We continue our conversation with Sameer Hinduja, co-founder of the Cyberbullying Research Center and noted expert in the field. Today we’re going to be talking about the new book from the Center titled Bullying Beyond the Schoolyard: Preventing and Responding to Cyberbullying (you can buy it online here) and how the Center was formed.

Tell us about your new book. What can readers expect?

Focusing on how technology can facilitate or magnify traditional forms of peer harassment, our new book Bullying beyond the Schoolyard: Preventing and Responding to Cyberbullying paints a vivid picture of online aggression among adolescents by recounting the stories of victims, summarizing current research, and reviewing recent legal rulings. It also provides proactive prevention and intervention strategies to equip parents, educators, counselors, law enforcement, and other youth-serving adults with the tools necessary to protect students from the negative effects of cyberbullying. It includes many special features, such as questions for reflection after each chapter, numerous illustrations, and reproducible resource documents to further educate those involved.

What led you and Justin Patchin, Ph.D., to focus on cyberbullying and create the cyberbullying research center?

Justin and I decided to found the Cyberbullying Research Center because we believe that research and evaluation are critical to fully understanding the problem, its consequences, and its contributing factors. Then, we can create and implement specific data-informed strategies that will actually bear fruit in reducing online aggression. The Center also provides us with a larger platform from which we can reach out to youth-serving adults with the training, resources, and assistance they need to really make a difference.

This concludes our current interview with Sameer, though we look forward to more discussions with him in the future about the great work being done at the Center. If you are interested in learning more about Cyberbullying, buy the book and become a regular at the cyberbullying blog. Thanks to Sameer and Justin for the wonderful service they are providing to parents and youth all over the world.

Sameer Hinduja, Ph.D., is the co-founder of the Cyberbullying Research Center, an information clearinghouse on the topic including a blog, research, presentations, and downloadable publications.

Filed under: Internet Safety News