88% of Teens Victims of Online Bullying

88 percent of teens have been subjected to mean and cruel behavior on social networking sites. However a majority of these teens who have witnessed bullying, say that two-thirds of their peers are mostly kind, states a new research.

According to a survey conducted by Pew Research Centre, these youngsters identified themselves as victims of bullying in 15 per cent of cases.

Nine out of ten claimed that they ignored hurtful remarks on Facebook, while eight out of ten said they either defended a victim or told the bully to stop.

However, more than one in five said that they had joined in bullying, and eight per cent said it had caused a "physical fight".

One in four said that the experience had resulted in a face to face argument or confrontation with someone, and nearly the same number reported that the internet had cost them a friendship.

Approximately 13 per cent said it had either made them nervous about going to school or caused an argument with their parents.

A senior research specialist at the Pew Internet and American Life, Amanda Lenhart spoke on how social networking sites have become a menace.

"Social networking sites have created new spaces for teens to interact and they witness a mixture of altruism and cruelty on those sites," the Telegraph quoted Lenhart as saying.

"For most teens, these are exciting and rewarding spaces. But the majority have also seen a darker side.

"And for a subset of teens, the world of social media isn't a pretty place because it presents a climate of drama and mean behaviour," she added.

Source: ANI