Bullying is not new, but the internet has raised this dangerous game to a new level.

Why is cyberbullying so insidious and how can you cope with it?

Welcome back to savvy psychologist. I'm Dr. Jade Wu.

Every week I'll help you meet life's challenges with evidence-based research as sympathetic ear and zero judgment.

On September 22, 2010, 18-year-old Tyler Clemente jumped to his death from the George Washington Bridge.

He had been a student at Rutgers, one of many hopeful young people starting an exciting new

phase of life at college. But three days before his suicide he had experienced an

extreme case of cyberbullying. Tyler's roommate and another classmate had used a

webcam to spy on him kissing another male

student. And then they posted about it on Twitter. They even invited others to tune in for

a second viewing. Tyler found out, and it's impossible to say what he felt at that moment.

All we know is that he took his own life within days.

Tyler's tragedy is not an isolated event.

In 2009, a large survey by the Cyberbullying Research Center in the US

found that 30% of teens had experienced some form of cyber

aggression in the past 30 days. The things they experienced included

being target of rumors, mean or prejudiced comments, having someone impersonate them, or even threats.

Cyberbullying is more than a matter of just hurt feelings.

A 2018 study of over 31,000 teens found that cyberbullying was a strong

predictor of emotional and behavioral problems, and that this effect remained even when traditional bullying was accounted for.

We also know that being a victim, and interestingly being a perpetrator too, is linked to

having more suicidal thoughts and attempts.

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