Barriers to Mental Health Support in Cyberbullying: A Thematic Analysis of What Mental Health Professionals and Cyber Experts Think

Abstract

Background:Cyberbullying can be a traumatic experience for adolescents. It can affect their psychosocial functioning, development, and mental well-being in the long term. Though mental health support is needed to help adolescents, parents, and schools, they do not seek appropriate support.Aim:This article describes the viewpoint of mental health and cyber experts on the barriers to seeking mental health support among adolescents, parents, and school administrators and identifies approaches to intervention.Methods:The qualitative research study was conducted in Bengaluru Urban, India. Ten specialists were interviewed, including mental health professionals and cyber experts who work with children and adolescents. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis.Results:Seven major themes emerged from the study as follows: (a) knowledge of cyberbullying, (b) negative impact of cyberbullying, (c) attributed factors for cyberbullying, (d) barriers for help-seeking, (e) child-centric intervention, (f) parental intervention, and (g) whole-school approach to cyberbullying.Conclusion:Several factors would affect help-seeking by adolescents, parents, and schools in the context of cyberbullying. These factors need to be considered in developing a comprehensive, school-based intervention on cyberbullying for adolescents.