According to a new Pew Research Center report, nearly half of US teens ages 13 to 17 (46%) report ever experiencing at least one of six cyberbullying behaviours: offensive name-calling, spreading of false rumors about them, receiving explicit images they didn’t ask for, constantly being asked where they are or what they’re doing by someone other than a parent, physical threats, or having explicit images of them shared without their consent.
The report, based on a survey of 1 316 US teens conducted online from 14 April to 4 May 2022, using Ipsos’ KnowledgePanel, finds that name-calling is the most commonly reported behavior among the six asked about in this survey, with 32% of teens saying they have been called an offensive name online or on their cellphone.
Smaller shares say they have had false rumors spread about them online (22%) or have been sent explicit images they didn’t ask for (17%).
Some 15% of teens say they have experienced someone other than a parent constantly asking them where they are, what they’re doing or who they’re with, while 10% say they have been physically threatened and 7% of teens say they have had explicit images of them shared without their consent. In total, 28% of teens have experienced multiple types of cyberbullying.
Teens’ experiences with online harassment vary by age, with 49% of 15- to 17- year-olds having experienced at least one cyberbullying behaviour, compared with 42% of those ages 13 to 14.
Older teens are more likely than their younger counterparts to say someone has sent them explicit images they didn’t ask for (22% versus 11%), had someone share explicit images of them without their consent (8% versus 4%), or been the target of persistent questioning about their whereabouts and activities (17% versus 12%).
Older teen girls stand out in their experience with cyberbullying: 54% of 15- to 17-year-old girls report experiencing at least one of the six cyberbullying behaviours, while 44% of 15- to 17-year-old boys and 41% of both boys and girls ages 13 to 14 say the same. These older teen girls are also more likely than younger teen girls and teen boys of any age to report being the target of false rumors and constant monitoring by someone other than a parent.
When it comes to the reasons why they may be targeted with online abuse, 15% of all teens think they were cyberbullied because of their appearance, and about one-in-ten teens say they were targeted because of their gender (10%) or their race or ethnicity (9%).
However, there are some notable demographic differences. Teen girls overall are more likely than teen boys to say they have been cyberbullied because of their physical appearance (17% versus 11%) or their gender (14% versus 6%). Black teens are more likely to say they were targeted due to their race or ethnicity (21%), compared with 11% of Hispanic teens and 4% of White teens.
Other key findings include:
- The vast majority of teens say online harassment and online bullying are a problem for people their age, with 53% saying they are a major problem. Certain demographic groups stand out for how much of a problem they say cyberbullying is. Seven-in-10 black teens and 62% of Hispanic teens say online harassment and bullying are a major problem for people their age, compared with 46% of White teens. Teens from households making under $75 000 a year are similarly inclined to call this type of harassment a major problem, with 62% making this claim, compared with 47% of teens from more affluent households.
- Large majorities of teens think elected officials and social media sites aren’t adequately addressing online abuse. Fully 81% of teens say elected officials have done an only fair or poor job addressing online harassment and online bullying, and 74% of teens say the same of social media sites. Smaller majorities say the same of law enforcement (62%) and teachers (59%). Comparatively, teens are relatively positive in their assessment of parents: 66% of teens say parents are doing a good or excellent job when it comes to addressing online harassment and online bullying. However, teens who have been cyberbullied are more critical of how each of these groups have addressed online bullying than teens who haven’t.
- Half of teens think permanent bans from social media and criminal charges for users who bully or harass on social media can help a lot to reduce harassment on platforms. Meanwhile, about four-in-ten teens think that if social media companies looked for and deleted posts they think are bullying or harassing (42%) or if users of these platforms were required to use their real names and pictures (37%) it would help a lot in addressing these issues.
- Black and Hispanic teens are more optimistic than White teens about the effectiveness of different solutions to curb online abuse. Majorities of both Black and Hispanic teens say permanently locking users out of their account if they bully or harass others or criminal charges for users who bully or harass on social media would help a lot, while about four-in-ten White teens express each view. In the case of permanent bans, Black teens further stand out from their Hispanic peers: Seven-in-ten say this would help a lot, followed by 59% of Hispanic teens and 42% of White teens.
- Older teen girls stand out for experiencing multiple types of online harassment. Some 32% of teen girls say they have experienced two or more types of online harassment asked about in this survey, while 24% of teen boys say the same. These differences are largely driven by older teen girls: 38% of teen girls ages 15 to 17 have experienced at least two of the harassing behaviors asked about in this survey, while roughly a quarter of younger teen girls and teen boys of any age say the same.