
Loyola University Chicago Loyola eCommons Dissertations Theses and Dissertations 2016 Restoring Trust: A Grounded Theory Study of Cyberbullying Among Young Women Nancy H. Camp Loyola University Chicago Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss Part of the Nursing Commons Recommended Citation Camp, Nancy H., "Restoring Trust: A Grounded Theory Study of Cyberbullying Among Young Women" (2016). Dissertations. 2123. https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss/2123 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at Loyola eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Loyola eCommons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. Copyright © 2016 Nancy H Camp LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO RESTORING TRUST: A GROUNDED THEORY STUDY OF CYBERBULLYING AMONG YOUNG WOMEN A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY PROGRAM IN NURSING BY NANCY HAND CAMP CHICAGO, IL AUGUST 2016 Copyright by Nancy H Camp, 2016 All rights reserved. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The journey toward a Ph.D. is never easy, but it is made more manageable by those who support us in that journey, especially the dissertation committee. I would like to thank my chair, Dr. Nancy Hogan, for her support, wisdom, and patience throughout this process. She taught me the tenets of classical grounded theory and the beauty of “trusting the process”. Dr. Barbara Velsor-Friedrich brought a wealth of adolescent research experience, friendship, and compassion. Dr. Linda Cassata offered qualitative research experience with adolescents and young adults, and her calm demeanor always made me feel comfortable. This journey would not have been possible without the loving support of family and friends. My husband, John, provided support, strength, and encouragement from the sidelines as my personal “coach”. My son, Matthew, always encouraged and supported me even when my work kept me from family time. He assisted me with every computer problem that arose using his abundant technical skills and well- placed humor. I am truly blessed to have these two loving men in my life. I am also fortunate to have a host of friends who were my “cheerleaders” throughout this journey. Their constant encouragement kept me moving forward even in the most difficult moments. My beautiful yellow labs, Abby, Sadie, and Gracie provided pet therapy and comic relief when it was most needed. And finally, I would like to thank the young women who chose to share their stories with me. I will remember your stories, your strength, and your courage always. iii To my husband, John and my son, Matthew iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii LIST OF FIGURES viii ABSTRACT ix CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1 Background and Context 3 Adolescence 3 Adolescents and Technology 4 History of Bullying Research 8 Traditional Bullying 9 Definitions 9 Prevalence 10 Consequences 11 Cyberbullying 11 Definitions 11 Prevalence 13 Consequences 14 Comparison of Bullying and Cyberbullying 14 Anonymity 15 Audience 16 Disconnection 16 Repetition 18 Significance 19 Significance to Nursing 20 Purpose 21 Rationale 21 Research Questions 22 Definition of Terms 22 Summary 23 CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF LITERATURE 24 Search Strategy 24 Overview 25 Cyberbullying and the Individual 25 Cyberbullying and the Family 32 Cyberbullying and the School 33 School Climate 34 School Safety 35 Interventions 36 Cyberbullying and the Legal System 37 Cyberbullying and Social Policy 39 Conclusions 43 v Theoretical Implications 43 Methodological Implications 44 Gaps in Research 44 Summary 45 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 47 Research Design 47 Sample 48 Recruitment 48 Protection of Human Subjects 49 Informed Consent Process 50 Protection During the Interview Process 50 Protection of Data 51 Data Collection 51 Data Analysis 53 Summary 54 CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS 55 Sample 55 Recruitment 56 Data Collection 58 Data Analysis 59 Findings 61 Core Category: Restoring Trust 61 Becoming the Target 64 Being labeled 65 Feeling ganged up on 68 Dealing with the identity of the bully 69 Suffering in Silence 71 Feeling under attack 72 Struggling with emotions 73 Fear 76 Humiliation 76 Hurt 77 Anger 78 Sadness 78 Accepting the bully’s opinion 79 Trying to handle it alone 80 Reaching Out 83 Feeling judged 83 Being believed or not 86 Finding a caring adult 87 Receiving Support 89 Accepting help 89 Being there for me 90 Adopting new coping strategies 91 vi Becoming Empowered 93 Learning to be strong 93 Renouncing the bully’s opinion 94 Becoming who I want meant to be 95 Advocating for self and others 96 Advising young women 97 Advising parents 98 Advising school personnel 99 Methodological Rigor 100 Fit 100 Work 101 Relevance 102 Modifiability 102 Summary 104 CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION 105 Story Line 105 Social-Psychological Process of Restoring Trust 108 Core Category 110 Becoming the Target 112 Suffering in Silence 114 Reaching Out 118 Receiving Support 120 Becoming Empowered 123 Unique Findings 125 Dynamic of Trust 125 Re-reading the Messages 125 Strengths and Limitations 126 Implications for Nursing Practice and Nursing Education 128 Implications for Future Research 131 Conclusion 132 APPENDIX A: APPROVAL LETTERS 134 APPENDIX B: STUDY ANNOUNCEMENTS 139 APPENDIX C: PARTICIPANT FORMS 141 APPENDIX D: INTERVIEW GUIDE 144 REFERENCE LIST 146 VITA 158 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Visual representation of Restoring Trust Theory 63, 109 viii ABSTRACT Cyberbullying is a global and national public health issue with the potential to affect the healthy social and emotional development of adolescents and young adults. There has been an 80% increase in social media use in 18-29 year olds between 2004 and 2014 (Gahagen, Vaterlaus, & Frost, 2016). In a study of 14-24 year olds (MTV/AP, 2011), 76% identified cyberbullying as a serious problem, with more than 56% reporting they have experienced cyberbullying. Cyberbullying research has been conducted predominantly with adolescents (ages 11-18 years), however scant research has been conducted with older adolescents and young adults (ages 18-30 years). This classical grounded theory study explored the process of cyberbullying victimization from the perspective of 15 young women ages 18-30 years old. Data were collected through semi- structured interviews and analyzed using constant comparison. The substantive theory that emerged from the data is comprised of the core category, Restoring Trust, and five key categories: Becoming the Target, Suffering in Silence, Reaching Out, Receiving Support, and Becoming Empowered. Of significance is the discovery of trust as the dynamic that moves the process forward. Trust is initially lost when the young woman becomes the target, and then restored through the process of reaching out for help, receiving support, and becoming empowered. Being believed is the gateway to restoring trust. Knowledge and insights gained from this study will inform prevention and intervention strategies. ix CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION There has been an 80% increase in social media use in 18-29 year olds between 2004 and 2014 (Gahagen, Vaterlaus, & Frost, 2016). In a 2011 MTV/Associated Press study of 14-24 year olds (N = 1,355), 76% identified digital abuse (cyberbullying) as a serious problem, with more than 56% reporting they have experienced digital abuse. One in three claims they have sent or received “sext” messages, and one in two asserts that they regularly see discriminatory language used in social media (MTV, 2011). As of 2012, it was estimated that 95% of teens use the Internet, 81% used social media, 78 % owned a cell phone, and 75% were texting (Mitchel & Jones, 2015). Hinduja & Patchin (2015) reviewed nine of their previous studies and found the average prevalence rate of lifetime cyberbullying victimization across studies to be approximately 26 percent. Cyberbullying has emerged as a significant issue for adolescents and young adults. The increased use of technology, although a positive development, may place users at risk for negative outcomes. Carter & Wilson (2015) identified cyberbullying as a 21st century health care phenomenon that nurses have the knowledge and assessment skills to effectively address. Juvonan & Gross (2008) identified cyberbullying as a national public health issue and further posited that with the rapid increase in electronic and online communication, millions of adolescents have the potential to be affected. Raskauskas & Stoltz (2007) cautioned that cyberbullying poses a new threat to the 1 2 healthy social and emotional development of adolescents. Given the high prevalence of peer victimization and its devastating impact on adolescents and young adults, it is urgent that health care providers, educators, counselors, and the legal system develop strategies to prevent bullying and victimization in all its forms. This study investigates the experience of cyberbullying victimization from the perspective of young adult women. The purpose of this grounded theory study is to explore the perceptions of young women who have been bullied via any electronic means such as cell phones, text messages, social networking sites (SNS), chat rooms, and/or web pages. It is anticipated that the knowledge gleaned from this study will generate a theory to provide health care providers, educators, counselors, and law enforcement new insights to inform measurement, prevention, and intervention efforts. This research employs classical grounded theory design to gain a deeper understanding of the phenomenon of cyberbullying from the perspective of those living the experience. This chapter begins with an overview of adolescent development and a discussion of technology in the life of adolescents and young adults. Traditional (face-to-face) bullying will be addressed and contrasted with the phenomenon of cyberbullying. The chapter will conclude with a discussion of significance of the problem, purpose and rationale for the study, and primary research question. For the purpose of this study, traditional bullying will be referred to as bullying.
Details
-
File Typepdf
-
Upload Time-
-
Content LanguagesEnglish
-
Upload UserAnonymous/Not logged-in
-
File Pages168 Page
-
File Size-