How to Compose a Research Paper Topic on Cyber Bullying

Cyber bullying has become one of the most discussed social problems recently, due to the soaring popularity of mobile devices and social networks among teenagers. Present-day bullies would rather look for their victims not in school corridors but on the Internet; this is what makes this problem so urgent and important to research.

Some topics on cyber bullying, such as its effects on the behaviors of victims, might seem already overused, but there are lots of others that remain underexplored. Familiarize yourself with recent research studies in this field. They may contain calls for further research that you can use as your starting point.

Another way to compose a good topic is to narrow down the broad subject of cyber bullying to the question that most interests you. For example, do you think that cyber bullying is more of a serious crime, or a flaw in a child’s upbringing that has to be addressed with the means of education rather than punishment? There is no “right” and “wrong” answer as long as you can build a strong argument in support of your view.

Here are more examples of cyber bullying topics and research questions:

• Legal consequences of cyber bullying. Should there be more severe punishments for this kind of offense?
• Personality factors that create cyber bullies. What is special about children or teenagers who bully on the Web? How are they different from traditional, offline bullies?
• What are the most popular means of cyber bullying (online resources, social nets, chats, forums, etc)? What can the administrations of these resources do to prevent or at least restrict it?
• How do cyber bullies select their victims? What kind of behavior on the Web may encourage them?
• Current school strategies to deal with cyber bullying. Do they work or not? What can be improved?
• Long-term effects of cyber bullying. How can the childhood experience of being a victim of cyber bullying influence an adult’s life?
• Cyber bullying as a factor of the World Wide Web development. How has the recent wave of cyber bullying changed the Internet? What further changes can be expected?
• The relationship between cyber bullying and school shootings.
• The relationship between cyber bullying and hate crimes.
• Cyber bullying and traditional bullying. What is similar and different about them? Which can have more serious consequences?
• The most efficient coping strategies for victims of cyber bullying. What is often recommended for them to do and what actually works?
• The most efficient strategies for parents to protect their children from cyber bullying. Does an adult stepping in do more harm or good?