Is there a gender divide in cyberbullying?

When beginning my research on cyberbullying I was curious to find out if girls or boys are more likely to use online tools to harass each other. In Girl Wide Web 2.0, Sharon R. Mazzarella explains that studies have shown that girls and boys use the Internet differently. “Whether on social networking Web sites, surfring for information, or blogging, girls are more likely than boys to use the Web to build social relationships and maintain friendships” (20). After reading this I wondered whether girls are also using these same tools to break friendships. Also, in Shayla Thiel Stern’s, Instant Identity, she explains that “37 percent of adolescent IM users say that they have said something online that they would not have said in person” (2).
In a study done by Dr Gallagher, from Cambridgeshire Educational Psychology Service, he found that girls are more likely to use technology such as texting or the Internet to bully each other. Boys are more likely to stick to traditional forms of bullying. I found information on this study by the Daily Mail Reporter. The article explains that “Dr Gallagher's research surveyed 239 adolescents in a secondary school and their parents”. Students were asked about their experiences with cyberbullying while parents were tested on their knowledge of their own child’s involvement with cyberbullying. One interesting factor that came out of this survey was that “the results showed a strong correlation between pupils who rated themselves as victims also seeing themselves as cyber-bullies”.
Gallagher’s survey was not the only information I found that argued girl’s are more likely than boys to use technology to bully each other. Eric J. Sinrod’s article on CNET also agrees. According to his research, “38 percent of online girls report being bullied when compared with 26 percent of online boys”. He also found that as girls reach the 15-17 age group they were more likely to report being victims of online bullying. Although cyberbullying is an issue, Sinrod explains that 67% of teens reported more bullying to happen offline than on.