Cyberbulling and game models (abstract only)

The incidence of cyberbullying has been on the increase as more young people are spending time socializing online. Cyberbullying manifests itself through the sending of embarrassing pictures, mean-spirited text messages, emails and/or postings on social media. Technology has exacerbated the problem by allowing bullying to be accomplished easily and anonymously. The problem of cyberbulling has been brought at the forefront of many colleges and high schools because it is spreading. Indeed, studies show that 39% of social network users have been victims of cyberbulling, compared with 22% of online teens who do not use social networks. Additionally, 88% of teens using social media say they have witness an instance of cyberbulling. Victims of cyberbullying experience negative emotional, physical and social consequences, sometimes leading to the victim's suicide.

This module aims at increasing students' awareness of cyberbulling while introducing game theory. Game theory is used to model the bully and the victim and exposes the student to various 2-player models (zero-sum, predator-prey, Nash equilibrium) and strategies that produce the best outcome. This module will be 6 to 9 hours long and will present a definition of cyberbullying, statistics about its prevalence, and research done to prevent and deter cyberbullying. Next, concepts of game theory relevant to modeling a cyberbully and their victim, as 2x2 games, actions, payoffs will be introduced. As regards to learning objectives, it is anticipated that students, who complete this module, will be able to use simulation software to model various game strategies to represent a cyberbullying situation.