Ibraheem Fiyinfoluwa
The innovation of the internet has over the years metamorphosized the functioning of different processes, actions, and even behaviours, as most things now transition to their digitalized version. The seamlessness and ever-present nature of the internet further exacerbate the effects of such processes, actions, and behaviours, whether positive or negative.
This is also the case in terms of bullying. Bullying is primarily seen as a physical activity where an individual verbally or physically threatens, insults, or assaults another individual, but now, due to the digital upgrade, bullying has also got its own upgrade: cyberbullying.
The ubiquitousness of the internet has made this a very pressing problem for a lot of individuals due to the ease of access of a bully to the ‘vulnerable’ and the level of damage that can be done to the reputation of the ‘vulnerable’ due to the speed of information dissemination on the internet.
Bullying is an element that is present in all aspects of society but is more pronounced or highlighted in educational settings and institutions, and this has also made cyberbullying an issue at the University of Ibadan.
Pervasiveness of Cyberbullying at the University of Ibadan
As the internet and social media have made it very easy for individuals to share their views and opinions, it is also very easy for negative, predatory, and destructive opinions to also be pervasive.
To some students at the university, they believe that issues relating to cyberbullying mostly peak during electoral periods, competitions, and mostly against student executives and politicians.
Speaking to UCJUI, Morayo Adeniyi, a 300-level student, was quick to mention that cyberbullying is usually pervasive during Jaw-War, a public speaking event at the University of Ibadan that is acclaimed to be the biggest public speaking event in Sub-Saharan Africa, as well as during electoral activities and against student executives.
“During the Jaw War period, cyberbullying becomes more pronounced in the university community. The banter and all can easily become personal and aggravated with students beginning to attack each other on the internet,” she said. “Executives and student politicians are also not free from the mix, and they get bullied a lot online. With the current case of the house secretary being paraded as Mr. Apology on Twitter.”
Though Eyitayo Jemimah, a student of the Department of Communication and Language Arts, has not personally experienced cyberbullying, she believes it is a common occurrence at the University of Ibadan.
“Cyberbullying is very common here. It’s all over Twitter and, most times, in group chats. And it occurs every time on anonymous sessions hosted by most WhatsApp TVs on campus,” she said.
She recalled various instances of cyberbullying, but one that stood out was a student posting the results of another student during a political argument in a faculty group chat.
“I think it was an argument about the presidency of the faculty when someone then sent a screenshot of the other person’s result. That was extreme,” she explained.
This was the case on a group chat for a particular course in the Faculty of Arts, where individuals were campaigning for the candidates they believed were right for the job. There, however, was a strong polarity between two ladies who began exchanging strong and abusive words, which stemmed from a disagreement over a choice of candidate for a post.
This war of words was incited by one of the ladies, who went on to attack the personality of the other individual with derogatory name-calling and other petty abuses just to destroy and ridicule the personality of the other person.
This lady went ahead to screenshot the other lady’s matriculation number and CGPA from the Book of Life, which is a pseudonym for a confidential document containing details of students and CGPA that is used by the university senate, and posted the screenshot to the group, making a mockery of the other lady.
This is a typical case of cyberbullying, with the individual who posted the screenshot doing so simply to destroy the reputation of the other individual by equating the quality of her grades to the quality of her opinions. The action taken is also of negative consequence because of the exposition of the other lady’s matriculation number to the “world.”
Though it is normal that individuals on campus would be divided on the candidates that they believe are better for the job, and sometimes debate and arguments can arise, everyone should be free to express their own opinion, whether other people agree with it or not, and a conflict of opinions should not be an impetus for cyberbullying.
This is just one case of several that have occurred on students online platforms.
The Subtle Effects on Well-being
Cyberbullying, superficially, might not seem like a big deal, but it is one that can cause irrevocable havoc. According to the American Psychological Association, “psychological research suggests being victimized by a cyberbully increases stress and may result in anxiety and depression symptoms.”
In a student culture where banter is popular, from competitions that gain its reputation from it like Jaw War to normal conversations among students, it however becomes a problem when banter can become bullying. It would seem that there is a thin line between bullying and banter.
Morayo, speaking again, said that she believes that it can be even more dangerous, causing withdrawal from people, social media, and even negatively impacting self-esteem.
“I think it can really affect the well-being of a person,” she said. “There was this case of a lady who posted on Twitter that she went to visit a guy, and the guy tried to rape her, but she escaped. Then people started “dragging” her for going to the guy’s house in the first instance. Since then, she has minimized posts on social media.”
This further indicates that cyberbullying can indeed prevent individuals from expressing their views, opinions, and even important information just because of the fear of being bullied online.
She also mentioned the case of another girl being called ugly online, forcing the girl to be a recluse.
Cyberbullying has become a dangerous vice on the rise, negatively impacting the well-being of individuals in society. The fact that people share their opinions on political candidates and competitions should not be an excuse to participate in cyberbullying. In an intellectual community like the university, people’s right to expression should not be countered by personal attacks.
