Running head: CYBERBULLYING

Cyberbullying: Prevention Strategies for Recruited Student-Athletes

Northern Illinois University
Adam Siwicki and Nick Brautigam

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Table of Contents

Introductory Section
Title Page.1
Table of Contents2
Body
I. Problem to be investigated
A. Purpose of study4
B. Justification of study..4
C. Research Question and Hypothesis4
D. Overview of Study and Definition of Terms..5
II. Background and review of related literature
A. Introduction .......7
B. Research Studies ....8
III. Procedures
A. Methodology.......................11
B. Description of Instruments..12
C. Data Collection Plan ...............13
D. Data Analysis Plan .....14
E. Internal Validity Threats ....14

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Subject Characteristics .....14

Subject ......14
Instrumentation .....15
F. History ....16
G. External Validity/Generalizability...16
IV. Ethics and Human Relations
Potential Threats .......17
V. Timeline....18
VI. References....19

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Cyberbullying: Perspectives of Effective Prevention; A descriptive study

Purpose of Study
The purpose of this study is to see if prevention methods used by educators can be applied to
recruited student-athletes and still be effective.
Justification of the Study
Cyberbullying is becoming more prevalent in today's world, stemming from an increase
of social media sites and technology. Li, Q. (2010) stated in a study that, "with the rise of cell
phones and social media sites traditional bullying styles of physical abuse are becoming obsolete,
instead the form of abuse is shifting to cyberbullying". Cyberbullying is best explained by Mason
(2008), It is an unacceptable antisocial behavior that can undermine the quality of the school
environment, affect students academic and social outcomes, cause victims emotional and
psychological trauma, and, in extreme cases, lead to serious violence. Cyberbullying is clearly
an issue that isn't going away, that is why it is critical to find productive prevention methods for
cyberbullying and apply them with students as well as athletes.
Research performed by Beran and Li (2007) states, Students who are cyberbullied have
reported negative emotional responses such as sadness, fear, anxiety, and humiliation. One result
of such affective states is the inability to concentrate and study, thus directly impacting grades
and social relationships. These negative impacts can equally be applied to athletic performance
as well. A drop in a recruited athlete's performance can result in a loss of a scholarship
opportunity which directly impacts their future not only athletically but financially as well.
Another problem is that there are numerous thoughts and opinions on cyberbullying prevention
methods but most educators will admit to a lack of knowledge on the topic (Mason, 2008). One
study performed by Beringer (2011) looked into cyberbullying and the concerns teachers were

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having about the cyber-abuse their students were experiencing. These teachers were unclear on
how to control and manage the cases of cyberbullying which was a major concern for them.
Building on these concerns a study performed by Slovak and Singer (2011) took a group of
social workers in a school and tested their knowledge on cyberbullying. The results of this study
found that these workers knew very little on how to best address cyberbullying which implies an
issue of knowledge within the entire support community, including the school community. These
studies fuel the basis for the study on cyberbullying prevention methods for recruited-student
athletes. It is important to find a more streamline system that can be used in cases of
cyberbullying, especially with student-athletes, as opposed to ignoring the problem.
Research Question and Hypothesis
The research question for this case study is, are the prevention methods used by educators
effective when applied to recruited student athletes? The hypothesis of this case study is as
followed, the same prevention methods used by educators within the classroom can be
effectively applied to recruited student-athletes in relation to cyberbullying.
Overview of the Study and Definition of Terms
This study is interested in discovering if educators prevention methods can be effectively
applied to recruited student-athletes. Surveys will be distributed to high school coaches who will
present the study to their recruited student-athletes. These recruited student-athletes will report
their experiences with cyberbullying through a website created by the researchers. Half of the
sample will receive an online training program in order to assist them with their experiences of
cyberbullying. It will provide information on who to go to for help and ways to cope as well as
prevent cyberbullying. The other half of the sample will not receive this program in order to have
a controlled group. The numerous locations this study is gathering data from are various towns in

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the state of Illinois in order to help diversify the data. At the beginning of the study a base line
survey will be provided to the subjects, both the controlled group and the test group, this will be
used to understand the psychological stances the subjects have on cyberbullying and how they
respond to it without any training or focus on the topic. The information and data gathered from
this baseline survey will be plotted on a scatter plot. Once all the points have been plotted the
researchers will find the line of best fit for that specific plot. This will give the researchers the
line of standard deviation which will be used to establish a general tendency for the responses to
cyberbullying from all test subjects. This tendency graph will serve as the baseline to compare
the effects of this studying on the psychological responses of the subjects, which will help
determine if the prevention methods applied were successful.
The definition of cyberbullying can be difficult to fully grasp. There are numerous
definitions of cyberbullying which is why clearly defining the term is appropriate. Cyberbullying
in this case study is best defined by Mason (2008), individual or a group willfully using
information and communication involving electronic technologies to facilitate deliberate and
repeated harassment or threat to another individual or group by sending or posting cruel text
and/or graphics using technological means. The definition clearly states that cyberbullying can
come from one individual or an entire group. This definition is most appropriate in this study
because chat rooms and blog websites are common amongst sports. Emojis (characters used in
messaging that can be interpreted as feelings or words), and memes (pictures with phrases on
them) are becoming increasingly popular which is why it is important to include graphics in our
definition of cyberbullying as well.
Other terms that need to be defined in this study are (A) general student, (B) recruited
student-athlete, and (C) negative effects. For the purpose of this study, (A) general student refers

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to a person attending secondary school, and not competing in a sport, (B) recruited studentathlete is a student who competes in a sport and is openly being approached by college coaches
with the opportunity to continue playing sports at the collegiate level, and (C) negative effects
include psychological response such as sadness, fear, anxiety, and humiliation.
Background and Review of Related Literature
The approach to the literature review is to examine the numerous case studies on the
effects of cyberbullying as well as prevention methods used. The primary database used to
retrieve information was EBSCO Host which was retrieved electronically through the Northern
Illinois University Library. This database allows for a narrow search of specific key words and
peer reviewed articles pertaining to cyberbullying. Google Scholar was also used with collecting
information on cyberbullying but finding peer reviewed articles was difficult at times. There
were a variety of search combinations used to find the information on cyberbullying. These terms
contained (A) cyberbullying prevention strategies in schools, (B) prevention strategies used by
educators, (C) Risk factors for cyberbullying, (D) effective cyberbullying methods and
cyberbullying prevention programs, (E) cyberbullying in athletics, etc. The overall approach to
the literature review was to find a clear definition of cyberbullying, the effects cyberbullying has
on an individual, common cyberbullying targets, and successful prevention methods used by
educators. When the researchers focus on the effects cyberbullying has on an individual, it is not
just the victim, but also the bully as well. This helps with the overall understanding of
cyberbullying when it comes to the ifs, ands, or buts. Taking a look at successful prevention
methods used by educators leads to strategies that can be passed on to mentor, recruiter, and
guidance offices. This is evident in situations when, for example, the cyberbullying takes place
outside of school grounds or the classroom and outside people are involved within the specific

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setting in which the altercation takes place. The literature review provided tested, proven
statistics regarding cyberbullying and the prevention methods.
Research Studies
Cyberbullying can cause victims to feel a sense of worthlessness as well as have
confidence issues. Patchin and Hinduija (2006) define that sense of worthlessness as the willful
use of the internet as a technological medium through which harm or discomfort is intentionally
and repeatedly inflicted, targeting a specific person or group of persons. In sports having
confidence is an important quality to playing the game, which could be altered by cyberbullying.
The case study by Patchin and Hinduija (2010) examined how cyberbullying can cause low selfesteem in individuals. There are differing levels of self-esteem according to Patchin and Hinduija
(2010). The findings in this case study were that both the victim and the bully experienced lower
self-esteem than their peers who were not connected to cyberbullying. The findings show the
negative impact cyberbullying has on all parties involved. These students use computers and cell
phones without supervision from parents or teachers which leads to young adults bullying one
another free of repercussion. Social media was towards the top of the most common form of
cyberbullying in this study. With social media being more popular today these numbers could be
much higher than when this study was performed. Patchin and Hinduija (2010) also found that
thirty percent of students had reported that they have been cyberbullied at least twice in the
previous thirty days. These findings prove that cyberbullying is a repeated behavior for these
individuals. Patchin and Hinduija (2010) have linked these students who experience
cyberbullying to academic and behavioral issues in school. These student-athletes often have to
face these people in school the each day. According to Juvonen and Gross (2008), About two

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thirds of cyberbullying victims reported knowing there perpetrator. Focusing on academics and
athletics can be difficult because these student-athletes cannot avoid these cyberbullies.
Generally speaking in relation to the self-esteem involved with both the victim and the
bully, comes the factor of empathy. Empathy within the research includes a view of how and if
one can experience, share, and understand self and others emotions and feelings. Ang and Goh
(2010) studied this aspect of cyberbullying in an attempt to find any association between these
types of empathy. The focus aimed towards gender and the similarities or differences between
affective and cognitive empathy. Findings in this study show that girls were more affected than
boys when it came to empathy. Cognitive empathy showed boys scored higher on perspective
taking compared to girls when discussing moral judgment. A key factor with cognitive empathy
and cyberbullying is the indirect bullying, which the internet allows for by individuals to post
anonymously. Due to the indirect and anonymous interaction could cause for reduced affective
and cognitive empathy and create deregulated behavior. Cognitive empathy within cyberbullying
differs between boys and girls. Boys and girls showed similar behavioral responses at low
affective empathy. Subjects who showed low cognitive empathy reported cyberbullying at a
higher rate than those with high cognitive empathy. Boys continued the trend when it came to
high affective empathy and low cognitive empathy but girls no matter the level of cognitive
empathy, showed similar levels of cyberbullying behavior. Using a five point Likert test to
evaluate and score their basic empathy scale, Ang and Goh began this process with a
cyberbullying questionnaire. To calculate these numbers found using the five point test, the
researchers used a data analytical plan, which allowed for the ability to compute the effects and
interaction found within each type of empathy and its relation to cyberbullying. This allowed to
distinguish the findings and conclude that both genders, boys and girls, who had both low

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affective and cognitive empathy, scored higher than those with high cognitive empathy when it
came to cyberbullying. At high affective empathy, boys remained the same while girls differed.
Girls showed similar levels for both high and low cognitive empathy within cyberbullying.
According to Li (2005), Almost 60% of the cyber victims are females, while over 52% of
cyber-bullies are males. This may stem from the genetic differences that exist between males
and females.
Cyberbullying has proven to have harmful effects on people. Numerous suicides have
been documented because of cyberbullying Stauffer, Heath, Coyne, and Ferrin (2012). Teachers
can monitor bullying that occurs in the classroom but when it becomes an issue online and
outside of the classroom there is little assistance. Kowalski, Limber, and Agatston (2008) stated
in their book, Ten years ago, this book wouldnt have been written because no one would have
needed it. A decade ago, technology had not advanced to the point where cyber bullying was
even an issue, unfortunately, kids are keeping pace with the changes much more readily than
adults (pp. 41-42). Cyberbullying is difficult to monitor because of the various websites it can
occur on which requires people to keep current with technology. Cyberbullying is not thought of
as all bad. Stauffer et al. (2012) claimed that one fourth of teachers claimed cyberbullying
prepares students for life. Cyberbullying strengthens these students for the real world. On the
other hand, three fourths of the teachers agreed that cyberbullying has long lasting negative
effects on the students. Stauffer et al. states that teachers claimed the most effective
cyberbullying strategies are increased parent involvement, consequences for cyberbullying as
well as warning students about these consequences. These student athletes need to be aware of
how to protect themselves from cyberbullying and the proper steps to prevent it. According to
Smith, et al. (2008), Pupils recommended blocking/avoiding messages, and telling someone, as

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the best coping strategies; but many cybervictims had told nobody about it. These studentathletes do not know who to talk to in order to help them with their situation. The adults in these
peoples lives need to communicate who these student-athletes can talk to in situations like this.
Teachers feel that cyberbullying that occurs outside of school ground should be handled
by someone other than themselves. The study by Stauffer, Heath, Coyne, and Ferrin (2012)
claims that teachers do not feel they should intervene with cyberbullying if it occurs out of
school. They are more likely to assist the student if it occurs during school hours. When it comes
to prevention teachers feel school wide anti-cyberbullying assemblies would be more harmful
than good. These students are in a group setting and it would not hit home like it would a
personal conversation or lesson. Teachers are apprehensive about interfering with student
activities away from school which is why they feel parents need to be the ones preaching to their
kids (Stauffer et al., 2012).
Procedures
Methodology
The research methodology for this study will be survey research. Survey research allows
the researcher to gather information from various sample populations concerning a certain
problem (Fraenkel, Wallen & Hyun, 2012). This method is appropriate for the study because the
information will be retrieved from a specific group of people (recruited student-athletes) in
which the researcher will gather specific information from recruited student-athletes regarding
cyberbullying. The researcher will take into account the different characteristics of each
individual and at the end of the study and separate them out to see any additional trends. This
methodology allows the researcher to control one specific group of people. The researcher will
compare two groups, one group being the controlled group, and the other being the treatment
group.

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The studys sample will consist of recruited student-athletes from various areas within the
state of Illinois. The researchers feel it is important to include a diverse variety of recruited
student-athletes within our sample group due to differences in race, gender, and culture. These
areas that the sample will be collected from will include: Bolingbrook, Naperville, inner
Chicago, Champaign, Moline, and Carbondale. These student-athletes will be juniors and seniors
in high school.
This sample procedure used in this study is cluster sampling. The researchers case study
requires a gathering of certain individuals samples (these individuals being the recruited studentathletes that are being cyberbullied). This sampling method is most appropriate in schools due to
the large variety/number of people. The intended sample is recruited student-athletes in their
junior and senior year of high school. The study will be distributed their junior year and collected
their senior year. The researchers will study 200 recruited-student athletes (100 being controlled
and 100 being studied treatment). The sample size is appropriate because it is large enough to
gather the required information without being too large to dilute the results.
Description of the Instruments
There are several variables in this study, one of the variables is cyberbullying prevention
methods. The cyberbullying prevention methods are independent because these will not change
throughout the study and are categorical because there is nothing present within the research that
is measurable by numbers. The independent variable is interval because it distinguishes between
two groups on a numbering scale from high to low and separates the two identities. Another
variable in the study is recruited student-athletes. They are considered dependent in this study as
well as categorical because it is between the people receiving the prevention methods versus the
people that are not. This dependent variable is nominal and the researchers will use an informant

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instrument to measure. A rating scale the researchers designed will be used to collect information
from the recruited student-athletes. The rating scale will range 1-5 with 1 being strongly disagree
and 5 being strongly agree. The findings will be reported on a tendency graph which will serve
as the baseline to compare the effects of this study on the psychological responses of the
recruited student-athletes, which will determine if the prevention methods the researchers applied
were successful or not.
Data collection plan
The researcher will electronically mail information about the survey to each of the high
schools. Each head coach in charge of a sports team will receive this information from the
researcher. The coach is responsible for distributing the survey information to each of their
recruited-student athletes who are juniors in high school. This method is appropriate because
each head coach will know if their player is being recruited by a collegiate sports team. The
recruited student-athlete will enter the website which is clearly stated on the printed information
the head coach distrusted to them and begin filling out their information. The researcher will take
a total of 200 recruited student-athletes in this study to collect information from. A group of 100
student-athletes will have an online seminar they will complete. This seminar will discuss the
prevention methods for cyberbullying as well as what to do when the cyberbullying occurs. The
remaining 100 recruited-student athletes will not receive this training in order for the researcher
to have a controlled group. Both sample groups will have 24/7 access to the website to log any
information about cyberbullying that occurs in order to report feelings and actions they had
experienced. At the end of the recruited student-athletes senior year the information will be
analyzed to see the effects of cyberbullying.

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Data Analysis Plan

The researchers will find the means and standard lines of deviation for the dependent
variable or the recruited student-athletes. Information and data gathered will be plotted on a
scatter plot. Once all the points have been plotted, the researchers will find the line that fits best
to that specific plot. This will give the researchers the line of standard deviation which will be
used to establish an average level of successful cyberbullying prevention methods. For the
independent variable, the researchers will use a t-test to compare and report the findings. This
will lead to the results and determine what, if any, differences between the two groups when
comparing the mean achievement scores. The two groups differing once again by prevention
methods and no prevention methods.
Internal Validity Threats
There are numerous threats that can affect the validity of the case studies research. These
threats include subject characteristics, subject, instrumentation, and history.
Subject Characteristics
Subject characteristics have a threat to validity in this case study because of the
individuals home life and family background. A subjects reception to cyberbullying, whether
they are being bullied or not, can be strongly affected by life at home. A child from a home of
violence might perceive cyberbullying less than a child from a more peaceful upbringing. The
circumstances of the child must be understood in order to correctly interpret the data received. A
solution to this would be to expand the questionnaire to include questions about the subjects life
at home. This information will allow the researchers to create a curve of the data to better
interpret the results received. In order for the researchers to control this threat a set amount of

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each race to sample in the study is needed. The sample size collected will be an equal number for
all races involved in the study. By doing this all races are represented equally in the study.
Subject
Males and females can interpret cyberbullying differently. One sex may think they are not
being cyberbullied when in reality they are while the opposite is true as well. Males and females
feelings could be different which would cause them to perceive cyberbullying differently. One
sex might be less affected by cyberbullying. In order to control this threat the researchers
definition of cyberbullying needs to be very specific. The researchers will give numerous
examples in the study of what cyberbullying is and is not. This will help to eliminate any
misunderstood questions and prevent skewed answers. It is appropriate to make sure both sexes
are represented equally in the study as well.
Instrumentation
Self-reporting is not an efficient way to collect exact data in a scientific setting, but due to
the circumstances, as well as the subject matter, it is the most efficient way to collect research in
this study. The number one problem with the instrumentation is the fact that personal perspective
will vary from subject to subject. That is why it is critical that the researchers clearly outline the
definitions of cyberbullying to make sure that the subjects all have a similar idea of what may be
occurring in their lives. Another issue with self-reporting is that there is no way to confirm if
what is being said is actually occurring. Both of these issues prevent the researcher from getting
a clear picture of what is happening. A solution to this issue is the baseline survey, in order to
correctly interpret the data, a baseline for each subject must be identified. Upon receiving their
baseline survey it will be necessary to grade each persons understanding and perception of
cyberbullying and apply these grades to their results as the study progresses over time. This

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should allow the researchers to get a more concise idea of the validity and applicability of the
results we receive. Ways to control this threat is to make sure the questions on the study are
clearly written with little room for misinterpretation. Questions need to be direct and to the point
so all individuals clearly understand what the question is asking.
History
The researchers will distribute the test on the student-athletes junior year of high school.
When they complete their senior year of high school the collection of the information will be
obtained from them. The student-athlete could have committed to a university early and have
experienced cyberbullying earlier in their junior and senior years opposed to later. Once the
information is collected their senior year the results could be diluted because they do not
remember their exact feelings. Ways to prevent this threat is to send out monthly reminders on
cyberbullying to keep the student-athletes thinking about our study. On the researchers website
there will be a tab where student-athletes can access and log their feelings and cyberbullying
experiences. They can review their submissions can complete the final survey.
External Validity/Generalizability
This study will not generalize all recruited student-athletes in the United States. Due to
the numerous states with various characteristics and socio-economic statues the researchers
cannot generalize the results of this study for all states. The results found in the study will apply
to the state of Illinois due to the variety of locations in which the sample was taken from. These
results may apply to any location with recruited student-athletes who have similar characteristics
and socio-economic status as the sample taken.

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Ethics and Human Relations

The researchers believe no harm will be done to the participants because they are
currently experiencing cyberbullying in the study. If there was any psychological harm to the
participants it would be from them recalling the cyberbullying incident and sharing it with the
study. It will be stated on the consent form if the subject experiences any feeling of discomfort
they may opt out of participating in the study. A counselors name and number will be located on
the form if the participant feels the need to contact them. All information expressed or talked
about with the counselor will remain confidential.
The researchers will receive consent from parents or guardians of these student-athletes if
they are minors. Consent will be collected by sending a letter home with each child asking for
parental consent. These letters will be distributed with the study. If the student-athlete is age 18
years or older, they will not need to fill out the consent form. Since the study is targeting certain
student-athletes the head coach of the sports team will call them into the office and from there
the coach can distribute the form. There will be a link to the studies website where consent can
be done electronically as well.
Potential Threats
If there is any e-mail/text messages sent between the researcher and the participant and a
third person gets on that computer/phone they could see the participants message exchanges. If
students enter the head coachs office, other faculty and students could take notice to this which
would jeopardize the confidentiality of the student-athlete. Having a witness present
(principal/counselor/another coach) may jeopardize the confidentiality of this study. The ways
the researchers will prevent the student-athletes confidentiality being jeopardized is by not
saving that persons number on the phone (it will show up as a number instead of a name), not

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using e-mail to communicate, and give the subject an option to meet face to face in the head
coachs office if they choose to.
Time Line
The time line this study is estimated to take approximately two years in duration to
complete. Within this time period, the researchers will piece together and create a structured
survey, followed by distributing the material. Along with this initial step, the researchers will
then gather and analyze the collected data. Once this process is completed, the respected
information found will then be published. Three months will be used to create, organize, and post
the questions within the survey onto the website. Next, the researchers will need two months to
receive all necessary paperwork, such as waivers and approvals, which come from all the head
coaches from their respective sport. Once the researchers have the recruited student-athletes
approval, the survey link will be sent to the sample participants. The recruited student-athletes
will have a year and a half to log information about their cyberbullying experiences and
complete a final survey. Lastly, the researchers will take a month to dissect, analyze, and record
the collected data. If allowed upon review, noting that the findings are accurate and proven to be
contingent with the guidelines, the researchers will come to a conclusion and publish these
findings. A detailed outline of the procedure timeline is a follows:
a. February 1st May 1st: Create the survey and website online
b. June 1st August 1st: Contact each head coach of the high schools and distribute surveys
as well as collect the consent forms.
c. August 1st February 1st (next year): Collect data from the recruited student athletes.
d. February 1st- March 1st: Collect and record data as well as analyze findings. Send thank
you letters to each participant in the study.

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References

Ang, R. P., & Goh, D. H. (2010). Cyberbullying among adolescents: the role of affective and
cognitive empathy, and gender. Child Psychiatry Human Development, 41, 387-397.
Beran, T., & Li, Q. (2007). The relationship between cyber bullying and school bullying.
Journal of Student Well-being, 1, 15-33.
Beringer, A. (2011). Teacher's perceptions and awareness of cyberbullying among middle school
students. Counselor Education Master's Theses, 115, 1-46. Retrieved from
http://digitalcommons.brockport.edu/edc_theses/115
Juvonen, J., & Gross, E. F. (2008). Extending the school grounds? bullying experiences in
cyberspace. Journal of School Health, 78(9), 496-505.
Kowalski, R.M., Limber, S. P., & Agatston, P.W. (2008). Cyber bullying: Bullying in the digital
age. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.
Li, Q. (2010). Cyber bullying in high schools. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment, & Trauma,
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Li, Q. (2005). New bottle but old wine: A research of cyberbullying in schools. Computers in
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Mason, K. L. (2008). Cyberbullying: a preliminary assessment for school personnel. Psychology
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Slovak, K., & Singer, J. B. (2011). School social workers' perceptions on cyberbullying.
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Smith, P. K., Mahdavi, J., Carvalho, M., Fisher, S., Russell, S., & Tippett, N. (2008).
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