Radio Bulgaria

There is something they can do well and this is hating. They look like normal children at school but when they are online they turn into aggressive terminators, spreading threats and insults. They have been known in the world of Internet as “haters.”

Haters become angry because of the success of others. The net becomes a place for haters to let off steam and spread aggression. They spread threats with or without a reason. Children and teenagers are the most vulnerable. It is normal for a teenager to feel strong love or hate, as teenagers lack emotional maturity and that is why they cannot often control their emotions, psychologist Ivan Igov says. This does not mean that in the real world the Internet haters are aggressive or rude. Hating in the web is a way to let off negative emotions. The social networks are full of profiles and groups that are aimed against something and are full of threats and aggression. The young haters in Bulgaria even have their own web site where they can freely post comments about their schoolmates and teachers. Students even upload videos showing them behaving in an arrogant manner with their teachers. Haters often direct their aggression towards schoolmates. When teenagers quarrel or even fight at school they can still be friends on the next day as these emotions quickly vanish. This is not the case in the Internet, psychologist Ivan Igov says.
“Unfortunately, before the time of cyberspace, threats and words of aggression disappeared after they were said. But now threats and insult remain for an indefinite period of time and this can be very harmful for the children, although they do not realize this. Studies show that one third of the aggression among children has moved to the virtual world. These can be insulting short messages, threatening e-mails, slanders. These are dangerous things that the adults do not even recognize as they are happening in a different world.”

According to a recent study, 80% of the Bulgarian students think hating in the Internet is a form of entertainment. More than half of the polled admit they have posted insults and threats on the Internet. According to psychologists, most of the haters actually do not mean to cause harm to anybody and this is just a way to experiment with their identity. However, the hater’s profiles are not the best way to spend one’s free time.

“In such web sites one can find photos and texts that are not suitable for children,“ Ivan Igov says. “The state must protect the children. If someone threatens a child on the street, we must help the child. This must be done in the Internet too. That is why authorities must pay more attention to what is happening in some web sites,” the psychologist concludes.

English: Alexander Markov