The first results of the survey ‘Cyberbullying, big deal?’, conducted by the Netherlands Open University and the Municipal health centre Limburg (GGD), show that 24% of the primary school students and 19% of the secondary school students had been bullied in the 6 months prior to the survey. 16% of the students reported having bullied others.

Most frequently reported manifestations of cyberbullying were teasing, talking/whispering, ignoring, accusing someone, and hacking. In almost 80% of cases, the offender was unknown.

12% of parents believe that their child has been bullied in the past school year, while 5% indicate that their child has bullied others. Moreover, 6% of the primary school students and 3% of the secondary school students report that they are cyberbullied more than once per month. Parents underestimate the extent to which their children have been bullied in cyberspace. Only 1.5% of parents think that their children are bullied frequently.

These are some of the notable results of the survey. The findings will be analysed and described in more detail in scientific publications later this year.

The Municipal health centre Limburg (GGD) has developed the teaching material ‘Cyberbullying, who cares?’. More information about the material can be obtained at www.ggdzl.nl. Information about the study can be obtained from the Netherlands Open University (catherine.bolman@ou.nl).