. Part of this process involves recognition of the stressor, assessment of the responses available, availability of resources to respond or ability to obtain the support needed, selection of a coping strategy, and enactment of that strategy. In a true process model, it should also include obtaining feedback about whether the coping strategy was successful and adequate. Self-efficacy mediates between the selection of a coping strategy and continuing with that strategy. If a youth does not perceive they are capable of, for example, confronting the bullying, even if they have been taught how to do it, most probably they are not likely to make any confrontation attempts.

Further investigation in the works of different researchers reveals that the link between the ways that Internet self-efficacy might affect cyberbullying perpetration is more complicated than what meets the eye. Savage and Tokunaga (2017) have looked into the relationship between four variables, namely, cyberbullying perpetration, aggression, social skills, and Internet self-efficacy, in order to establish a model to predict the factors that may trigger or hinder cyberbullying perpetration. Based on the findings of these scientists, increasing the social skills of the participants with high Internet self-efficacy and a high level of verbal aggressiveness resulted in lowering the possibility of sending hurtful or embarrassing messages over the Internet or mobile technologies. This result was achieved even though both high Internet self-efficacy and high level of verbal aggressiveness, on their own and in absence of social skills, led to a higher level of cyberbullying perpetration.

Similarly, there have been other scientists such as Conner and Armitage (1998), McMillan and Conner (2003), and Hamilton and White (2008) who regarded self-efficacy among the main predictors of the intentions that form adolescents’ behaviors in line with the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB; Ajzen, 1991, 2002). These predictions include aggressive behaviors toward peers such as bullying, sexual harassment and abuse (Li et al., 2010).

The justification that Savage and Tokunaga (2017) suggest for this phenomenon, specifically in the case of digital media harmful behaviors, is that pupils with high Internet self-efficacy are aware of their capability to trace and hide their digital footprints and

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therefore do not fear using this medium to cyberbully others. Likewise, those with a high level of verbal aggressiveness look for any opportunity to take their aggression out on other pupils, and it is a lack of Internet self-efficacy that might hinder their decision for cyberbullying perpetration. However, by introducing social skills to this system the rate of cyberbullying perpetration drops. Social skills include dimensions of appropriate behavior in social settings, resisting against behaviors that harm or hurt others such as cyberbullying, or showing empathy toward people who are going through a hard time. Such skills are considered as a form of self-control over acting pro-socially, or, in other terms, resistance to acting antisocially. Enhancing social skills functions as a benchmark on how to act appropriately in social situations for those with high level of aggressiveness. These findings suggest that Internet self-efficacy as it is achieved by young adults without intervention from an educator who would introduce aspects of social skills and empathy to one’s system of digital media application can provide negative results such as cyberbullying perpetration (Savage & Tokunaga, 2017).

Similar results were pointed out in the work of Teimouri et al. (2018). Their study is against the idea that online self-efficacy, on its own, predicted fewer online risks such as cyberbullying or more online privacy concerns. They suggested the ability to recognize and deal with unpleasant or disturbing experiences online, is not a predictor for reducing exposure to online risks. In other words, it may have reverse effects; therefore, to make sure that such adverse effects would not happen in the system, there is a need for mentors such as schoolteachers to improve pupils’ self-efficacy as well as their social skills. This is contrary to many past findings in the literature, which suggested awareness of virus protection strategies has a positive impact on information security (Lee et al., 2008) or that privacy concerns have a positive impact on coping behaviors and shall prevent the exposure to online risk such as cyberbullying (Youn, 2009).

Studies such as that of Lee et al., (2008) and Youn, (2009), argue that Internet users who are concerned with information privacy have a greater chance of maintain their online privacy. However, these studies did not find any association between privacy protection and exposure to online risk. Several alternative explanations are possible. Self-confidence in the ability to protect oneself from undesired experience online might be stronger among pupils with higher levels of self-efficacy and perhaps self- assumed digital literacy. However, due to inadequate understanding of the threats of

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information disclosure, they might fall victim to perpetrators who prey on private information of individuals to cyberbully them. This is perhaps because pupils think they are in control of their information privacy and online safety. As a result, their wrongly perceived efficacy of protecting their privacy may lead to a greater risk of exposure to online risks. However, it may be questionable whether pupils are capable of coping with and avoidance of privacy risks (Teimouri et al., 2018). Given that pupils are still at the earlier stages of forming and developing their online safety skills, it is important to examine possible erroneous beliefs held by the vulnerable applicants; through the intervention of digital literate caregivers such as schoolteachers these issues can be reduced.

The results suggest that in order to reduce exposure to online risks among pupils, these need to have a strong perception of the severity of risks in relation to their concerns about privacy protection rather than susceptibility. In studies such as that of Yau et al. (2014) it is shown that perceived severity of online risk has greater controlling effects on exposure to online risks than perceived susceptibility. The wrong perceptions about both of these factors form wrong perception of self-efficacy which needs to be amended by the caregivers. Consequently, in order to control exposure to online risks such as cyberbullying, there is a greater need for the attention on the severity of online risks rather than the perception of susceptibility and in order to reduce the frequency of cyberbullying perpetration, increasing pupils’ self-efficacy as well as their social skills and their level of empathy seems to be fairly functional.

This conclusion is in line with the findings of Lazuras et. al. (2013), who pointed out the importance of self-efficacy in handling cyberbullying and cyberbullying intentions after assessing an integrated theory-driven process-model of cyberbullying through the incorporation of individual traits such as empathy, self-regulatory cognitive processes (moral disengagement), and social cognitions related to cyberbullying. The findings of their study support the direct effects of social cognition such as social norms (peer and classmate norms) and empathy, as well as situational self-efficacy on predicting and handling intentions of cyberbullying.

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3.2.14 To investigate the impact of teachers’ response efficacy on pupils’ ability to handle cases of cyberbullying Lwin et al. found that PMT constructs, such as response efficacy aiming at motivating safe online behaviors and self-efficacy in terms of performing protective and preventive online behaviors, predicted safe online behavioral objectives. Consistent with their study (Lwin et al., 2012), Doane et al. (2016) suggest that higher response efficacy and self-efficacy regarding electronic communication and safe behaviors were predictive of higher safety while online interactions and electronic communication. This shall be interpreted as in the response efficacy of a teacher, on prevention of cyberbully, can lower the chance of victimization since the pupils would have learned better how to protect themselves ahead of time.

According to PMT gaining response efficacy means getting your subjects to believe your response to their difficulty can resolve it in a rather effective manner. It provides a trusting relationship and a perception that you have the information and the good intention to help them in crucial situations. This would help your subjects to keep re- lying on your responses even if at points you make mistakes. This perception also reinforces their self-efficacy while they would believe that they can handle a difficult situation better while you are around. One of the main functions of response efficacy is that it can lead and redirect the perceptions of self-efficacy (Rogers, 1975). For instance, in the case of a pupil who has developed Internet self-efficacy on his or her own, without the intervention of an expert caregiver, the very perception of Internet self-efficacy increases the risk of cyberbullying perpetration since such pupils believe they can hide their digital footprints. However, in the light of systematic education and instructions of social skills the same pupils have reported to have or make fewer attempts of cyberbullying perpetration (Savage, & Tokunaga, 2017). Response efficacy helps with reducing the probability of cyberbullying through systematic protection and prevention education whereas once pupils gain such abilities on their own, in most cases it has opposite results.

Another application of response efficacy that is indicated by the teachers in the form of advice to their pupils would be on leading pupils’ self-achieved digital literacy as well as providing a clearer perception about the severity of online threats. A study by Teimouri argues that pupils’ perception of their digital literacy can motivate them to take on more risky behaviors which, in turn, can make them more vulnerable to

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cyberbullying. The teachers’ response in such cases can manifest in the form of educating their pupils about the probability and severity of cyberbullying. Consequently, the educated responses from digitally literate schoolteachers or other caregivers have proved to have positive and ameliorating effects on such pupils (Teimouri, 2015).

Anticipated regret, which reflects the feeling of remorse from following (or refraining from) a specific course of action, is another behavioral characteristic that teachers can introduce to their education system to govern pupils’ online behavior. Anticipated regret makes pupils’ intentions more predictable and enhances the link between intentions and behavior (Abraham & Sheeran, 2004; Conner & Armitage, 1998; Perugini

& Bagozzi, 2001; Lazuras, et al., 2013). Sense of empathy toward the victims of cyberbullying is a form of anticipated regret which has proved to reduce the perpetration attempts to a great extent. As a result, an teacher’s efforts to raise empathy for the victims of cyberbullying by explaining the pain and psychological trauma that they are going through is one of the methods to give way to anticipated regret for cyberbullying perpetration. Past research on the related theoretical approaches have shown that individual traits such as empathy, regret or efficacy, whether they are achieved based on the response of an expert caregiver or felt through one’s self capabilities, can indeed influence intentions both directly and indirectly (Conner & Armitage, 1998; Fishbein, 2009; Rhodes & Courneya, 2003).

Conclusively, it is true to say response efficacy in the form of teachers’ advice to their pupils on how to manage threat situations does influence pupils’ ability in terms of bringing the threat situation under control. However, for the advice to be considered efficient and credible, it is very important to make sure that it is well educated and practical for the situation that the child or the young adult is in. There is a great need for the teachers to know about the theoretical and practical aspects of the advice they are giving out and for that, the teachers should seriously take on educating themselves about the related subjects. One thing that teachers should take into consideration at all times is that at the end of the day it is the pupils who decide whether or not they would consider their teachers’ advice as a means of protecting from or hindering perpetration attempts, and that can only happen if such pieces of advice have proved to be practical throughout time (Teimouri et al., 2016).

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3.4 Summary of the Chapter The prime focus of this chapter was to confirm the hypothesized relationships between the variables of the study by referring to related German and global literature. Justifi- cation of these relationships provided a confirmatory ground on the proposed relationships between the variables of this thesis. By this I could say, other renowned scientists have also seen and confirmed similar relationships in their studies therefore I could rely on the presence and practical values of these relationships. Finding valid and practical reasons to justify the relationship between each pair of variables provides an understanding based on which this thesis will take on providing argumentations on how could these variables affect one another based on the arrangement that this thesis is proposing. These argumentations would then establish the ground for formulating policies to help with the prevention of cyberbullying perpetration in schools and among school pupils and young adults. As for the 15th objective of the study, the argumentations in Chapter IV and the policies in Chapter V are regarded to fulfilment this objective which was meant to propose the best practices that teachers could follow to tackle the negative effects of cyberbullying.

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Chapter IV Results and Discussions

4.1 Introduction The aim of this research was to look into the possibility of having schoolteachers to minimize the probability of occurrence and the negative consequences of cyberbullying among pupils. This research is based on the scientific and empirical findings that have proved the hypothesized relationship between the variables in this thesis. In this chapter, the results that have been achieved based on the related literature and the accumulation of different viewpoints on every hypothesized relationship are presented and discussed in order to substantiate the conclusions that are made.

The relationships between the variables were assumed based on the relationship between structurally similar variables in the Attachment Theory and Protection Motiva- tion Theory. The conceptual model of the study (Figure 9) illustrates the schematic relationship between the variables in this study. The variables of this study were placed in relation to each other based on the direct and indirect relationship whereby, there is basically no direct relationship assumed between the primary independent variables namely proximity maintenance, safe haven, secure base and digital literacy of teachers and the final dependent variable of the study which is pupils’ ability to restrict cyberbullying.

Based on this system of relationship the only link of connection between these two categories of variables are self-efficacy and response efficacy. Therefore, I could not and did not assume any moderating effect for these two variables on the relationship between the two aforementioned categories of variables. However, the primary independent variables of the study, or teachers’ proximity maintenance, safe haven, secure base and digital literacy, were proved to be directly related to their response efficacy and pupils’ self-efficacy and the effect of that relationship was proved to have a positive and controlling impact on the prevention of cyberbullying among pupils. As a result, I believe that the combination of these variables in the way that this study has proposed can have restrictive effects on cyberbullying perpetration attempts in the school context. This system of direct and indirect relationships can be traced back to the works of Hair et al. (2016, 6-30); Buyukyilmaz and Cakmak (2013), and Robinson and Morrison (2000).

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4.2 Presentation of Results and Discussions Based on the Proposed Re- search Objectives 4.2.1 Research Conclusions and Arguments on schoolteachers’ Possibility of Proxim- ity Maintenance with Their Pupils With regard to proximity maintenance and the best course of action on how to perform it, at first, I need to confirm pupils’ need for it to handle cases of cyberbullying. Like- wise, its positive impact on pupils’ self-efficacy and its perception of teachers’ response efficacy has to be supported. According to the reviewed literature, at this point, I can tell seeking social support from a teacher, parent, friend or peer as a common strategy in defeating Internet related problems such as cyberbullying is a common practice among pupils if they do not choose to internalize the problem, a claim that is also supported by Raskauskas, and Huynh (2015). I could also argue that seeking social support is regarded as a buffer against negative effects of traditional bullying and similarly, seeking social support has been the most consistently endorsed positive coping strategy for responding to cyberbullying.

I have also learned that proximity maintenance could be age and gender sensitive since seeking social support has been found to be more effective in girls than boys while pupils are more likely to seek and employ social support than young adults. In line with these findings and the earlier confirmations on the importance of proximity maintenance, the teachers who regard themselves as the providers of social support with regard to their pupils’ cyberbullying concerns should make themselves available and approachable in order to make the act of seeking social support as comfortable as it can be for the pupils under their care. It is also important for these teachers to be more patient with boys and older pupils as I know building attachment with them takes more time and effort.

After investigating schoolteachers’ possibility of proximity maintenance with their pupils, it was found that teachers can function as an attachment figure by maintaining proximity with their pupils. The importance of this commitment intensifies once it is realized that the form and level of attachment with the main attachment figures do not stay the same throughout the lifespan of the pupils. Pupils change their source of attachment as different people come and stay in their close proximity and based on the new needs and concerns that they develop as they grow older. As a result, a teacher who is spending more time with a pupil and is concerned about one of the most

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important activities of a pupil which is utilizing digital media, can potentially build a trusting bond of attachment by maintaining proximity with the pupils and of course enhancing their digital competence. Such teachers must educate themselves and keep their digital knowledge up to date to make their advice effective and reliable.

Moreover, the need for building attachment is much greater with pupils who are brought up in unstable families since they may exhibit aggression and perpetration at a higher rate compared to pupils who have a calmer upbringing period. As a result, it takes longer for the maltreated pupils with upbringing difficulties to build attachment with their teachers even though they will build a much stronger attachment with their teachers if the teachers stay in their proximity long enough to win their trust. This claim was also supported by Verschueren (2015). Maintaining proximity shall decrease the level of online and off-line aggression and motivate the pupils to show empathy to their peers. This practice can also reduce the chance of internalizing the effects of cyberbullying.

It is also worth mentioning that even though it is not the teachers’ responsibility to maintain their proximity with their pupils or to make any attempt to support them in cases of online or even offline bullying, the possibility and the positive effects of such relationships on the wellbeing of the pupils as well as the possibility of internalizing such behaviors by the pupils are undeniable. Teachers should also pay attention that proximity maintenance with girls might not be a straightforward attempt either since girls let go of their primary attachment figure much harder. In general, it can be said that teachers’ support specifically on victims of cyberbullying results in greater life satisfaction compared to the cyberbullying victims who had no attachment figure to attend to them or support them in this regard.

4.2.2 Research Conclusions and Arguments on the impacts of Schoolteachers’ Prox- imity Maintenance on Pupils’ Self-efficacy Here I present my investigations into the impact of teachers’ proximity maintenance on pupils’ self-efficacy. In this context, I found evidence that pupils who regarded some levels of proximity with their teachers acted more competently in their social environment. Proximity maintenance of the teachers also helped pupils to deal more

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effectively with conflicts that happen alongside their social interactions such as cyberbullying.

Attachment Theory and, to be more exact, proximity maintenance offers an explanation on the ways that self-efficacy is developed or how it stays underdeveloped in some people. According to this theory the infants who stay in the proximity of their caregivers in the early stages of their infancy and have a good level of proximity with the caregivers are inclined to show a greater level of competence in terms of interaction with other members of the society in later stages of their lives. On the contrary, the infants who do not have the privilege of having a caregiver in their proximity in the same period have difficulties interacting and trusting other members of their social environment in later stages of their lives. This phenomenon is well associated with the development of self-efficacy in the child in terms of feeling secure and competent during their social interactions. Accordingly, the pupils who had the benefit of proximity with a teacher or a caregiver can act more confidently in interaction with the other members of the society and in dealing with problems.

This idea has been supported by Bowlby who explains the very innate motivation in children about seeking proximity of a fixed caregiver at the early stages of their development (Bowlby 1982). According to him seeking proximity with a caregiver is a natural requirement which might be due to the need for protection against physical and psychological threats in the environment. The important thing is that if this natural requirement is properly fulfilled it can help with the development of self-efficacy in subsequent stages, a quality that would enable a pupil to feel fit to look after himself or herself and perhaps other peers who might need his or her protection.

Cyberbullying as a conflict that happens among pupils through their interactions on digital media shall be regarded as a threat that demands close attention of the caregivers to be prevented and to protect pupils against it until the pupils learn how to deal with it on their own. The self-efficacy that pupils develop during the period of proximity with their digital competent attachment figures help them protect themselves against similar threats in later stages of their lives on their own.

Moreover, since cyberbullying threats often come from or are initiated within the school and peer groups and such events often show their effects on the school performance of the pupils over time, it shall be better expected from the schoolteachers to

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detect and address the issue much earlier than other attachment figures like parents. Similarly, since the teachers have a better view of the interactions among the pupils, they can address issues of cyberbullying in a more effective way. Such attempts shall eventually improve pupils’ self-efficacy in dealing with cases of cyberbullying to the point that they can help themselves and other peers who are undergoing cyberbullying perpetration.

Additionally, there seems to be a concern about whether pupils might change their attachment figures from their parents to the schoolteachers. This concern is justified by a magnificent quality in human beings that is illustrated by Attachment Theory. This quality highlights the role of multiple attachment figures in the lifespan of human beings and the fact that motivation toward building attachment does not finish as a child grows up. This is one of the reasons why people look for friends and partners during their life. Therefore, it is fair to propose that the need for which children look for an attachment figure changes as they grow older and learn about other needs and other people who can fulfil those needs better. Teachers, in between, happen to be more present in the close proximity of pupils during their school age and, provided they have enough digital competence, can provide for the necessary prevention and protection needs that pupils have with regard to their online safety and cyberbullying for instance.

An overview on the reviewed literature and past findings leads to the conclusion that schoolteachers’ proximity maintenance has proved to be positively related to pupils’ self-efficacy. It can also be confirmed that proximity maintenance is a factor that infants and later pupils need and quite innately use it to improve their self-efficacy. This study, therefore, concludes that the proximity of a caregiver who is capable of helping and instructing a child out of a threatening context such as cyberbullying will support the social development and normal cognitive development as well as self-efficacy, self-esteem, and coping skills of those pupils.

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4.2.3 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Schoolteachers’ Proximity Mainte- nance on Their Response Efficacy In the investigation of the relationship between teachers’ proximity maintenance and pupils’ perception of teachers’ response efficacy, it was found out that the mere maintenance of proximity might not necessarily contribute to the development of response efficacy. However, the knowledge of the teachers about methods of preventing cyberbullying and protecting pupils against it would positively correlate with the pupils’ perception of their teachers’ response efficacy. So once again the cruciality of digital literacy in relation to the knowledge about aspects of cyberbullying perpetration signifies itself in generating an attitude toward response efficacy among the pupils. In other words, pupils will believe in the suggested responses that come from their teachers on how to resolve a cyberbullying related issue if they consider that teacher as a digitally competent person. Taking on content-related and/or role-play games and exploring simulated situations of cyberbullying perpetration is proposed as an effective strategy for teachers to train their pupils on how to handle cases of cyberbullying. Such activities help the pupils to be prepared if they ever get involved in a cyberbullying breakout, either as a perpetrator, victim or bystander.

In such situations the pupils would have the opportunity of receiving the necessary responses from their teachers on how to tackle different case of cyberbullying. This practice in combination with digital literacy would improve response efficacy and through further practice, pupils develop their self-efficacy as well. Playing age appropriate and content-related games not only provides more opportunities for interaction and collaboration on cyberbullying cases between the teachers and the pupils but also helps them interact in a much less stressful atmosphere. Such approaches would help the teachers and pupils replicate similar approaches in actual cases of cyberbullying. Likewise, the pupils would learn to be less judgmental about their teachers’ digital competence and more cooperative with their teachers with regard to handling and preventing cases of cyberbullying.

As a result, based on the available literature it was concluded that proximity of digitally competent schoolteachers is positively related to pupils’ perception of their teachers’ response efficacy. It is worth mentioning that this relationship is age-sensitive, meaning that it works better with younger pupils and if role play is regarded as an education medium, the games should be designed in accordance with the age of the pupils. I must

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also underline that age-appropriate games in class or counseling room can help pupils and young adults to trust their teacher to disclose their concerns while receiving appropriate feedback from their teachers and work those concerns out. In this sense, I came to regard play therapy as a reliable strategy in enhancing pupils’ perception of their teachers’ response efficacy while developing their own confidence and self-efficacy in handling cases of cyberbullying for themselves and their peers.

4.2.4 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Schoolteachers’ Possibility of Stand- ing as a Safe Haven for Their Pupils In line with the importance of standing as a safe haven, teachers also need to be regarded as providers of emotional support. More specifically, to stand as a safe haven, a teacher should show his or her interest in what is happening in the pupils’ personal life just enough to motivate students to bring related matters to his or her attention should they need emotional support. They can improve their standpoint as a safe haven and a provider of emotional support through socializing with the pupils. Now this position of an emotional supporter would be rather general based on the perceptions that teachers spot from their interactions with the general pupil population and it can become more specific in accordance with the experiences with specific pupil.

Teachers can enhance the quality of their relationship with a pupil once they withhold a significant consideration for this relationship. This claim is also approved by Spilt, et al. (2012). Teachers’ mental representation of the relationship with individual pupils or their narratives can improve the quality of their relationships with individual pupils (Spilt & Koomen, 2009; Stuhlman & Pianta, 2002). In other words, I could argue the manners in which teachers present their education and their intentions have a significant role in pupils’ perception of that teacher as a caregiver. Similarly, teachers’ sensitivity about their relationship with their pupils and the continuity of such a relationship could neutralize the experience of a less secure relationship that a child or a young adult might have had with his or her parents or primary caregivers. Teachers should know about the calming effects of standing as a safe haven on the adjustment of psychosocial difficulties such as depression, loneliness, and anxiety that are well associated with cybervictimization.

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Another thing that needs to be mentioned here is that schoolteachers’ stand as a safe haven and a source of comfort and relaxation for ones’ pupils can take place only on a volunteer basis. It does not mean that maintaining proximity is regarded as a given behavioral possibility among teachers and their pupils. However, due to the long hours that teachers and students spend with each other, maintaining proximity might look like a more achievable quality compared to standing as a safe haven or secure base. As a result, there are contradictory beliefs on teachers’ possibility of standing as a safe haven for their pupils. These beliefs point out that teachers have never been meant to provide support and comfort for their pupils in the time of distress. More so, the annual duration and the official time that teachers spend with their pupils and the fact that pupils share the same teacher would also minimize the chance of building such a close attachment for the teachers to stand as a safe haven for their pupils.

However, such beliefs are debunked in practice since children do turn to their teachers in times of sickness, fear, or distress to seek support and teachers are not unknown to provide the care that the pupils have demanded as much as they can. This is the very essence of safe haven. This is a privilege that some pupils do not receive so much at home or with their primary caregivers which leads to anxiety and difficulty in interacting with their peers. In such cases, the teachers who are willing to provide such care for their pupils can effectively function as a buffer zone. In the case of cyberbullying, pupils are even less likely to receive the necessary care they need from their parents. This, as mentioned before, is because the chance of having received digital competence is much lower for parents and in the case of teachers the possibility of improving media competence is higher. However, in the presence of willing and trained teachers in schools, pupils can receive much of the care and comfort that they need to handle cyberbullying.

Eventually, after all contradictory findings that this study has looked into, I have come to believe that pupils do turn to their teachers in times of distress and perceive their teachers as a safe haven. I could also argue since the attachment system in pupils is more active, their capacity for self-regulation is limited and, therefore, teachers can and, in many cases, do hold a strong stand as a safe haven among pupils therefore all they need to do is realizing this capacity and putting it in good use. I can also argue that teachers’ role as a safe haven is even more important for pupils with family problems or those who have self-regulation or emotional problems. As a result, teachers

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should pay a greater attention to these groups of pupils. This is due to the fact that such pupils receive much less support from their family and peers compared to the pupils who are coming from stronger family background and, consequently, they become more prone to cyberbullying victimization and perpetration.

4.2.5 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Schoolteachers’ Stand as a Safe Haven on Pupils’ Self-efficacy Based on the investigations of this thesis I realized standing as a safe haven would positively affect the pupils’ self-efficacy, as it helps pupils feel both comfortable and secure. The sense of comfort and security is known to help pupils with their self-efficacy and their cognitive belief about their competence in building relations with their peers and other members of society. In other words, a caregiver’s quality of standing as a safe haven reduces anxiety and uncertainty in the social interactions of a pupil, hence, provide the pupil with the ability to perceive his or her environment more effectively and to build healthier relationships. On the contrary, if a pupil would not have the benefit of a caregiver who can stand as a safe haven, he or she would have a hard time trusting his or her peers and would exhibit different forms of anxiety through interaction with his or her peers.

Fortunately, this issue can be detected and rectified by the schoolteachers if, they have the intention to take care of their pupils in such manners. It is part of a teacher’s job to observe and control pupils’ interactions with each other. Consequently, through their observations, teachers can understand if a pupil is anxious while interacting with his or her peers. A constructive strategy that teachers can exhibit is trying to give pupils a sense of security about the school environment and their interactions with other peers. Such interactions with the pupils and interventions in cases of distress, e.g. cyberbullying or cybermobbing outbreaks, would help the teachers to stand as a safe haven for their pupil and reduce their anxiety in interaction with other peers.

The caregiver’s potentials about standing as a safe haven would have similar effects on the online interactions of the pupils. As a result, should anything go wrong through pupils’ online interactions, as it does in the cases of cyberbullying, the potentials of the caregiver, be it the parents or the teachers in terms of neutralizing the situation, can help the pupil develop a cognitive sense of control or self-efficacy throughout such

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interactions. In short, secure attachment to a caregiver and therefore regarding the caregiver as a safe haven can contribute to the development of self-efficacy in pupils. As a result, if the dimensions of safe haven encompass the aspects of pupils’ online interactions as well, it can potentially develop pupils’ self-efficacy in constructing more robust and reliable online interaction and reduce the chances of cyberbullying perpetration.

4.2.6 Research Conclusions and Arguments Regarding Teachers’ Stand as a Safe Ha- ven on Response Efficacy In finding the relationship between teachers’ stand as a safe haven and pupils’ perception of teachers’ response efficacy I realized that this relationship depends greatly on building a trusting attachment between the caregiver and the pupils. In a parallel manner, acting as a safe haven also requires a great deal of knowledge and experience about the field in which an individual would like to play this role. The linking block in between is about having a person who is trained and therefore has a good deal of knowledge and experience in the field of digital media and is willing to extend his or her knowledge to his or her pupils in order to help neutralize their digital media-related issues such as cyberbullying. Here, the extension of one’s knowledge to his or her pupils shall be regarded as a response which would be efficient if and only when the pupils trust on the caregiver as an expert in the field.

As a result, response efficacy would be at its most efficient level if the source of response, or the teacher in this thesis, is regarded as a person who is capable and willing to use his experience and knowledge in helping the pupils cope with their situation more effectively. The analysis of previous experience on related situations where pupils happen to bring cases of physical bullying or cyberbullying to the attention of the school authority confirms this relationship. In all these cases the pupils first made sure that a particular schoolteacher has the knowledge and the motivation to address the situation and if so they would have brought the matters to his or her attention and eventually they would have followed the recommended response accordingly.

There were also indications of a positive relationship between teachers’ stand as a safe haven and their response efficacy based on believing pupils’ tendency to change their safe haven providers from their parents to other sources of care such as teachers. This

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would positively relate teachers’ stand as a safe haven and their response efficacy. Based on this finding, this phenomenon is only partially related to teachers’ digital literacy since pupils tend to continue valuing the responses that come from a safe- haven figure as long as that care provider pays attention to their concerns and tries to help them out of trouble. As a result, this entire relationship depends on whether or not there are teachers who would stand as a safe haven in the school context.

At this point, it is very important not to mix the role of a safe haven and that of a secure base, a variable that I will discuss next in this chapter. Once more to make a brief clarification on the differences between these two variables I shall say a safe haven helps coping with and neutralize the situation whereas the role of a secure base is to help pupils feel secure in leaving their comfort zone, exploring new opportunities and stay safe while doing so and should any difficulty emerge the secure base would try to restore the situation to its previous comfortable form.

4.2.7 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Schoolteachers’ Possibility of Stand- ing as a Secure Base for Their Pupils Standing as a secure base is another factor that, based on the reviewed literature, can help pupils explore digital opportunities while they rest assured that, if things go wrong, there is a more knowledgeable person who can help them restore the situation to its previous comfortable state. In pursuit of standing as a secure base, teachers should exhibit self-confidence, empathy, and care. This claim is in the line with the achievements of Popper and Mayseless (2007). Likewise, teachers motivate their pupils for exploring new opportunities on digital media while maintaining their privacy and their good conduct. This is in fact the quality that helps teachers to provide a better educational profit to their pupils compared to the parents.

At the same time, being regarded as a secure base helps the teachers build and maintain secure attachment with their pupils. Based on attachment-related interactions with sensitive and available caregivers, individuals with a secure attachment style regard themselves as worthy of love and protection and a model of others as passionate, reliable, and protective. In addition, they develop flexible and resilient emotion-regulation strategies, an understanding that is in the line with works of Mikulincer and Shaver (2007, 411- 439). Pertinent to the role of a secure attachment figure, pupils also

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internalize the sensitive and available caregiver’s role (Mikulincer & Shaver, 2004, 159-195), which gives them a tendency and a capacity to care sensitively for others. These developments and internalizations, in turn, place secure individuals in a better position than others to become caregivers themselves.

One of the biggest drawbacks of the investigation on schoolteachers’ possibility of standing as a secure base was the lack of obligation for taking care of the pupils’ physical and psychological wellbeing. However, by the elements that are mentioned in the Bremer Erklärung I can say that even in educational systems such as that of Germany, where the job descriptions of teachers are very clear, there is a need for the teachers to look after their pupils’ physical and psychological wellbeing. To look after the pupils means that the teachers need to make sure that they are motivated and well capable of standing to their educational requirements. Consequently, if there are issues such as cyberbullying perpetration that hinder pupils’ best performance and their wellbeing, the teachers should intervene. In such interventions, the teachers are meant to identify the problem and make active attempts to solve it or bring it to the attention of experts who can help in solving the problem.

By the results presented in this thesis I could debunk most of the skeptic beliefs about teachers’ inability to stand as a secure base for their pupils. Contrary to such beliefs, in this study I argue that teachers can play the role of a secure base more effectively than parents most specifically once online interactions of the pupils are the concern. This belief is due to teachers’ objective view over the risks and opportunities of digital media compared to parents’ misjudgments and even at points their overprotection which is reported to have adverse effects.

Therefore, it should be of a great concern for teachers to be regarded as a secure base. This quality would motivate the pupils to trust their teachers and bring issues such as cyberbullying perpetration to their attention. As a result, if teachers make an active attempt to express their concerns for pupils’ wellbeing, as well as their ability to address cyberbullying issues, the pupils will eventually trust them with such issues that are hindering their educational performance. However, this trusting relationship would take much longer to be establish with pupils whose primary caregivers do not pay enough attention to them, and with older pupils. As a result, teachers must know that pupils with family issues and older pupils are more likely to need a more consistent

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level of attention and that it takes much longer to establish a trusting relationship with them.18

4.2.8 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Teachers’ Stand as a Secure Base on Pupils’ Self-efficacy Based on my investigations on the impact of teachers’ stand as a secure base on pupils’ self-efficacy, I found that a secure base shall be regarded as the best and the most efficient form of attachment in building self-efficacy. Self-efficacy in nature is a mentality based on which a person believes he or she can take care of obstacles that may come his or her way provided he or she is familiar with them through previous training or he or she can figure out according to the past training. Now, it is within the quality traits of a secure base to support a pupil in his or her exploration of new opportunities and if things go wrong the secure base would resolve the difficulties, something that gives the pupil the necessary education on how to deal with similar issues on his or her own.

Perhaps this role is best fulfilled by the pupils’ parents, but parents are not always there for the children which might be due to working hours, or even substance consumption of one or both parents, separation, violence between the parents or parents’ violence against the pupil. Nevertheless, even if these issues are not present in a family there are still three main issues once it comes to standing as a secure base for cases of cyberbullying. These three issues are lack of consistency due to time restraints, lack of knowledge on how to deal with issues as such and at points being overprotective or easygoing on one’s child. Overprotection on its own hinders pupils’ sense of exploration and improvement while it can potentially erode pupils’ self-esteem and perceptions of self-efficacy over time. As mentioned before, to get the proper training requires greater effort and much longer time dedication from parents compared to a schoolteacher who is already in the training atmosphere.

The reason why I believe teachers are better substitutes for parents to stand as a secure base for pupils’ digital interactions lies in the nature of a teacher’s job. Teachers work in a training environment; therefore, it is much easier and more practical to train them. Likewise, teachers are constantly involved with the pupils’ interactions with one

18 One can refer to the findings of Davis (2003), as yet another scientist who shared similar beliefs.

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another as well as their school results. Consequently, the teachers have better ways of finding out about cases of cyberbullying, and they can address it more effectively if they have received the necessary training in this regard. It is worth mentioning that the way pupils are interacting with each other and their school results are the most primal factors that are directly affected by cyberbullying. However, even if a pupil is living in an extra attentive and caring family, the teachers get to find out about the slightest changes in those factors much earlier compared to the parents.

Likewise, I strongly confirm the necessity of at least one secure base for the pupils to build self-efficacy against probable threats and, in the absence of parents or a family member, it would be left to teachers or school counselors to take over this task. As a result, I am strongly in favor of training and motivating teachers to support their pupils if they face cases of cyberbullying. Such attitudes are deemed to function very effectively in lowering the negative consequences of pupils’ digital adventures and help them go forward. Teachers’ standing as a secure base contributes to pupils’ self-regulation capacities, and therefore to their self-efficacy in adaptive social and academic functioning. Consequently, close and non-conflicted relationships with teachers improve pupils’ stress regulation capacities which, in turn, are regarded as positive developmental abilities in handling external threats such as bullying or cyberbullying.

4.2.9 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Teachers’ Stand as a Secure Base on Their Response Efficacy Standing as a secure base has proved to have positive and meaningful impacts on response efficacy. There are, however, a few methods that teachers should take on in order to improve their response efficacy. Praising the pupils for all the new adventures and progress that they are making with their online activity and digital efficiency highlights the role of a teacher as a secure base. This factor gains importance once the pupils encounter cyberbullying issues and look for a trusting figure to seek advice from and follow his or her response until the problem is solved. Showing interest in the personal life of the student is yet another factor that can give the figure of a secure base to the teachers, and it is known to improve teachers’ response efficacy among their pupils. This relationship helps to make a stronger bond between pupils and their teachers and gives essential knowledge to the teachers about the type of pupil as well as his or her family background so that they can make a better judgment about the type

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of pupil they are dealing with. As a result, teachers can adapt their responses to that particular pupil in a more specific way.

Problems such as cyberbullying are deemed to be related to the school interactions and activities of pupils. Now, a teacher who accepts to play the role of a secure base for his or her pupils shall detect and address this issue much faster and more effectively due to his or her closer contact with the context where the problem emerges. Based on this contextual factor the pupils can also relate better with the solutions that their teachers offer for the school-related problems. Correspondingly, teachers can play the role of the secure base more effectively since they often foster exploration, creativity, and personal growth at the point of time that the attached individual is not distressed. How- ever, this only happens if the pupil accepts the teacher as an attachment figure and regards him or her as a secure base. Another factor that has a great effect in between is teachers’ knowledge about the nature of cyberbullying perpetration as well as his or her digital media competency which they should acquire through related training. Once all these elements are put together, the teachers can expect their pupils to apply their responses in safeguarding themselves against cyberbullying and continue seeking further protective and preventive applications out of them in the subsequent school-attending years. These findings eventually stress out the necessity of having a teacher, a counselor or a faculty member in the schools to stand as a secure base for the pupils to provide necessary advice for the pupils in the case of a threat.

4.2.10 Research Conclusions and Arguments on the Possibility and Benefits of Im- proving Schoolteachers’ Digital Competence In terms of improving teachers’ level of digital literacy in a rather systematic way, it is important to highlight teachers’ perceptions about the seriousness of their role in controlling cyberbullying. Teachers are more likely to address bullying if they believe the problem is serious and that they have a key role in reducing cyberbullying. Build- ing capacity in teachers involves supporting teachers’ motivation and improving their digital competence. This means not only that teachers need to be trained about the nature of cyberbullying, and methods of tackling this issue in schools, but they should be motivated to acquire such trainings and apply them in their jobs and with their pupils.

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Attending training courses that enhance teachers’ digital literacy as well as their ability to address social media threats such as cyberbullying can increase the understanding of the harmful effects of cyberbullying. Likewise, achieving this understanding and making the effort to control cyberbullying at school improves teachers’ self-efficacy in confronting aggression on school-related platforms. Trainings that include role- playing and intervention scenarios are among methods that shall improve teachers’ self-efficacy in dealing with cyberbullying. This argumentation is also in the line with achievements of (Bell et al., 2010).

At the same time, with the new turns that education is taking teachers’ need for improving their digital competence is ever more becoming an undeniable factor in their jobs, despite their intense schedule. Whether it is a self-developing factor or an attempt to facilitate their pupils’ digital needs, teachers must try to gain training to improve their digital competence. However, if the improvement of pupils’ digital competence is the concern, teachers should focus on the issues that are of greater demand for the age group of pupils that they train. This requirement is due to the need for a systematic development of pupils’ digital competence.

Internet awareness and ensuring online safety measures demand a higher level of attention and education. With regard to exposure of pupils to online threats, most specifically cyberbullying which affects the physical and psychological wellbeing of pupils as well as their school performance, it is important to educate pupils as well as the parents. In practice, this is a kind of education that should be started at school by the teachers and passed on to the parents through their children and teachers.

Thus, the teachers and the digital media competence trainers play the most crucial role in this context. Consequently, the necessity of incorporating digital media competence trainings in the pedagogical training courses that teachers undergo as preparation for the job of teaching must be proposed. Such training would provide the ability to support and facilitate pupils’ critical thinking while setting the scene for an Internet safety pedagogical environment in class.

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4.2.11 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Teachers’ Digital Competence on Pupils’ Self-efficacy My investigation regarding the impacts of teachers’ digital literacy on pupils’ digital self-efficacy shows that only a systematic approach to the development of pupils’ digital skills can achieve an acceptable result. Families and school authorities are constantly being pulled between the contradictory ideas on whether the pupils should further venture into the digital world and take advantage of the latest digital technology, or whether this process should take on a more moderate pace. In between I have identified a few factual achievements that can help with making more educated decisions in this regard. According to the reviewed literature, teachers’ digital literacy and their attempt to pass this knowledge on to their pupils can potentially improve pupils’ self- efficacy in dealing with their digital demands and online threats such as cyberbullying. However, it does not mean that if a teacher is a digital media literate person and helps his or her pupils with their digital media concerns whenever such concerns are brought to his or her attention, then this method can potentially improve pupils' self-efficacy in dealing with cyberbullying related issues.

There is no doubt that such attempts can go a long way but since they are not systematically designed the results are not predictable. This thesis, however, suggests that teachers should first improve their personal digital competence in terms of using the software programs and digital platforms that are available in their own fields. At the same time, teachers are advised to take an own effort to learn about protection and prevention measures about digital issues such as cyberbullying that are prevalent among the pupils. Later on, when they are conducting their courses, they can guide their subject materials through and on the bases of the available digital platforms and ask the pupils to perform their tasks by means of the related software programs.

This approach would also give the teachers the chance to monitor the good performance and proper conduct of the pupils and the way that they interact with each other. A systematic approach toward improving the digital competence of both teachers and pupils not only improves the career opportunities of the teachers and motivates them to take on tasks as such, but it also improves the self-efficacy of the pupils in terms of dealing with digital threat and related undertakings that they may encounter. The other benefit of this system is that the performance of the teachers and the pupils, as well as the aims and objectives of their education, can be traced, evaluated and improved.

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4.2.12 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Teachers’ Digital Competence on their Response Efficacy Improvement of digital competence and digital literacy in teachers would naturally improve the effectiveness of the responses they provide to their pupils’ digital concerns such as cyberbullying. However, improvement of teachers’ willingness to help with digital concerns of their pupils, such as cyberbullying, seems to be a more attention- worthy element which seems to be improved significantly as teachers increase their digital competence and their digital awareness. The reason behind this phenomenon is the fact that teachers normally would not involve themselves in matters that they are not very competent in; yet once the competence is acquired, they seem to be willing to contribute to the improvement of their pupils’ digital experiences.

Another element that helps teachers improve their level of response efficacy through the improvement of digital literacy and digital competence is by improving their confidence and autonomy in the field. Basically, competing with the digital natives in the field of digital media is perceived as a losing competition for people who are practically less involved and seemingly have less experience in this field. As a result, teachers often chose not to meddle with such concerns despite the fact that they might have observed the destructive effects of issues like cyberbullying among their pupils. How- ever, by increasing the level of digital competence, the teachers would gain autonomy and therefore the confidence they need to intervene and try to resolve a matter that is hindering their pupils’ performance as well as their psychological and physical wellbeing. In this process, apart from helping pupils with their digital concerns, the teachers would also improve their digital competence in their own field which is a valuable act of professional and human resource development.

On the other hand, it is hard to believe that response efficacy would not be achieved once the source of response cannot fulfill the technical requirements of his or her subjects. However, it is my belief that the pupils would start to trust the response that is coming for their teachers once the teachers have established a trusting relationship with their pupils and after a few successful interventions in cases of cyberbullying. It is needless to mention that establishment of the trusting relationship would happen after maintaining one’s proximity and standing as a safe haven and a secure base for the pupils’ digital activities.

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4.2.13 Research Conclusions and Arguments on Pupils’ Perceived Self-efficacy on Their ability of Handling Cyberbullying

Based on the model proposed in this thesis, teachers can potentially build up and enhance their pupils’ self-efficacy to protect themselves against cyberbullying. Teachers should motivate the pupils to identify and use the elements of support based on their teachers’ training and gradually start taking charge of their digital media usage. Pupils should rest assured that they can always refer back to their teachers in unknown or crucial circumstances. Initially I believed that pupils’ self-efficacy in dealing with cyberbullying and prevention of its occurrence can boost the attempt to prevent this threat but, after reviewing the related literature I realized that self-efficacy can help with prevention of cyberbullying only if it is the result of proper digital education or else it may even have reverse effects. This outcome was in the line with the research findings of Teimouri et al. (2018).

This behavior will have two educational qualities for the pupils. Firstly, pupils develop the ability to identify efficient and reliable sources of support in order to substitute the previous sources in the case of displacement or loss of previous caregivers. Secondly, seeking social support cannot be considered as the ultimate strategy for pupils and young adults to tackle cyberbullying problems. In other words, the provider of social support should also try to build up a sense of resilience or self-efficacy in pupils so that they would gradually gain the ability and start taking charge to attend to their own concerns and even become a provider of social support for other peers. Bandura proposed that self-efficacy can be developed through four different steps namely mastery experiences, vicarious experiences, social persuasion, stress reduction (Bandura 1977, 191-215). In this thesis however, I propose these steps are attainable once a competent trainer supports the process of building self-efficacy.

According to Bandura (1977), Mastery experiences are the most effective way of increasing the feeling of self-efficacy. In simple words, this strategy is about repeating successful behavior. Naturally, it can best take place in the presence of an expert who can instruct the best course of action in any given situation. Making use of teachers with a high digital competence in this strategy is very important because it would stim- ulate the motivation in both teacher practitioners and the pupil practitioners to do it themselves and repeat the successful strategies. Vicarious experiences are examples of successful protection and prevention methods which can also increase the sense of

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efficacy. Watching an instructive video or attending educational events or workshops could be regarded as practical methods of practicing this strategy (Bandura 1977, 191- 215).

In explanation of Social persuasion, Bandura (1977), defined the verbal as a confirmation of others’ ability to take on a challenge, is also known to increase the feeling of self-efficacy. This strategy works best once practiced parallel to methods of building the ability to handle cases of cyberbullying. Stress reduction strategy is the final method which has both physical and psychological implications on pupils’ behaviors while performing an activity and can affect the judgments of personal efficacy. Re- ducing stress reactions can be achieved when working on the other three aspects. When working on one or more of these aspects, the feeling of self-efficacy can be improved. This is important because low self-efficacy can negatively affect pupils’ motivation and increase anxiety upon taking any protective and preventive strategy, also approved by (Deci & Ryan, 2000). Negative self-assessments on self-efficacy can also indicate that professional development is needed to increase the basic need of feeling and being competent to perform a task (Bandura 1977, 191-215).

After reviewing the available literature, I could argue improving pupils’ self-efficacy, in terms of protection and prevention against cyberbullying perpetration, seems to have positive effects on reducing the occurrence of cyberbullying among pupils. However, the findings presented in this thesis do not confirm the effectiveness of this relationship in total isolation. Based on these findings, the presence of a few other factors such as improving the social skills and empathy and the company of mentors such as schoolteachers are rather necessary for an element such as self-efficacy to moderate the occurrence of cyberbullying among pupils.

In reducing the occurrence of cyberbullying, I have taken both attempts of perpetration and victimization into consideration. In both cases, self-efficacy has proved to have positive effects in reducing the level of cyberbullying. In the case of the victims, pupils’ perception of their ability to use the available means of prevention and protection against cyberbullying would bring about a sense of self-efficacy to handle cases of cyberbullying. Some of these means are the suggested methods that pupils can follow on their own as well as seeking help from the available faculties such as their media competent schoolteachers. It is very important for the pupils to establish a sense of self-efficacy in terms of their ability to use the available sources; otherwise, they will

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not even consider taking advantage from the available sources of help no matter how effective they are.

Improvement of self-efficacy has also proved to reduce the perpetration attempts among the cyberbullying perpetrators. An explanation to this phenomenon might be since the perpetrators have often been victims of cyberbullying before, they take their perpetration attempts as a defense mechanism. However, in the presence of self-efficacy in using the available means to protect themselves, they would not see any reason in taking on their self-asserted method of protection. While this explanation stays as an assumption, it is factual that self-efficacy on its own would not lead to lowering the perpetration attempts among cyberbullies. It is, in fact, an improved sense of empathy and improved interpersonal and social skills that can help cyberbullying perpetrators reduce or stop their perpetration attempts. Based on the findings of this thesis, there is a need for a systematic method of establishing self-efficacy among the pupils. This method should encompass improvements of social skills and empathy to reduce the probability of perpetration as well as stressing the perceived susceptibility and severity of the threat to reduce the willingness to commit high-risk activities which would increase the risk of victimization.

4.2.14 Research Conclusions and Arguments on the Impacts of Teachers’ Response Efficacy on Pupils’ Ability to Handle Cyberbullying Response efficacy is a quality that teachers shall gain through the establishment of a close and trusting relationship with their pupils. Empathy training and education about the invisible yet devastating effects of cybervictimization should be one of the primary educations that teachers should give to their pupils about cyberbullying. This is also included in cyberbullying intervention programs, with additional emphasis on cognitive (thinking) components of empathy for boys and affective (emotion/feeling) components of empathy for girls.

Teachers’ response efficacy can improve pupils’ ability to handle cases of cyberbullying in a number of ways. Firstly, it would reduce the time and the burden of going through all stages of getting bullied while taking on a trial and error procedure to remove one’s self from the vicious cycle of cyberbullying. Secondly, as it helps pupils to learn how to protect themselves against and prevent future cases of cyberbullying,

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it develops a realistic belief about the severity of and susceptibility to this online threat. On the contrary, when the victims of cyberbullying learn how to protect themselves against cyberbullying on their own, their self-education might generate a false sense of absolute self-efficacy about their ability to handle cyberbullying threats. Beliefs as such can motivate the pupils to take on high-risk activities which can put them in much greater difficulty such as cybermobbing, i.e. being bullied by a group of people. It can also generate a false belief about the ability to erase one’s digital footprint which can lead to taking on perpetration attempts.

Thus, the knowledge and ability to handle cyberbullying which is gained through systematic education or through seeking an efficient response from a digitally competent teacher will be more reliable and sustainable. Such a response can provide the ability to handle cyberbullying alongside increasing social skills and therefore less probability of perpetration. It can also provide a realistic perception of severity and susceptibility to cyberbullying which would minimize the probability of making high-risk activities and therefore chances of cyberbullying victimization. Nonetheless, it is only the educated responses that motivate the pupils to keep returning to their teachers and seek advice on how to protect themselves against cyberbullying perpetration attempts. Therefore, teachers should use all available opportunities to improve their digital competence if they mean to protect their pupils against cyberbullying.19

Such training has been successful in reducing offline as well as online aggression and cyberbullying behaviors. pupils could be taught to view issues and grievances from the victim’s perspective and to learn to vicariously (imaginative through the actions of another person) experience the emotions of the victim as opposed to engaging in typ- ical responses of victim-blaming. Transferring these cognitive and affective empathy skills from an offline to an online context with reduced social-contextual cues is a big challenge. Therefore, in the context of providing empathy training, it is important to personalize the serious and real consequences of cyberbullying such as suicidal ideation and suicide attempts, and to send the message that if these consequences can happen to a fellow peer, they can happen to anyone including themselves (Ang & Goh, 2010).

19 The impact of response efficacy on improving handling capacity of pupils has been also reflected in a study Teimouri et al. (2015).

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Apart from concepts of empathy training and looking after pupils and young adults that are more vulnerable to cyberbullying, there are other precautions that need to be taken into consideration as measures of bringing cyberbullying under control. One of these measures is looking for and being mindful about a special group of pupils and young adults that are also very likely to be or become cyberbullying perpetrators. Bul- lying can be regarded as a form of behavior that can go way out of control in the presence of affectionless characteristics or, as Bowlby puts it, “affectionless psychopathy” (Bowlby, 1944, 19-53). Conversely, it seems quite reasonable to monitor youth with this characteristic or those who have the family and background requirements to develop such characteristics. Bowlby’s ‘affectionless psychopathy’ describes individuals who cannot exhibit caring behaviors, or affection for other people. Such people do not have empathy for others. Bowlby believes that separation (or deprivation) from a secure source of care and affection during the first two years of infancy or, generally, in the pupils’ early life can cause this phenomenon.

People with affectionless psychopathy or at least those who have an accumulation of issues that can potentially cause this psychological issue show no or very little remorse, guilt, shame, or sorrow for their bad deeds, and in cases they might even enjoy their behavior (Dickens & Wood, 2015). Even though Bowlby’s concept seems rather old, there are recent studies that take similar factors such as maternal separation or deprivation in the pupils’ early life into consideration in order to trace deviant behaviors that are associated with lack of empathy and very little remorse toward the victims (Conradi et al., 2016; Duft et al., 2017, 219-230; Dickens & Wood, 2015).

One other aspect that is worth mentioning and perhaps most teachers can relate to is the proliferated application of smartphones and the fact that these devices can be used as a means of cyberbullying in many ways. With the constant accessibility and the networking of young people among each other smartphones offer many opportunities for networking and productive communications on one hand, but they also require responsible handling of the technical options such as forwarding images and messages as well. Applying some disciplines that would inform pupils about the harm that a smartphone can cause, might be a strategy to control the cyberbullying effects that a smartphone can mediate, without interfering with pupils’ freedom of communication and educational diversity.

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Various communication platforms such as WhatsApp, Snapchat, and Instagram offer many opportunities of networking, following others and exchanging ideas, texts, images, soundtracks and videos. In these platforms, one can easily capture images, quickly edit them with embarrassing filters or comments. Because of the high level of communication among young people, the question arises as in whether false or offensive content does get passed on, and whether such attempts are intentional or uninten- tional. To answer this question in 2017 and 2019 a survey has been done. Based on the results of this survey in 2017 the proportion of those affected is (11%) where boys (12%) experienced such events slightly more often than girls (9%). The proportion of those affected by the problem of encountering insulting and embarrassing pictures and videos increases slightly with the age group of the subjects (12-13 years: 8%, 14-15 years: 10%, 16-17 years: 13%, 18-19 years: 12%). At 14%, adolescents with lower formal education are more affected than those with higher education (9%). (Feierabend et al., 2017, Figure 10).

Figure 10. A Scale of having one’s Embarrassing/Offending Photos/Videos Spread (Fei- erabend et al. (2017). JIM-Studie 2017)

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According to JIM-Studie (2019), in the year 2019, once pupils were asked whether embarrassing or offensive image(s) (photo or video) about them have ever been distributed, the answer was affirmative by 13%. Girls (15%) were more often victims here compared to boys (11%), and the age group that were affected more could be found among 16 to 17-year-olds (20%) (Figure 10)20 (Feierabend et al., 2019). How- ever, this rate increases in 2020 as illustrated in a comparative manner in (Figure 5) (Chp. 1.6, pp. 61) (Feierabend et al., 2020).

According to JIM 2017 Two-fifths of the adolescents could confirm that someone in their circle of acquaintances has been at some point bullied through a smartphone. Girls (42%) have seen this phenomenon more often than boys (33%). As the age of the pupils increases, the horizon of experiencing this phenomenon also extends. As a result, one in four pupils aged 12 to 13 years reported such incidents in their circle of acquaintances (Figure 11) (Feierabend et al., 2017).

Figure 11. A Scale of Acquaintances Who Have Been Affected through Mobile Phones (Feierabend et al. (2017). JIM-Studie 2017)

20 There has been a 2% reduction in this figure in 2018 since in that year 19% of German pupils have reported false or offensive content being spread about them via smartphones or generally online (Fei- erabend et al.,2019).

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The level of education also plays a role in this content. The probability of being cyberbullied by means of smartphones is significantly higher at Hauptschulen and Realschu- len or corresponding degrees at 26% compared to Gymnasiums (17%) (Feierabend et al., 2017). The report in JIM 2019 for the question whether they have already noticed a cyberbully victim, in the circle of their acquaintances, among the 12 to 19-year-olds was positive by 31% (2018: 34%) (Feierabend et al., 2019).

The above-mentioned rates and figures confirm the fact that often times girls are more prone to cyberbullying than boys and cyberbullying perpetrations happen as pupils get older. However, as the level of education increases the rate of cyberbullying perpetration decreases (Feierabend et al., 2017; Feierabend et al., 2019). Here I could argue that the variation based on the level of education shall be due to self-acquired empathy among the pupils throughout their schooling period and encountering cases of cyberbullying either as a victim, perpetrator or even a bystander. on the contrary, it seems like girls are more prone to cyberbullying victimization therefore the educations and trainings should have a higher focus on them.

At the same time, I have to address the ascending rate of cyberbullying perpetration as the pupils get older. In this regard I could suggest the trained teachers to have a greater focus on training the younger pupils on how to prevent cyberbullying while trying to help the older pupils to protect themselves against it.

This strategy is based on the belief that the younger pupils who have experienced cyberbullying in a lower rate would have a higher tendency to comply to the provided cyberbullying prevention strategies. That is because often times cyberbullying perpetration is due to past experiences of cyberbullying where the perpetrator regards his or her perpetration actions as a defense mechanism or even a vengeful act. As a result, having had less chances of falling victim to cyberbullying perpetration would provide a better ground for basing the prevention trainings.

Another noteworthy strategy that teachers and schools as a whole can take into consideration in order to minimize the cyberbullying incidents is the “Olweus Bullying Prevention Program” (OBPP, see chapter 1.5). The main goals of the OBPP are to reduce the existing bullying problems among the pupils at schools, to prevent the ex- pansion of new bullying problems, and to establish better peer relations. This program is basically initiated to control bullying incidents at schools, but it is also applicable

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on reduction of cyberbullying. It aims at reducing the risk of school failure, anti-social behavior, which in the case of cyberbullying includes the reduction of anti-social behavior on social media, and negative peer influence while increasing opportunities and rewards for pro-social behavior.

The OBPP is delivered at four levels (Olweus, & Limber, 2010). Applying this method in order to reduce cyberbullying incidents not only requires special OBPP training for the teachers, but also systematic digital media competence pieces of training for the teachers as well. Here are the four levels of OBPP:

1. School-Level Components • Establish a Bullying Prevention Coordinating Committee • Conduct committee and staff trainings • Administer the Olweus Bullying Questionnaire schoolwide • Hold staff discussion group meetings • Introduce the school rules against bullying • Review and refine the school’s supervisory system • Hold a school kick-off event to launch the program • Involve parents

2. Classroom-Level Components • Post and enforce schoolwide rules against bullying • Hold regular class meetings • Hold meetings with students’ parents

3. Individual-Level Components • Supervise students’ activities • Ensure that all staff intervene on the spot when bullying occurs • Conduct serious talks with students involved in bullying • Conduct serious talks with parents of involved students • Develop individual intervention plans for involved students

4. Community-Level Components • Involve community members on the Bullying Prevention Coordinating Committee • Develop partnerships with community members to support your school’s program. • Help spread anti-bullying messages and best-practice principles in the community

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4.3 Summary of the Chapter Overall, the proposed thesis and the argumentations that I have made as well as the strategies that I am proposing are backed by on related scientific achievements. Based on the findings of this thesis, teachers and school authorities can successfully practice the three elements of Attachment Theory, namely, proximity maintenance with their pupils, standing as a safe haven for their pupils and providing a secure base for them. Improving digital literacy, the one variable which I added to the rank of attachment theory variables, was also proved to be practical among schoolteachers and school authorities.

One of the main arguments based on the results presented in this chapter is that no amount of ICT education or digital media competence can help the teachers unless the pupils trust them with their cyberbullying related or digital media related concerns. Therefore, any attempt for attachment building and enhancement of digital media competence has to go on hand in hand. The teachers and the caregivers need the pupils, be it the victims, peers or even the perpetrators, to open up to them and seek their advice on how to handle cases of threat. Teachers’ media competence can go a long way in terms of educating the pupils on how to safeguard themselves. Such educations can make the pupils realize threats such as cyberbullying and try their best not to fall victim to it. In the case of perpetrators, education can motivate them to develop more empathy, but it cannot guaranty that no cyberbullying would happen after that education. At- tachment building is necessary for the pupils so that if the go through cyberbullying, despite all initial educations, they would return to and seek help from the more educated and trusted person to help them out.

Based on the review of the related literature in three and the conclusions in this chapter it can be confirm that proximity maintenance, standing as a safe haven and secure base can positively affect the pupils’ self-efficacy and teachers’ response efficacy in controlling cases of cyberbullying and cyber-perpetration. However, to put it in more practical terms, every teacher who intends to hold the responsibility of a caregiver regarding pupils’ cyberbullying or other digital media concerns should maintain a fair rate of proximity with the pupils by being present among them. These teachers shall present a nonjudgmental image toward either the victims or the perpetrators in order to stand as a safe haven or a caregiver whom the pupils feel safe in his or her presence with regard to their digital media concerns. Standing as a secure base, however, requires a

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fair amount of digital competence from that teachers’ side with regard to cyberbullying cases so that the pupils would know that if in fact, despite all protective measures something related to cyberbullying happen to them, they can trust this caregiver to help them out of their difficulty.21

These four variables were also proved to be positively related to improving pupils’ self-efficacy in protecting themselves against cyberbullying and response efficacy of teachers’ advice concerning the prevention of cyberbullying. In general, based on the results that were derived from the reviewed literature, this chapter confirms that schoolteachers can function as the primary caregiver in protecting their pupils against cyberbullying. I also realized that after winning pupils’ trust, the teachers can better spot cases of threat and pull either the victim or the victimizer pupils out of the vicious cycle of cyberbullying by providing related trainings and educations.

21 It is worth mentioning that building attachment takes time even among the parents and their children let alone teachers and their pupils. Therefore, the person who is taking on this role must be sure that employment-wise he or she would be able to stay with these pupils long enough to build the attachment and later stay with them to help them with their cyberbully concerns.

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Chapter V Conclusions and Formulation of Policies 5.1 Introduction By the results of the present research, I realized that the problem of cyberbullying among the pupils could be addressed by the schoolteachers if in fact they have the intention to commit themselves to problem. In this research and by the effect of the reviewed literature, I realized after receiving proper Training and Couching in the context of cyberbullying prevention, the teachers can improve their response efficacy and the pupils can develop enough self-efficacy to stand for themselves and even for their peers in prevention of cyberbullying. I believe bullying perpetrators use two general methods to take on their victims. The first method is through using the information that a victim has carelessly given up either on digital media or real life and the second method is by using the digital platform features to take on a victim. This belief is based on the fact that cyberbullying often happens through flaming, harassment, denigration, impersonation, outing, and cyberstalking. Now by educating the pupils on different dimensions of digital literacy one can expect the pupils to make a more conscious approach to their online interactions.

In terms of proper training, the pupils need to be informed about the fundamental structures of digital communication and digital platforms they use. This is how they would better understand how digital media works, how could they put themselves in the risk of falling victim to cyberbullying and how to prevent such incidents. However, it goes without saying that initially this training shall be acquired by the teachers and then would be passed on to the pupils, and here is the concepts that I believe should be included in the forefront of such trainings. These concepts take origin from the dimensions of digital media literacy, as mentioned in the first chapter in the definition of variables, which involve learning the methods of safe access, analyzing the ways and reasons of engaging with digital media, learning about methods and rights that govern content creation and content sharing on digital media, learning about the social and cultural context and the ways that it affects and take effect from the digital media, how to analyze the content and becoming an active audience rather than a passive audience and bystander, and the financial necessities that govern the digital media and inevitably affects our interaction with digital media. This part would be explained in further details in the section dedicated to digital literacy enhancement policies in this chapter.

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Coaching is the practice that brings in consistency and provides the possibility of following up with the trained material for the teachers. It is a crucial practice that demand mutual collaboration and trust between teachers and the pupils hence this is the part requires upholding the elements of attachment. In short it could be mentions that by maintaining proximity in the context of digital media and by aiming at reducing cyberbullying, the digitally competent teachers would enhance pupils’ cognitive ability; by standing as a safe haven in this context they would generate mutual trust; and by standing as a secure base, they would motivate further and more secure digital exploration among their pupils. this enhanced cognitive ability, mutual trust, and motivation for safe and extended use of digital media would in turn the self-efficacy of the pupils and the response efficacy of the teachers in cyberbullying prevention. The policies concerning execution of these three dimensions of attachment building would be explained in further details in the respective sections in this chapter. This coaching and consistency in collaboration between the teachers and pupils and possibly by involving the parents and other school authorities can further enhance pupils’ self-efficacy in prevention of cyberbullying events for themselves and possibly for their peers and it is also meant to enhance the efficacy of teachers’ response to cyberbullying events among the pupils.

By this brief introduction, I meant to highlight the relationships and link between the variables of this research. Therefore, it is my belief that the variables of this research might provide the hypothesized effects in curbing the possibility of cyberbullying perpetration if they are implemented in the proposed relationships with each other. For further information regarding the proposed relationship among the variables of this study you could refer back to Figure 9. The conceptual framework of the study. Hence, if in the following sections in this chapter, the variables of this research and the related policies on how to enhance them are mentioned in seemingly separate sections and apart from each other, it does not mean that I meant to say that implementing that policy in an isolated manner could ever help with cyberbullying prevention among pupils. It is also very crucial to mention that the cultural and contextual aspects of the actual society and context of where these policies shall be implemented should be taken into consideration. As a result, if for instance the policy of restriction of use is socially or culturally prohibited in a particular context, reinforcing it would provide

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adverse effects therefore it is up to the teachers to adapt and adopt the proposed policies to their context of training and couching.

On the base of the investigations made to explore the relationships in the proposed objectives of this thesis, I have also outlined the policies that teachers could consider among their best courses of action to practice in prevention of cyberbullying among their pupils. These policies are divided into two groups. The first group of policies that this study has formulated are based on the relationships in the proposed conceptual model of this study (Figure 9), and the main study objectives. The second group of policies have complementary relevance to this study objectives and are based on the investigations and review of the related literature. The policies formulated are meant to point out more concrete actions which teachers could follow to help with prevention of cyberbullying.

5.2 Formulation of policies Responsible and ethical use of the Internet is not something that teenagers, in particular, consider to be important, and serious consequences emerge as a result of careless and offensive online behavior. Teachers and school faculties have a duty to take care of their pupils’ wellbeing while they are in school and while they are acting on or dealing with school-related matters. Providing awareness of the potentially devastating effects of thoughtless, inappropriate, or malicious online behavior, and to guide the pupils to making wise choices when interacting in a digital world are some of the actions that teachers can train their pupils about to protect them against issues such as cyberbullying.

Before pointing out any policies, it needs to be mentioned that neither in the German schooling system nor in any other region that fell under the umbrella of literature review in this study, teachers can incorporate one to one methods of communication to advise their pupils with their digital or cyberbullying concerns. Such words of advice or intervention methods need to be in the form of a general educational approaches in order to avoid confrontation and denial of the problem on the pupils’ side. However, if the pupils be it the victims, the perpetrators or the peers who are aware of the ongoing cyberbullying attempts approach the teachers to seek help, then teachers can approach the pupils communicate with the pupils on one-to-one basis.

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In the following section I present the policies that are grounded in the findings of this thesis, in terms of the necessity of improving teacher-pupil attachment and improving teachers’ digital media competence; followed by the policies on how to improve the perception of response efficacy and self-efficacy among the pupils. I am also pointing out related policies on how to detect and help pupils who are more likely to become victims or perpetrators of cyberbullying. Likewise, I am referring to some methods through which teachers can reach out for external experts to help them with the cyberbullying-related issues that they cannot handle at schools.

5.2.1 Policies on Attachment Building 5.2.1.1 Proximity Maintenance The best code of conduct with regard to proximity maintenance, for the teachers, seems to be making themselves available for the pupils’ digital concerns. At its minimum, teachers’ proximity maintenance and showing interest in helping pupils with their digital concerns can hinder the negative effects of cyberbullying. Through maintaining this element alone, teachers can give a sense of assurance to the pupils and let them know that they are not alone in dealing with their cyberbullying issues. At the same time, once pupils realize the proximity of a digitally competent teacher, it can enhance their self-efficacy through which they can make more effective attempts in safeguarding themselves and their peers against cyberbullying events. Proximity maintenance of a digitally competent teacher can also improve the perception of teachers’ response efficacy which would motivate the pupils to accept and act according to that teachers’ advice.

The teachers, however, should bear in mind that that proximity maintenance is gender sensitive as boys have proved to take longer to build a link of attachment with and girls seem to have harder time shifting from their primary attachment figure such as parents to the teachers. But in expressing their cyberbullying concerns, boys seem to find it easier to take their teachers as a source of care than girls.

5.2.1.2 Standing as a Safe Haven A combination of proximity maintenance and showing interest in pupils’ emotional wellbeing and providing emotional support could bring about a sense of safe haven.

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This is an essential quality that teachers need to develop to win their pupils’ trust. A teacher who is regarded as a safe haven is the person who would be trusted by cyberbullying victims, perpetrators and bystanders to refer to and seek help with their cyberbullying concerns. A combination of safe haven and proximity maintenance is also known to compensate for the experience of a less secure relationship that a pupil or a young adult might have had with his or her parents or primary caregivers. It is worth mentioning that this compensation works better for younger pupils and girls.

In the extension of the practices related to standing as a safe haven, teachers are advised to praise the pupils for all their online achievements and never judge their failures or misdemeanors. In other words, never look down on a cyberbullying victim and never punish a cyberbullying perpetrator.

5.2.1.3 Standing as a Secure Base Besides being regarded as a safe haven, it is also important for the teachers to stand as a secure base to build and maintain secure attachment with their pupils. Standing as a secure base motivates the pupils toward exploring new opportunities on digital media. A digitally competent secure base can help the pupils discover more digital opportunities while resting assured that should a digital related threat such as cyberbullying emerge, there is a more knowledgeable person who can help with resolving the threat. It is also evident that caring for the wellbeing of the pupils through secure attachment would help them learn and internalize this capacity which can enhance their sense of empathy and the ability to care for their peers.

Holding events in relation with cyberbullying prevention techniques, using age appropriate and relevant games as well as reviewing cyberbullying cases not only could induce trust in proximity maintenance but also helps in this respect. As mentioned before a practice that can also improve the secure base stand of a teacher in the eye of his or her pupils is shifting from blaming education method to praising and motivating methods, most specifically in the context of digital media exploration of children.

5.2.1.4 Policies on Development of Digital Literacy Building secure and trusting attachment among teachers and pupils is an essential process in helping the pupils with their digital media concerns such as cyberbullying. However, building secure attachment cannot go far with digital media concerns unless

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it is paired with the digital media competence of the teachers. Pupils who are digital natives tend to believe they have a better grasp of the ways that digital media function. This impression prevents them from bringing their digital media concerns such as cyberbullying to the attention of their schoolteachers. On the contrary, once they believe that one of their teachers has the necessary knowledge and the tendency to help them with concerns as such, they would seek help.

It is worth mentioning that by digital competence I do not only mean the ability to use social media or instant messaging platforms. It is, in fact, important for the teachers to know about different features of their pupils’ social media or instant messaging platform of choice. These features include but are not limited to how to secure one’s private information while using such platforms, how to activate and improve the safety features of these platforms, or how to differentiate between friends, close friends, and family members in terms of the level of information that they share with them.

However, as mentioned before this is not all that is expected from the teachers in terms of exhibition of digital competence and cyberbullying prevention techniques. Teachers should also have clear knowledge of the interactive digital platforms that they can utilize as education aids and teaching platforms. They should also know about the ways that cyberbullying can emerge in such platforms and in the conventional social media and instant messaging platforms and give related protective and preventive instructions against this threat to their pupils a head of time.

Teachers are meant to know the signs of cyberbullying so that they could approach and try to help pupils that are undergoing cyberbullying perpetration yet are not willing to open up to the teacher to seek help. They could also bring in and try to unravel cyberbullying scenarios with their pupils to educate them on how to make such attempts on their own. This is, in fact, how teachers can exhibit their digital competence in terms of cyberbullying protection and other related digital capacities so that they would win their pupils’ trust in this regard. Another practice that can help the pupils improve their cyberbullying prevention capacities as well as realizing their teachers’ digital competence in handling cyberbullying is role-playing in cracking cyberbullying scenarios. Such practices can improve the bound of trust between pupils and teachers with regards to cyberbullying prevention practices while improving pupils’ self-efficacy in handling similar cases on their own.

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Supporting the development of teachers’ digital skills and digital literacy seems to be a vital yet possible attempt to be taken into consideration. To make sure that this level of competence is acquired by the teachers, it can be included in the human resource development practices of schools or education systems, or the teachers can go for them on their own as key performance indicators. Either way, now more than ever, teachers need to develop their own ICT skills and that of their pupils to be able to use the full potentials of digital media and ICTs. The teachers should train and develop methods of safe Internet use beyond their classroom activities. These policies are in line with the UNICEF report of 2017 on the same topic (UNICEF 2017, 128-129).

In terms of digital literacy and the improvement of teachers’ digital competence, I suggest a systematic curricular approach toward improving teachers’ digital literacy and digital competence. This is due to the fact that only a systematic training can improve teachers’ and later pupils’ digital competence and scattered approaches to this matter would not bring about any palpable results. Investment in more sophisticated and complex digital skills should become a training standard for both teachers and pupils alike. Such education trends should be provided for the teachers so that they could develop their own skills and knowledge to support their pupils’ use of ICTs and to help them develop and understand safe Internet use beyond the classroom. The necessity of gaining such training requires the governments to provide education and training programs for teachers and should fully integrate digital literacy into teachers’ pedagogy and pupils school curricula. To make a recap of the proposed digital literacy enhancement policies that this thesis is suggesting I would propose teachers and pupils should enhance their level of digital literacy and digital competence in the following five categories:

I. Teachers need to know about the hierarchy of cyberbullying and how to dismantle it at any given stage

II. Teachers need to be informed about possible psychological and/or physiological effects of cyberbullying on pupils

III. They need to know different social media platforms, how they work, their primal functions and purposes, advantages and disadvantages

IV. Teachers need to inform themselves about the terms of service of the social media platforms that they know their students utilize

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V. Teachers need to be informed about their legal rights and the rights of their pupils in cases of misconduct e.g. cyberbullying,

VI. Teachers need to be informed about the apps and the digital platforms related to their own field. They should then train their pupils on how to use those digital platforms and monitor their interactions on those platforms as well as their interactions on such platforms with each other.

5.2.2 Policies Concerning Protection Motivation Factors 5.2.2.1 Response Efficacy In terms of response efficacy, a good level of social media training and digital media competence, paired with a trusting and collaborative relationship between teachers and their pupils, is needed to improve pupils’ perception of their teachers’ response efficacy. Here I have provided a brief explanation on the methods that teachers can employ to enhance their pupils’ perception of teachers’ response efficacy and how this could help the pupils in minimizing cyberbullying perpetration.

I. Strengthening the teaching of online tolerance and empathy

It is proved that any attempt of raising the level of empathy for the victims of cyberbullying by explaining the pain and psychological trauma that the victims go through, during the process of cyberbullying, is one of the methods to give way to anticipated regret for cyberbullying perpetration. Consequently, I know that individual traits such as empathy, regret or efficacy, are effective in attenuating the intentions of cyberbullying perpetration whether they are achieved through training by an expert caregiver or through the self-comprehension process.

To help with this process, pupils need to be trained to understand the ways that online communication is different from face-to-face communication with its lack of verbal and nonverbal clues and its potential for causing misunderstanding. Socio-emotional learning and the teaching of empathy can develop pupils’ online resilience and help diminish online abuse and hateful language. Such themes need to be incorporated into pupils’ curricula for digital literacy.

Likewise, among the preventive responses, teachers should emphasize on empathy training and, more specifically, cognitive components of empathy for boys and emotional components of empathy for girls. The greatest effect of such trainings is on

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reducing the level of aggression among the perpetrators. Empathy training would also motivate the bystanders to try their best to stop the process of cyberbullying either by intervening on their own or seeking help from a digitally competent teacher.

II. Equal attention to perceived susceptibility to the risk and perceived severity of the risk

One of the policies that this thesis has outlined is the necessity of equal attention to both perceived susceptibility to risks and perceived severity of the consequences. Pu- pils approach to cyber threats and most specifically cyberbullying, is often times biased by thirds person effect whereby they think the threat might not happen to them or they are biased by unjustified and unchallenged perceptions of their digital competencies. As a result, an effective response that teachers can provide to control cyberbullying perpetration is providing a clear picture of perceived susceptibility to cyberbullying and perceived severity of cyberbullying. In other words, teachers need to further clarify for their pupils that anyone of them are as much vulnerable to digital media risks such as cyberbullying as those who have already fallen victim to this threat.

This education should be accompanied by pointing out the severe consequences of cyberbullying for both victims and perpetrators. This can take place through the use of videos or presentation of real cases showing that in most cases the victims did not think they would fall victim to this threat either, but it happened to them. The justification behind this policy is as follows.

According to PMT, perceived susceptibility and perceived severity are part of the first appraisal or threat appraisal. Often, caregivers focus on highlighting the severity of a threat and its consequences in order to motivate the protection and prevention behaviors in their target group. This training behavior has legitimate bases and is supported by findings of scientists such as Teimouri et al. (2018) and Yau et al. (2014), who have shown that perceived severity of online risk has greater controlling effects on exposure to online risks than perceived susceptibility. Teimouri et al. (2018) also mentioned that any level of experiencing the threat can considerably increase the protection and prevention behaviors in the target group. This is the reason why I have proposed the use of real cases, through showing the videos of real cases of cyberbullying victimization, is recommended for the pupils to get as close as they can to a first-hand experience of

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this threat as an attempt to have the maximum motivation of protection and prevention efforts by the target group against high-risk behaviors.

5.2.2.2 Policies Concerning Self-efficacy Improving pupils’ self-efficacy has an important effect in controlling cybervictimization since low self-efficacy would simply incapacitate the pupils on taking advantage of the available resources to protect themselves against cyberbullying perpetration. Lack of self-efficacy prevents the pupils from incorporating any protective or preventive attempts and it would demotivate them about seeking help from possible digitally competent sources. The reason behind this phenomenon, and therefore the great need for enhancing pupils’ self-efficacy, is that a basic level of self-efficacy is needed for the pupils to feel that they can secure themselves and therefore they should try to prevent cyberbullying or protect themselves against it. Role-playing and reviewing cyberbullying scenarios with the students are two of the best strategies that can improve pupils’ self-efficacy.

One of the strategies that is most notably regarded as a moderator of the negative impact of cyberbullying is coping. Coping can support victims’ wellbeing by reducing immediate stress or preventing long-term consequences22. Coping strategies can function as a method for handling the circumstances until they are resolved. Likewise, these strategies could help the pupils who have been dealing with cyberbullying, sometime in the past, and are now dealing with the trauma of that event. There are various coping strategies, and young pupils can be trained to employ these strategies in order to mitigate the negative impacts of cyberbullying. These strategies are also in line with the Transactional Model of Stress and Coping (TMSC: Folkman & Lazarur, 1984). The suggested model includes three coping strategies, namely problem-focused coping, emotion-focused coping, and avoidant coping.

Problem-focused coping consists of all actions aiming at changing the stressful situation either through one-to-one action groups or in collaboration with others (Parris et al., 2012). The stand of this thesis regarding this coping strategy is to confirm seeking social support from the family, peers, or teachers as an attempt thing that pupils need

22 These findings are reflected in detail in the studies of Machmutow et al., (2012); Perren et al., (2010); as well as Sleglova and Cerna, (2011).

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to make to prompt the society in providing support to buffer negative effects of cyberbullying once they are dealing with this phenomenon. By applying the problem-focused coping strategy, the victim addresses the problem and prevents it from occurring in the future, by for instance, standing up to cyberbullying or seeking help from a digitally competent teacher. This attempt helps such pupils to resume their social and interactive activities much faster and minimizes the probability of isolation and its negative consequences.

Emotion-focused coping is all about managing the emotional consequences of cybervictimization. Two emotion-focused coping strategies are internalizing, in which emotions from the stressful situation are directed inward without discussing them with others, and externalizing, which involves dealing with the negative emotions from the stressful encounter by taking them out on others or objects (Parris et al., 2012). My approach to this coping policy is that while both internalizing and externalizing strategies seem to be the natural inclination of an individual in terms of dealing with over- whelming emotional situations; however, in the presence of an experienced teacher, the pupils would be prevented from directing the negative emotions inward and on the contrary, they would be motivated to express their emotions to their teachers, counselors, or caregivers to find the right way of dealing with them.

Avoidant-focused coping includes the victim’s attempts to mentally or physically disengage from the stressful situation. These strategies include distancing actions in which one avoids the stressful situation by either walking away or blocking upsetting messages (Jacobs et al., 2014). Here I would like to underline that this strategy has positive functionalities, but it can have negative consequences if not handled by a trained caregiver. As a matter of fact, avoiding cyberbullying, without maintaining restricting policy against the situation, shall not be considered as a solution. However, a temporary avoidance period would provide a buffer time for the child and the caregiver to prevent the victim from receiving e.g. hate massages but at the same time provide a proper resolution to help both the victim and the perpetrator out of the vicious cycle of cyberbullying.

Here I would like to highlight the fact that the process of choosing a coping strategy depends on both the stressor and the resources available to the person attempting to cope with it. In other words, if there is a digital literate and contextually educated caregiver available, he or she can potentially motivate the child to take the right coping

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strategies to address the problem and prevent it from escalating or repeating in the future. In this process, the contextual competence of the caregiver and the predesigned attachment between the caregiver and the child plays a crucial role in bringing the pupil to seek assistance from such available caregivers.

5.2.3 Policies on Detecting and Attending to High-risk Pupils The teachers and school faculties need to detect the pupils that are dealing with cyberbullying effects whether these events are currently in progress or the pupils have gone through them in the past either as victim or perpetrator. The importance of this issue is due to the fact that victims of cyberbullying can turn into cyberbullying perpetrators, and the severe consequences of cyberbullying are sometimes beyond control for both victims and perpetrators if not detected in the early stages.

Teachers and school authorities have a privilege to detect high-risk cases much earlier than parents. This is due to the fact that they are more in contact with the pupils’ interactive behaviors with each other and their school results. This is while we know that falling victim to cyberbullying manifests its negative effects in the school performance of the pupils and how they interact in the group activities. Likewise, the bully perpetrators would also show uncooperative and aggressive or negative aggressive behaviours in their interactions with their peers. At the same time, the teachers are less biased about the best behaviours of their pupils than parents. As a result, Having an eye on pupils that are more vulnerable to cyberbullying perpetration can give teachers an upper hand and allows school authorities to control cases of cyberbullying as early as possible.

School authorities are advised to inform the teachers who are in charge of the prevention of cyberbullying at school on the personal issues that pupils have. These teachers are also advised to maintain a close attention on these pupils and be open to them should they feel the need to approach the teachers regarding current cases of cyberbullying or an undocumented problem. Basically, all pupils that are regarded as margin- alized due to a social, cultural, family, physical or mental problem are potentially at risk of being victimized; therefore, a closer attention to them and their performance and wellbeing is recommended.

As per the results of this thesis, the pupils who belong to some particular categories of difficulties require a much closer attention from the teachers who are in charge of

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controlling cyberbullying at schools. These categories are mentioned in different sections of this thesis, but I am bringing them together in this section to ease the process of tracking them:

I. Pupils who come from acrimoniously separated families II. Pupils who come from distressed families where parents hardly play any protective role in their lives III. Pupils whose parents or one of the parents have a record of substance abuse issues, IV. Pupils whose parents or one of the parents exhibits or have exhibited aggression or domestic abuse23 V. Pupils who have self-regulating or emotional problems VI. Pupils who are reported as being maltreated24 VII. Pupils who suffer from psychosocial difficulties such as depression, loneliness, anxiety, as well as non-heterosexual pupils, gifted pupils and pupils with lower grades VIII. Pupils whose both parents or one of the parents had been born abroad and/or have an immigrant background IX. Pupils who live away from home, their parents, or a primary caregiver X. Pupils who work in part-time jobs XI. Pupils who are socially less active XII. Pupils who belong to a racial ethnicity other than dominant or the racial majority in the society XIII. Pupils who have or based on their family background are likely to have affectionless characteristics25 XIV. Pupils who show moral disengagement and those with self-belief in their ability to engage in cyberbullying without being detected26

23 Pupils in this particular category are among the most potential ones for falling victim to cyberbullying and becoming cyberbullying perpetrators as well, therefore, teachers or school faculty should view pupils who are experiencing family difficulties (whether temporarily or overtime) as particularly vulnerable cases to online threats. 24 Such pupils are known to exhibit a greater level of psychological proximity seeking, and they express a greater level of reliance on the teachers who make themselves available a source of comfort and support. 25 cyberbullying is a form of behavior that can go way out of control in the presence of this characteristic. There is more information about this characteristic in this chapter IV of this thesis under Conclusions and Arguments on the Impacts of Teachers’ Response Efficacy 26 Teachers can use moral disengagement scales, relevant to their context, to find out about pupils that are at a higher risk of exhibiting cyberbullying perpetration behaviors and eventually regard them as high-risk pupils. A more detailed explanation on how to use moral disengagement scales shall be found in the study of Osofsky, Bandura, and Zimbardo, (2005).

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5.2.4 Seeking Help from External Authorities The pupils need to know, even in the absence of a caregiver with regard to cyberbullying issues, that there are hotlines that they could contact and seek counseling and help with their problem in Germany and most other European and North American countries. Caregivers are advised to inform pupils about these lines and point out their specifications as in whether they are meant to provide help to them or their parents and whether they work 24/7 or there are only certain hours in which the pupils can contact them. In the case of Germany here are some options:27

Children and Young adults: Monday-Saturday from 14:00 - 20:00 Tel: 116111 Tel: +49 40 42849-0 (always in service)

Parents’ line: Monday-Friday from 9:00-11:00 Tuesday and Thursday from 17:00-19:00 Tel: 0800 111 0 550

Last but not least this thesis suggests the formation of a task force, consisting of voluntary schoolteachers and/or principals in every school, whose members have their level of digital literacy enhanced and take on prevention of cyberbullying based on the proposed policies in this thesis. This responsibility and implementing it would be voluntary in education systems such as that of Germany as in such education systems having a position like a school counselor or a school therapist is not obligatory practice. However, in education systems such as that of the United States of America, this responsibility can be carried out by the school counselor. Taking on such initiatives shall put applicability of the proposed policies into practice while providing contextual understanding from the issue of cyberbullying.

27 Caregivers should keep in mind that these contact numbers and their terms are service are subject to change and before providing them to their pupils they should make sure the numbers are still working in the manner that they expect.

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5.2.5 Noteworthy Points in Cyberbullying Prevention Training

I. Pupils must know that texting causes misunderstanding simply because you do not see the other person’s facial expressions or the exact intentions behind a message you received and deem as unfriendly or hostile. Therefore, an essential point of education is that jumping to conclusion and escalating the very first interpretation is always wrong.

II. Capturing images from other people in an inappropriate context and posting it online is like throwing acid on a person’s social image. It can potentially ruin his or her future career opportunities and totally change a person’s course of life.

III. Cyberbullying victims who have the benefit of receiving support from their teachers or peers report having higher life satisfaction compared to those who do not have this privilege. Likewise, paying attention and motivating the best performance of the cyberbullying perpetrators seems to reduce the frequency of taking on or returning to the acts of perpetration.

5.3 Recommendations for Further Research and Practices As a recommendation for further research, I mean to propose the introduction of formulated policies in this study to the teachers in the focused regions and a reevaluation of the findings in similar regions after a year to further check the practical validity and reliability of these policies. Similar attempts have been done in different forms by Ger- man organizations such as LfM through the Medienscouts project (Medienscouts NRW, 2019). However, I recommend focusing on teachers rather than peers. It is understood that in the initial levels such attempts would take place on voluntary basis since there are not any specific positions defined in the German school system, such as a school counselor, to take on such attempts. Through such reports, one could evaluate and report the results of his or her practices of these policies and therefore provide further improvements in this field.

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5.4 Summary of Research This thesis looked into the ways in which teachers can improve their level of digital literacy as well as their knowledge of digital threats such as cyberbullying and, more importantly, how they can stand as a trusted figure among their pupils to help them with the digital media related needs that these might face. The reviewed literature confirmed the hypothesized relationships, and, in some cases, a new method was suggested in order to ensure the achievement of estimated results. In the end, all attachment factors namely proximity maintenance, safe haven and secure base as well and digital literacy showed to be positively related to teachers’ response efficacy and pupils’ self-efficacy but with different impacts.

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CURRICULUM VITAE

Name: Rahim Benrazavi E-mail: [email protected]

EDUCATION 01/2016 - present Ruhr-University Bochum, Institute for Media Studies, Bochum, Germany Ph.D. in Media Studies, Date of Defense: 11/20/2020 Focus: Social Media, Online Risks, and Opportunities, Attachment Theory, Pro- tection Motivation Theory 10/2008 - 09/2011 University Putra Malaysia, Department of Modern Languages and Com- munication, Serdang, Malaysia Master of Science in Organizational Communication Focus: Corporate Communication, Decision Making, Teamwork, Job Satisfac- tion, Conflict Management 02/2003 - 04/2007 Bahonar University of Kerman, Department of Literature and Modern Languages, Kerman, Iran Bachelor of Arts in English Literature Focus: British Literature, Greek Mythology

WORK EXPERIENCE 10/2017 - present TELUS International, Essen, Germany Subject Matter Expert: research and implementation of policies for the moder- ation of the content on different Facebook platforms 05/2017 - present Ruhr-University Bochum, Career Services, Bochum, Germany Lecturer: lecturing the courses "Self-Presentation for Assessment Center and Job Interview" and “Presentation Skills and Public Speaking”

04/2017 - present Ruhr-University Bochum, Institute for Media Studies, Bochum, Germany Lecturer: developing and lecturing different courses in the field of Communi- cation and Media Studies 06/2016 - present BOSKOP - Das AKAFÖ-Kulturbüro, Bochum, Germany Lecturer: lecturing the course "Public Speaking and Presentation Techniques"

04/2012 - 12/2015 HELP College of Arts and Technology, Center for Southern New Hamp- shire University (SNHU), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Lecturer & Adjunct Faculty Member: - Lecturer for Communication, Human Resource Management, Business and English proficiency subjects

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03/2014 - 09/2014 Upper Iowa University, Kota Damansara, Malaysia Lecturer & Student Advisor: lecturer for Communication and supervisor of final year projects

05/2010 - 03/2012 Razavi Group Sdn. Bhd., Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Public Relations Director: project manager and responsible for market analysis

10/2008 - 04/2010 Rapid Media Sdn. Bhd., Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Editor & Translator: edited and translated materials for the company’s maga- zine

PUBLICATIONS, LECTURES, WORKSHOPS, AND SUPERVISED PROJECTS/THESES

PUBLICATIONS Journal Articles: Teimouri, M., Benrazavi, S. R., Griffiths, M. D., Hassan, M. S. (2018): A Model of Online Protection to Reduce Children’s Online Risk Exposure: Empirical Evidence From Asia. Sexuality & Culture. 1-25

Benrazavi, R., & Teimouri, M. (2015): The Application of Parental Mediation Model on Online Game Addiction among Adolescents: A Conceptual Review. International Journal of Art & Humanity Science (IJAHS). 1(1). 45-48

Teimouri M., Hassan S., Griffiths M, Benrazavi R., Daud A., Bolong J., Adzharuddina N A, (2015). Assessing the validity of Western measurement of online risks to children in an Asian Context. Child Indicators Research, 1-22. doi 10.1007/s12187- 015-9316-4

Benrazavi, S. R., & Silong A. D. (2013): Employees’ Job Satisfaction and Its Influence on Willingness to Work in Teams. Journal of Management Policy and Practice, 14(1). 127-140

Benrazavi, S. R., & Teimouri, M. (2014): The Application of Parental Mediation Model on Online Game Addiction among Adolescents: A Conceptual Review. Paper presented at The Proceeding of 3rd International Conference on Advances in Social Sciences (ICASS) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Conference Paper: Benrazavi, S. R., Teimouri, M. (2014). The Application of Parental Mediation Model on Online Game Addiction among Adolescents: A Conceptual Review. Paper presented at The Proceeding of 3rd International Conference on Advances in Social Sciences (ICASS) in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia)

Benrazavi, S. R., Hasan, H., & Zamri Ahmad. A. M. (2011): Identification of Employees’ Perception of Achievement, Recognition and Nature of work in Relation with Communicative Teamwork. Paper presented at The Proceeding of the First Scientific Conference of Iranian Students in Malaysia, University Putra Malaysia, Malaysia

Book: Benrazavi, S. R., Hasan, H., & Zamri Ahmad. A. M. (2010): Herzberg’s Motivation Factors and Communicative Teamwork (1 ed. Vol. 1). Saarbrücken, Germany: Lambert Academic Publication. ISBN: 978-3-8433-9188-7

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LECTURES Ruhr-University Bochum, Institute for Media Studies, Bochum, Germany (2017 – present): Benrazavi, S. R.: Privacy and Public Interaction in Social Media (LV-Nr. 051 729) Benrazavi, S. R.: Media Competence in Practice (LV-Nr. 051 743) Benrazavi, S. R.: Data Harvesting and Social Sorting (LV-Nr. 051 728) Benrazavi, S. R.: Privacy and Public Interaction in Social Media (LV-Nr. 051 729) Benrazavi, S. R.: Wissenschaftssystematik und aktuelle Forschungsthemen der Medienwissenschaft (LV-Nr. 051 754) Benrazavi, S. R.: Social Media and Global Perspectives (LV-Nr. 051 729) Benrazavi, S. R.: Social Media and Child Protection (LV-Nr. 051 730)

HELP College of Arts and Technology, Center for Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (2012 – 2015): Benrazavi, S. R.: Introduction to Communication (COM126) Benrazavi, S. R.: Social Media (COM310) Benrazavi, S. R.: Exploring World Culture through Mass Media (COM320) Benrazavi, S. R.: Communication and Human Sexuality (PSY331) Benrazavi, S. R.: Communication Skills (ENL1008) Benrazavi, S. R.: Communication and the Media (MGT2119) Benrazavi, S. R.: Social and Business Communication (MC100) Benrazavi, S. R.: Corporate Communication (COM332) Benrazavi, S. R.: Organizational Communication (COM430) Benrazavi, S. R.: Business Communication (ENL1010) Benrazavi, S. R.: Basic Composition (ENG101) Benrazavi, S. R.: Introduction to Creative Writing (ENG226) Benrazavi, S. R.: Sophomore Seminar (ENG200) Benrazavi, S. R.: Enrichment Course in English Language (HCEP001)

Upper Iowa University, Kota Damansara, Malaysia (2014): Benrazavi, S. R.: Utility of Online Gaming on Social Interaction of Malaysian Youth Benrazavi, S. R.: The Impact of Video Sharing on Malaysian Youth’s Communication Behavior Benrazavi, S. R.: The Impact of Social Networking Mediated Communication on Malaysian Youth’s Social Development Benrazavi, S. R.: The Impact of Parental Mediation on Online Gaming Addiction among Malaysian Youth

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LECTURER OF WORKSHOPS Ruhr-University Bochum, Career Services, Bochum, Germany (2017 – present): Benrazavi, S. R.: Self-Presentation for Assessment Center and Job Interview Benrazavi, S. R.: Presentation Skills and Public Speaking

BOSKOP - Das AKAFÖ-Kulturbüro, Bochum, Germany (2016 – present): Benrazavi, S. R.: Public Speaking and Presentation Techniques

ELC International School, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (2015): Benrazavi, R., Ciaramicoli, I., Rathnayake, C. N. (2015): Social Media and Child Protection Description: This event was meant to inform the parents whose children were studying in ELC International school, about the nature of Cyberbully and the ways that they could protect their children against it.

SUPERVISOR OF FINAL YEAR PROJECTS/THESES Ruhr-University Bochum, Institute for Media Studies, Bochum, Germany (2017 & 2018): • Social Comparison on Social Media Platforms: Instagram Body Challenges as an example for self-evaluation practices • The Impact of Applying Facebook Privacy Settings on the Reduction of Online Grooming Attempts • The Impact of Search Engine Optimization on Online Marketing • Social Media and Health Research in Azerbaijan

ORGANIZER OF WORKSHOPS Social Media and Child Protection (2015): Guest lecturers: Rahim Benrazavi, Ilaria Ciaramicoli, Chandana Namal Rathnayake Description: This talk was meant to inform the parents whose children were studying in ELC International school, about the nature of Cyberbully and the ways that they could protect their children against it.

STD Awareness Talk (2013): Guest lecturer: Dr. Ilias Yee, Clinical Coordinator at the Center of Excellence for Research in AIDS, University Malaya Description: This workshop was conducted to provide awareness on different types of sexually transmitted diseases, the ways they are getting transmitted and methods of prevention.

Silent Sufferers (2013): Guest lecturers: Ms. Ivy Josiah, Executive Director of Women’s Aid Organization. DSP Ziaton Bt Lah, Head of Sexual Unit (D11), Polis Diraja Malaysia. Ms. Illaria Ciramicoli, Clinical Psychologist, HELP CAT Description: This public event was organized to raise awareness on sexual harassment in offices.

Journalism under Fire! (2012): Guest lecturer: Ms. Shahannaz Habib, Senior Journalist at The Star Newspaper Description: This workshop was conducted as an eye-opener for Communication and Psychology students on hardships of reporting and corresponding in a war zone as the war is going on.

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