Erich Fromm Cyberbullying

I imagine we all can agree that we know someone on social media that often tries to express their opinions in an obnoxiously extroverted way and criticizes those who do not agree with their ideas. In their quest to find individuality on sites that promote and develop groups, their backlash towards those who do not praise the words they speak can often seem malicious and hurtful, depending on the way they express their annoyance to this disapproval. Their comments may even, after a while, begin to target particular people in order to ridicule or embarrass them if they continue to not conform to the ideas they share. To make matters worse, other children, who may have previously disagreed with this individual, often partake in or promote these attacks to alleviate the threat from themselves. These social media …show more content…
In the case of cyberbullying, children disregard their ideologies that harassing others is wrong for the fear of the consequences that will occur as a result. In his essay, “Disobedience as a Psychological and Moral Problem,” psychologist Erich Fromm states that people obey authority because it makes them feel “safe and protected” (par. 12). These children would rather stand behind an idea they morally believe is wrong rather than stand up against the “authority figure” that provides them a sense of safety and the knowledge that they are not the next target. Doris Lessing also touches on this issue, as well, in her essay, “Group Minds,” where she states, “the hardest thing in the world is to stand out against one’s group, a group of one’s peers” (par. 9). In a child’s mind, it is easier to continue to bully the target over social media than to expose oneself to becoming the next