At National Online Safety, we provide multi-award-winning online safety education for the whole school community. It’s our mission to make the internet a safer place for children. We believe that when children go online to learn, communicate or play, they should be able to do so safely. That’s why we provide schools all over the world with the knowledge they need in order to tackle new and evolving online risks.
Gaslighting
Gaslighting is a form of abuse, through which an individual is gradually convinced of something false by other people. Our illuminating video will quickly unpack this rapidly emerging online hazard, which credulous young people are particularly vulnerable to.
What is gaslighting?
Gaslighting is when a person, or a group of people, manipulate someone into believing something that didn’t happen by systematically rewriting the past. Typically, it happens offline in abusive relationships, but it can certainly happen online as well, particularly on chat apps or when sophisticated information or disinformation is used to influence beliefs, actions, and choices. Gaslighting may not always be intentional, but the effect is the same. Victims are made to doubt their own memories causing them to lose their sense of belief, lose their confidence, suffer mental health issues, and even feel dependent on the source of the information.
For more information on the associated risks and online safety tips for parents and carers, watch our explainer video, available to those with a National Online Safety membership.
