Emerging Perspectives ep.journalhosting.ucalgary.ca Review of the book Impacts of Cyberbullying, Building Social and Emotional Resilience in Schools by Sharlene Chadwick North Ryde, NSW Australia: Springer Briefs in Education, 2017, 89 pages ISBN: 978-3-319-04030-1 (paperback) Reviewed by Christina Gray University of Calgary Gray, C. (2017). [Review of the book Impacts of cyberbullying, building social and emotional resilience in schools, by S. Chadwick]. Emerging Perspectives, 1(1), 34- 36. Introduction Impacts of Cyberbullying, Building Social and Emotional Resilience in Schools, by Sharlene Chadwick, provides an overview describing cyberbullying and its impact on the social and emotional wellbeing of youth. Chadwick’s book integrates American, Australian, and British research findings to provide a foundational summary of current understandings of the cyberbullying construct and related factors. The scope of this book extends cyberbullying research to applied practice that can be implemented for future research and within school settings to promote social and emotional resilience in youth. Chadwick’s thesis identifies cyberbullying as a recent phenomenon that is relational-behavioural at its core rather than primarily a technological problem. She argues that cyberbullying is simply another form of bullying that has the potential for serious long-term effects on youth wellbeing. Thus, Chadwick proposes there is a need for cyberbullying safety that must begin in school settings and include student-driven programs. Content and Structure Impacts of Cyberbullying, Building Social and Emotional Resilience in Schools is divided into five chapters. Much of the book involves providing concise overviews of research findings, operational definitions of cyberbullying-related terms, and understandings from existing cyberbullying literature. Chadwick integrates information within and across each chapter to instill a foundational understanding of the nature of cyberbullying in the reader. The introduction forms the first chapter of the book. Chadwick’s introduction broadly describes the construct of cyberbullying and outlines different types that have been identified by researchers, such as harassment and denigration. Integrated with descriptions of the cyberbullying construct are Australian and British statistics to describe its prevalence, as well as various online environments that youth are involved in. The chapter concludes by identifying similarities and differences in bullying that occur in online and offline contexts. The second chapter of the book focuses on the holistic nature of youth involvement in online environments, particularly with cyberbullying challenges. Although cyberbullying tends to Gray / Emerging Perspectives (2017) 34-36 35 occur outside of school settings, the impacts of cyberbullying trickle across different settings. Chadwick identifies gender differences in cyberbullying found within recent research. She discusses challenges with cyberbullying research as stemming from the absence of a commonly accepted definition of the construct. Differing assumptions of the nature of cyberbullying subsequently inform different methodologies across studies. The chapter concludes with an outline of lasting online risks beyond cyberbullying instances, including a lack of youth understanding of privacy and of the concept of the digital footprint. The third chapter speaks to the developmental changes experienced by youth as they transition into adulthood, with a focus on factors contributing to social and emotional resilience. In this chapter, Chadwick identifies key researchers in resilience and makes links between resilience research findings and youth social and emotional wellbeing. In this chapter, she also summarises research on building social and emotional resilience in youth. Fostering social and emotional resilience is presented as critical for teaching coping strategies as youth become more immersed online, potentially becoming exposed to cyberbullying. This chapter incorporates diagrams, charts, and bulleted key points to emphasize protective factors, mental wellbeing, and resilience concepts in a clear manner for readers. The fourth chapter focuses on educational approaches and applied implications of the cyberbullying research discussed in preceding chapters. Chadwick discusses Australian study findings from a whole-school approach to bullying intervention. From this example, key areas of focus for policy and considerations for action to combat cyberbullying are identified from Australian policies. This chapter outlines key considerations with respect to promoting cybersafety, preparing educational materials, and the importance of peer education and youth empowerment. The role of parents and promoting changes in school culture are also acknowledged in relation to addressing cyberbullying. In the final chapter, Chadwick closes the book with identification of international initiatives to address cyberbullying. She specifically outlines cyberbullying interventions within the United Kingdom and the United States. She acknowledges that cyberbullying is gaining international attention through law and international arrangements to target the phenomenon, for example, the United Nations Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Commission movements. The theme of cyberbullying and teachers was also briefly addressed in this concluding chapter as an area of growing interest and importance when developing cyberbullying school-based policies. Critique There are several strengths inherent in Chadwick’s Impacts of Cyberbullying, Building Social and Emotional Resilience in Schools. A major strength of the book is its broad overview of cyberbullying literature in relation to youth wellbeing and school settings. The book is empirically-informed from research across several countries. Literature findings and key points are presented in a manner that is easily understandable. The inclusion of summative abstracts preceding text chapters as well as images, diagrams, and charts within each chapter to present information contribute to the overall readability of the book. Chadwick visually bolds and clearly defines jargon throughout the book, and this contributes to its readability for a range of readers. The book presents a foundational cyberbullying resource that may be useful to a range of professionals, from researchers and teachers to educational professionals and school psychologists. The inclusion of an applied focus in the text that is supported with cited empirical research contributes to the academic integrity of the book. Gray / Emerging Perspectives (2017) 34-36 36 From a North American perspective, a limitation of Chadwick’s book lies in the predominant focus on Australian-based cyberbullying research and interventions in comparison to the other references. No explanation for the Australian focus was identified in the book, which can leave readers wondering how research and initiatives across other countries compare. Another limitation of the book is that Chadwick covers the surface of cyberbullying literature, and readers who are looking for greater depth in a subtopic area will require additional resources. In summary, Impacts of Cyberbullying, Building Social and Emotional Resilience in Schools provides an overview of cyberbullying in relation to youth wellbeing. The book provides the reader with a foundational understanding of the construct of cyberbullying, factors salient to its occurrence, factors that protect against the harm it may cause, and interventions that address cyberbullying within school settings. Chadwick integrates research findings with applied educational interventions and identifies challenges and gaps with existing cyberbullying research for future expansion. As an introductory, summative text, readers can gain an appreciation of the challenges that cyberbullying presents for youth as well as ways to promote wellbeing despite these challenges within school environments. References Chadwick, S. (2015). Impacts of cyberbullying, building social and emotional resilience in schools. North Ryde, NSW Australia: Springer Briefs in Education.