Towards Descriptive Adequacy of Cyberbullying: Interdisciplinary Studies on Features, Cases and Legislative Concerns of Cyberbullying

Abstract

In view of the complexity of cyberbullying, this paper aims to address the linguistic and legal aspects of cyberbullying from an interdisciplinary perspective. Based on authentic data collected from real cases, we will expound on features, defining properties and legal remedies of cyberbullying in the countries that contribute to this special issue, such as Nigeria, France, Poland and China. Firstly, we will present an overview of cyberbullying and its definition, along with cyberbullying’s attributes. Next, we will cover the various forms of cyberbullying, such as hate speech, harassment and trolling. Each of these forms of cyberbullying result in numerous outcomes, many of which are serious and, in the worst case, can result in a victim’s death. A discussion of such consequences and the legal remedies for cyberbullying will be provided. On a final note, the contributors seek to enrich the forthcoming studies on cyberbullying by offering suggestions towards descriptive adequacy of cyberbullying.