Bullying and cyberbullying in adolescence

Cyberbullying is a new topic in international research. However, recent studies have pointed out how this phenomenon is existing and how it is expanding in relation to the growth of the new technologies. In the first part of the text the theoretical implications of cyberbullying are critically discussed through the presentation of international studies. In the second part of the text new quantitative and qualitative data on cyberbullying are presented in large samples of pre-adolescents and adolescents, including a qualitative interpretation of single cases and showing different scenarios in Italy, Spain and Bosnia-Herzegovina. The different chapters point to a polyphonic interpretation of the specificity of cyberbullying in the light of developmental, social and clinical psychology, of educational sciences, of sociology, not excluding a legal interpretation of the cases treated. This text offers a chance for reflection to students, parents, educators, teachers, school board directors and to all those who are involved in the relational dynamics among pre-adolescents and adolescents, connected to the benefits and risks of the new technologies.