Enhancing Mental and Emotional Health of Cyber Bullying Victims:A Possible Intervention

Cyber bullying refers to the use of information and communication technologies like emails, mobile phones, social networking sites , text messages etc. to support deliberate, repeated and hostile behavior of a group or an individual that is intended to harm other person. It is anti-social behavior on the internet. Cyber bullying is a global issue and its consequences are far reaching. The present study examined the mental and emotional health of cyber bullying victims in terms of anxiety, depression, positive well-being, self-control, general health and vitality and explored the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in enhancing their mental and emotional health. It was hypothesized that cyber-bullying victims will exhibit poor mental and emotional health in comparison to their peers. And further, that cognitive behavioral therapy will be effective in enhancing the mental and emotional health of cyber bullying victims. The study was conducted in three phases. In the first phase of the study, adolescents with cyber bullying experiences were identified. In the second phase, they were tested for their mental and emotional health and they were found to be having poor mental and emotional health in comparison to their peers. And in the final phase of the study, they were given cognitive behavioral therapy sessions which proved to be very effective in enhancing the mental and emotional health of cyber bullying victims.