Read the latest news and brand new pieces on youth, social media, and emerging technologies! We focus on preventing harm and promoting positive online behaviors.

The Cyberbully Next Door post thumbnail

The Cyberbully Next Door

I was recently talking to a colleague (who is an economist at my University) and he told me of an experience that recently happened with his daughter.  She was at a get-together at a hotel in our city where alcohol was being served. Somehow the police found out about the party and busted all of […]

Teachers and students “friending” on MySpace post thumbnail

Teachers and students “friending” on MySpace

CNN posted an interesting story about teachers setting up MySpace pages and “friending” their students…and about a Missouri legislator sponsoring a bill banning elementary school teachers from doing so.  I was talking to Justin about this, and we both agree that a state bill banning this activity is completely overboard (another example of how politicians […]

Cyberbullying Research post thumbnail

Cyberbullying Research

When we first started exploring the issue of cyberbullying over 6 years ago, there weren’t very many of us out there. A very small handful of researchers were studying the problem and virtually nothing had been published in the academic literature. Now, thankfully, cyberbullying is being comprehensively studied by a number of competent research teams. […]

Book on Sale at Amazon! post thumbnail

Book on Sale at Amazon!

For those of you interested in purchasing our book, it is now on sale at Amazon.com for $21.41 which is 33% off the list price of $31.95.  This is such a good price you should maybe think about buying two copies!  We’re not sure how long the sale will last, but the book is still […]

8-12 year-olds and online social interaction post thumbnail

8-12 year-olds and online social interaction

A new report was released last week that zeroed in on online social interaction among youth between the ages of 8 and 12.  The “Tween Internet Safety Survey” found that at least half lie about their age online (in keeping with our own findings from discussions with kids around the nation).  They also found that […]

Why Do Youth Engage in Cyberbullying? post thumbnail

Why Do Youth Engage in Cyberbullying?

This is another one of those questions that we get all of the time.  Of course, there is not one easy answer to this question.  Moreover, what causes one adolescent to cyberbully may not influence another to engage in similar behaviors.  So, while we have a number of theories or hypotheses, what do you think?  […]

Jostens Renaissance National Conference post thumbnail

Jostens Renaissance National Conference

I just got back from the Jostens Renaissance National Conference. WOW. The energy at this conference was electric. Over 1,100 educators and superstar students from around the country met up in Phoenix to discuss various issues relating to teaching, learning, culture, and motivation (just to name a few). I covered a basic overview of cyberbullying […]

Jostens Renaissance National Conference post thumbnail

Jostens Renaissance National Conference

I just got back from the Jostens Renaissance National Conference. WOW. The energy at this conference was electric. Over 1,100 educators and superstar students from around the country met up in Phoenix to discuss various issues relating to teaching, learning, culture, and motivation (just to name a few). I covered a basic overview of cyberbullying […]

A Call for Legal Clarity post thumbnail

A Call for Legal Clarity

There is an interesting article in this week’s Chronicle of Higher Education in which legal expert Robert M. O’Neil discusses many of the legal challenges facing those who wish to “stand up to cyberbullies.” In the article, O’Neil presents just some of the issues confronting the legal community in responding to cyberbullies. The questions are […]

What could Web sites do to make their site safer for kids? post thumbnail

What could Web sites do to make their site safer for kids?

This is one of many questions we have received via email over the last several weeks.The answer is a bit more complicated than many adults realize.If there were a quick fix, Web site administrators would have implemented the changes by now.I don’t think it is so much a problem with Web sites.Clearly, Web sites need […]