Friends Against Bullying – 2015 Friends Online Report Highlights Youth Cyberbullying Trends in Sweden

Last month our national nonprofit in Sweden Friends released their third annual ‘Friends Online’ report. Sponsored by Symantec and HP, the report aims “to capture the voices of children and adolescents on the topic of harassment, other acts of intimidation and bullying online via mobile phone, computers and tablets.”

The report surveyed over 1,040 children from ages 10 to 16 in Sweden and this year included a focus on the topic of sexual harassment. Highlights from the report include:

• One in two young people use a mobile phone, computer and tablet an average of 3–6 hours a day

• 1/3 of all young people have been subjected to harassment or other acts of intimidation via mobile phone, computer or tablet at least once in the past year

• Girls are subjected to cyberbullying to a greater extent than boys. The results show that 8% of girls and 4% of boys were bullied via mobile phone, computer or tablet in the past year

• 35% of respondents say that people who have victimized them online have victimized them offline as well

• 7% of girls have been subjected to sexual harassment via mobile phone, computer or tablet in the past year

• Gaming environments are the most common places where boys are victimized. Social media forums such as Kik and Instagram are the most common places where girls are victimize

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