The Loss of Direct Human Contact on the Internet Makes the Target Seem Less Human and More like a Video Game Character Target to a Bully
Much as the computer has been very useful in our modern-day lives, there are also some negative consequences of its advent one of which is cyberbullying. This is the art of posting adversarial or negative comments about others on their social website pages or by sending negative hurtful emails with the intent of inflicting emotional pain.
The Internet has been a very effective medium for achieving this dark desire in bullies as one’s emotions and not their physical strength is what is employed in computer use. You cannot have a physical fight on the Internet but you can have an emotional one and the stronger person wins just as it would be if there was a fight involving physical muscles.
Consequently, when a child is attacked by a lot of their peers online it is just as it would be if a gang of kids physically beat up a child. The pain, in this case, is emotional bruises and cuts and not physical bruises and broken bones
Children are very prone to be affected, as they are not fully matured emotionally and their brains are not fully developed. In addition, the biochemicals that help us in fully understanding our actions in a logical rather than emotional way are not in full production yet because this is the nurturing period. This is when we are naturally supposed to get our sense of direction from our parents and others in authority over us. We learn to follow instructions and to relate to others in a constructive way under the guidance of our parents and guardians.
This makes this period in life the most vulnerable as the desire to be liked trumps all others. Everything is looked at from an emotional prism. This is also the period when we learn to curb negative emotions and we are taught the virtue of doing so.
Because the Internet can provide anonymity, there is a temptation for people to decide not to curb their negative emotions because they believe they will not be caught. The effect of the toxic artificial light and chemicals that reflect from computer screens on our biochemical balance make things seem far removed from reality. It is easy especially for kids since their brains are not fully developed and because they see many things from the angle of characters they read about in books, watch on the television and play with on video games to regard people they deal with like the characters in the computer games they play.
This dehumanizes others in their eyes making it difficult for the bully to place himself or herself in the place of the person on the receiving end or to relate to the emotions of their victims.
After all, with computer games, the characters even if they die are always there the next time they play. They never die permanently. Once the target is used to replace the video game character, there is no limit to how much bullying can be vented on the target by the bully. In his or her mind, it is only a game.
When adults decide to take on the role of kids and bully, they regress to the level of kids even if they have children of their own. They and their victims become characters in a video game and or their victims become the enemies they had when they were children and they deal out as much punishment as they can, forgetting they are adults. The biochemical depletion caused by computer light and the absence of human contact makes it easy for them to become detached and forget they are adults dealing with kids.
Once this mode sets in, it becomes difficult to get out of unless there is a shock treatment, which is what happens when the victim commits suicide or does something destructive for example. That is what wakes these adults up at which point it is usually too late.
My advice is never to bully. Remember you are not fully emotionally balanced when on the computer. The computer use environment is one of inherent chemical and electrical imbalances. The light is lifeless and cannot stimulate your brain to produce the biochemicals you need to be balanced and make totally rational decisions. It is easy to lose control and get carried away as you are not fully balanced. Do not think you are in control of your emotions even if it seems you are. The fact that you are bullying a kid and enjoying it is evidence of the fact that an imbalance has set in and you have lost control.
To be continued in Part II.
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