ONE in five children are subjected to cyberbullying each year in Australia, though experts say this figure could be higher.
According to new research, three in four schools have reported experiencing bullying with children aged 13 to 15 years old the most at risk.
Cyberbulling expert Susan McLean who spoke with Mandurah students earlier this year, said she was not surprised to hear the figures and in some cases the number could be higher.
“We need people to come forward and understand that a culture where bullying is socially unacceptable is needed,” Ms Mclean said.
“Cyberbullying can lead to a tragedy.”
The report suggested there was a significant difference in the ways each gender contributed to cyberbullying and boys were more common “to post offensive materials on social media and send abusive emails”, while girls were more likely to exclude people and spread false rumours over social sites.
“Boys tend to be violent,” Ms Mclean said.
“In my experience, more girls are involved though all kids regardless of the portion still suffer.”
The report found the overall approach was considered more reactive than preventative and laws should not rely on only apprehending and dealing with cyberbullying, but also help to create a more respectful and safe environment for children and young people both on and offline.
Ms McLean said students involved in cyberbullying should be better educated in schools and sporting clubs and needed more people involved.
“Both adults and young people therefore felt that keeping existing laws unchanged would be least effective option to prevent and address cyberbullying, and would have little impact on reducing cyberbullying,” the research report read.
“We have got the laws, though we do not necessarily need new laws,” Ms Mclean said.