One in Four Students Reported Victim of Cyberbullying in North Macedonia
A UKLO Faculty of Law survey of 1,623 pupils in 32 schools reports emotional, academic and health effects linked to online harassment.
About one in four students in the country has been a victim of cyberbullying at least once, according to a new survey by the Faculty of Law at UKLO in Bitola. The study covered 32 schools — 16 primary and 16 secondary — and gathered responses from 1,623 pupils.
From the sample, 136 students reported having had suicidal thoughts related to online harassment, 250 said they experienced emotional stress, 140 said the bullying affected their school performance, and 130 reported health consequences. Pupils most often confide in their parents; only afterwards do they report incidents to their school or relevant authorities.
Types, awareness and witnesses
“Verbal abuse predominates, that is, abuse based on insulting or humiliating messages and comments from classmates. Although less frequent, it is worrying that there are cases of cyberbullying through the use of artificial intelligence or the sharing of photos and videos, some of them of an intimate nature,” said Prof. Dr. Angelina Stanojevska of the Faculty of Law at UKLO in Bitola.
The researchers found that a large share of pupils do not recognize such behaviour as violence and instead treat it as ordinary communication or entertainment. “Unfortunately, about 34 percent of students answered that they had witnessed cyberbullying in their school environment. Indicative is the fact that about 49 percent do not know whether this type of violence has occurred in their school. This shows that, although they say declaratively that they know what cyberbullying is, they still equate the negative behaviors that fall into this category with something they experience as fun and entertainment,” said Ivona Shushak Lozanovska of the Faculty of Law at UKLO in Bitola.
The survey also shows that parental supervision of online activity is often absent or only occasional. Girls were identified as more frequent victims. As coping measures, students suggested sanctioning perpetrators and providing education on internet safety and on how to respond to these incidents.
The findings underline gaps in recognition, reporting and prevention of cyberbullying in schools and point to the need for stronger prevention programmes and family involvement.
Photo: press material from the event
