USED TERRITORY AND NEGATIVE INTERPERSONAL RELATIONS: CONTRIBUTIONS TO A GEOGRAPHICAL INTERPRETATION OF CYBERBULLYING

Abstract

This article sought to analyze the phenomenon of cyberbullying as a spatialized expression of these relationships within the context of contemporary hybrid space, through the lens of Critical Geography. Methodologically, this qualitative study — theoretical-analytical and documentary in nature — was based on the examination of nine cases of cyberbullying that culminated in extreme violence. Regarding the theoretical framework, the content analysis structure was linked to a dialectical approach using essential geographic categories: use of territory, territoriality, deterritorialization, multiterritoriality, and the triad of conceived, perceived, and lived space. The results show that “used territory” constitutes the primary analytical category for understanding the power relations produced in hybrid space, where the interplay between systems of objects and systems of actions reconfigures interpersonal relationships. Finally, the investigation of cases documented in the media demonstrated that cyberbullying territorializes itself through the hostile use of digital platforms, materializing practices of control, exposure, and violence that inextricably span both digital and physical spaces.