Winner of 6 Awards
Cyberbullying is a global sickness and an Author’s fight against it
See alsoPersonal Technology Bullying & Cyber Bullying Bullying Awareness & Prevention
Sherrill. S Cannon, author; Illustrations by Kalpart
Victoria Wagner Ross
San Diego Technology Examiner
April 20, 2014
Bullying was considered a rite of passage for decades but no longer. It is a cruel and viscous attack that now is spreading out of the schoolyard onto the Internet of repeated intentional harm, reported the NPR online today of the British study that appeared in the American Journal of Psychiatry.
The stage in which the effects appear in life is age 50 due to the steps in the aging process and it has grown over the years into full blown health and mental problems, according to Dr. Louise Arseneault, a developmental psychologist at King’s College London and lead author for the study. She states, ‘At age 50, if you have physical and mental health problems, it could be downhill from here.’
Decades later the chronic bullying effect with be displayed in a person’s socioeconomic status and effect cognitive function persisting onward through life. Sometimes it will begin to appear in a person’s late their late ‘20s.
The British study consisted of nearly 18,000 children in England, Scotland and Wales, who were born during a single week in 1958. When the children turned 7 interviews began with parents twice and the children once until age 11. Questions about how often the children experience bullying were tracked and noted with the IQ score at that time. Reports from teachers reported any problems of anxiety and other behavioral problems.
The check in reports for health and social well-being were done at ages 23, 45 and 50 with about 8,000 children. By comparison 40 percent of the children were reported as being bullied either on an occasional or frequent basis against estimates in the U.S. where 50 percent of the children state that they are bullied at least once a month.
Once age 50 is reached, it is downhill according to Arsenault because the mental and physical health effect only increase. Dr. William Copeland, a clinical psychologist and epidemiologist at Duke University, who wasn’t involved in the British study, believes that this is a valuable study due to the length of time and follow-up throughout the decades. His work has led him to believe that bullying is harmful and not a rite of passage for children.
Bullying has now extended its reach and same methods to cyberbullying on the Internet. Predators on the Internet according to Copeland single out a weaker person and can stage repeated events for intentional harm. It is no longer abuse; it is a full-blown attack on a human being meant to destroy the person. It can also come over texts and mobile phone with someone attempting to either damage a person through reputation assault or constant harassment directly to infiltrate into all areas of the person’s life.
The award winning author, Sherrill S. Cannon, has written a children’s book ‘Manner-Man’ which stands up against bullying. Cannon states on the Amazon listing review of five stars for the book, ‘Manner-Man’ is a superhero that helps children learn how to cope with bullies. Her journey began with her award-winning children’s book, ‘The Magic Word’. The story instills good manners and respect for all. Where else can words be so harmful as on the Internet?
Manner-Man has already won two awards: Readers’ Favorite Silver Medal and a NABE Pinnacle Achievement Award. Her book and words show children that they can use peer pressure to stop bullying, and that each child has a ‘superhero’ within.
You can read the reviews of Cannon’s children’s books, her awards and how to contact her on her website. She fights against bullying and she also donates 50 percent of her books’ revenue to fight Juvenile Myositis (JM), an incurable disease. Whether a child is struck early with a physical disease as JM or is bullied it is not to be passively accepted. Cannon’s voice will have an effect on future generations due to her work with impressing positive behavioral actions onto children. Manner-Man is found within each of us at any age.
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