Kicking the digital dog: a longitudinal investigation of young adults' victimization and cyber-displaced aggression

The Role of Parental Mediation and Age in the Associations between Cyberbullying Victimization and Bystanding and Children's and Adolescents' Depression

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES

The primary objective of this research was to assess age differences in the associations between cyberbullying victimization and bystanding and depression among 234 elementary school students (4th and 5th graders; 51% female), 363 middle school students (6th to 8th grades; 53% female), and 341 high school students (9th to 12th grades; 51% female) as well as the moderating effect of parental mediation in these relationships.

METHODS

Participants completed self-report questionnaires on their cyberbullying victimization and bystanding, as well as depressive symptoms.

RESULTS

The findings revealed that high levels of instructive mediation buffered against depression associated with cyberbullying victimization and bystanding across all age groups, with the strongest effects found for middle school students. Lower levels of instructive mediation and higher levels of restrictive mediation increased the positive relationships between cyberbullying victimization and bystanding and depression. Co-viewing mediation did not moderate any of the associations.

CONCLUSIONS

Parental mediation of technology use has the potential to alleviate the negative consequences associated with cyberbullying victimization and bystanding. The findings highlight the importance of tailoring prevention and intervention strategies to specific age groups and to parents.

Cyberbullying Involvement and Depression among Elementary School, Middle School, High School, and University Students: The Role of Social Support and Gender

One aim of this study was to investigate differences in cyberbullying involvement (i.e., victimization, bystanding, perpetration) across four age groups, including 234 elementary school students (4th and 5th grades; 51% female), 363 middle school students (6th through 8th grades; 53% female), 341 high school students (9th through 12th grade; 51% female), and 371 university students (all four years; 60% female). Another aim was to examine the age group differences in the associations between cyberbullying involvement and depression, as well as the moderating effect of social support from parents and friends. Participants completed questionnaires on cyberbullying involvement, depression, and social support from parents and friends. Findings revealed that middle school students were more often involved in cyberbullying as victims, bystanders, and perpetrators, followed by high school and university students, and elementary school students. High school and university students did not differ on their cyberbullying involvement. Gender moderated these relationships for elementary school students, with boys more often involved in cyberbullying perpetration and victimization than girls. In addition, female university students witnessed cyberbullying more so than males. Social support from parents buffered against the negative effects of cyberbullying involvement on depression across all age groups. Results were similar for social support from friends, but only for middle school and high school students. Gender did not influence the associations among age groups, cyberbullying involvement, and depression. The results have implications for designing prevention and intervention programs and ensuring that such programs consider age.

Why do we share aggressive online content? Testing a short cycle model

The present study aimed to observe the impacts of aggressive online content exposure and personality on aggressive content sharing, considering the mediating role of positive and negative affects. A total of 302 Brazilians, equally divided into two groups, participated in a social network simulation, being exposed to aggressive (experimental group) or neutral (control group) posts and choosing what they would like to share on this site (among aggressive or nonaggressive material). A factorial MANOVA showed a significant difference for positive and negative affects and aggressive content sharing (Wilks' Λ = 0.936; F[3, 298] = 6.812; p = .001; η²  = 0.064). Through structural equation modeling, an explanatory model was also tested, in which this behavior was directly predicted by aggressive online content exposure and suffered indirect effects from openness, conscientiousness, and extroversion, mediated by positive affects (goodness-of-fit index = 0.997, comparative fit-index = 0.998, Tucker-Lewis index = 0.996, SRMR = 0.028, root-mean-square error of approximation = 0.035, CI = 0.003-0.054). It is possible to conclude that the objectives are met, highlighting the contribution to understanding aggressive online behavior through the proximal processes described in the general aggression model.

Cyberbullying and Delinquency in Adolescence: The Potential Mediating Effects of Social Attachment and Delinquent Peer Association

Adopting the integrated model of General Strain Theory (GST), the current study tested the relations between cyberbullying roles (i.e., cyberbully, cybervictim, and cyberbully-victim) and delinquent behaviors (i.e., physical fighting and substance use), as well as the potential mediating effects of delinquent peer association and perceived social attachment from parents, friends, and teachers. This was conducted in a cross-sectional sample of 12,642 American adolescents via the use of structural equation models. The results indicated that being involved in cyberbullying might be not only directly associated with an increase in delinquent behaviors, but also indirectly via delinquent peer associations and perceived social attachment from parents, friends, and teachers. Furthermore, both direct and indirect (mediating) relationships between cyberbullying and delinquency might depend upon specific cyberbullying roles and the types of delinquency. Potential implications for prevention and intervention strategies were discussed.

Offline Victimization, Psychological Morbidity, and Problematic Online Behavior among Chinese Secondary School Students

Despite the rise of child victimization in different societies, few researchers have examined its consequences in terms of psychological morbidity (such as depression and anxiety) and problematic online behavior (such as Internet addiction and cyberbullying) in a single study. Moreover, no study has investigated the role of psychological morbidity in mediating the impact of victimization on problematic online behavior (indexed by Internet addiction and cyberbullying) in a single model. Based on a survey of 2843 Chinese secondary students (49.3% male; Mage = 13.97) from six public secondary schools in Fujian, China, we found that experience of victimization was positively associated with depression and anxiety, as well as Internet addiction and cyberbullying. Depression mediated the links between victimization and both Internet addiction and cyberbullying, with the mediating effect on Internet addiction found to be stronger for girls. While anxiety did not mediate the association between victimization and cyberbullying, it mediated the relationship between victimization and Internet addiction in boys. These findings enrich our understanding of the negative outcomes of victimization, as well as directions for intervention.

Longitudinal associations between cybervictimization, anger rumination, and cyberaggression

Adolescents' involvement in cyberbullying has been a growing public health concern for some time. Cybervictimization and cyberaggression are two phenomena that previous research has often shown to be associated. However, longitudinal research into these associations and also into potential risk factors for these phenomena is less common. Anger rumination is a proven risk factor for aggressive behavior, but the relationship between anger rumination and victimization is not clear. The present longitudinal study investigated the associations between cybervictimization, anger rumination and cyberbullying in a sample of 3017 adolescents (MW1  = 13.15; SD = 1.09; 49% girls) from 7th to 9th grade. The European Cyberbullying Intervention Project Questionnaire and the Anger Rumination Scale were administered in four waves with 6 months intervals over a total period of 18 months. The associations between the variables were analyzed with a cross-lagged model. We found that: cybervictimization predicted anger rumination and cyberaggression; anger rumination was associated with later increases in both cybervictimization and cyberaggression: but involvement in cyberaggression predicted neither subsequent involvement in cybervictimization, nor in anger rumination. In addition, cybervictimization was found to mediate the association between anger rumination and cyberaggression. This study expands the understanding of the factors associated with cybervictimization and cyberaggression, and its results indicate that intervention programs should focus on boosting self-control to decrease impulsive behavior and protocols to prevent and intervene in cyberbullying.

Anger rumination and adolescents' cyberbullying perpetration: Moral disengagement and callous-unemotional traits as moderators

Cyberbullying perpetration has become an international public health concern among adolescents. However, it is less clear whether anger rumination potentially increases adolescents' cyberbullying perpetration up to now, and there is a limited understanding of factors that may affect this relationship. Therefore, the current study examined the relationship between anger rumination and adolescents' cyberbullying perpetration and attempts to determine whether moral disengagement and callous-unemotional traits moderated this relationship at the same time. Two thousand four hundred and seven Chinese adolescents completed the measurements of anger rumination, moral disengagement, callous-unemotional traits, and cyberbullying perpetration. Results showed that adolescents with high anger rumination were likely to engage in cyberbullying perpetration, even after controlling age and gender. Compare to low moral disengagement adolescents, high moral disengagement adolescents were more likely to bully others online when they have high levels of anger rumination. Moreover, anger rumination significantly predicted adolescents' cyberbullying perpetration when their moral disengagement and callous-unemotional traits were both high, or one was high. On the contrary, when adolescents' moral disengagement and callous-unemotional traits were both low, this effect became nonsignificant. The current study first explored the relationship between anger rumination and adolescents' cyberbullying perpetration and clarifying the moderating mechanisms underlying this relationship. Adolescents should be taught to manage and express their emotions properly, establish the right moral standards and reduce moral disengagement, as well as care more about others, in order to provide appropriate intervention.

Does Parental Mediation of Technology Use Moderate the Associations between Cyber Aggression Involvement and Substance Use? A Three-Year Longitudinal Study

The goal of this three-year longitudinal study was to examine the buffering effect of parental mediation of adolescents’ technology use (i.e., restrictive, co-viewing, and instructive) on the relationships among cyber aggression involvement and substance use (i.e., alcohol use, marijuana use, cigarette smoking, and non-marijuana illicit drug use). Overall, 867 (M_age = 13.67, age range from 13–15 years, 51% female, 49% White) 8th grade adolescents from the Midwestern United States participated in this study during the 6th grade (Wave 1), 7th grade (Wave 2), and 8th grade (Wave 3). Results revealed that higher levels of Wave 2 instructive mediation weakened the association between Wave 1 cyber victimization and Wave 3 alcohol use and Wave 3 non-marijuana illicit drug use. The relationship was stronger between Wave 1 cyber victimization and Wave 3 alcohol use and Wave 3 non-marijuana illicit drug use when adolescents reported lower levels of Wave 2 instructive mediation. At lower levels of Wave 2 instructive mediation, the association between Wave 1 cyber aggression perpetration and Wave 3 non-marijuana illicit drug use was stronger. Implications of these findings are discussed in the context of parents recognizing their role in helping to mitigate the negative consequences associated with adolescents’ cyber aggression involvement.

Intimate Partner Violence Victimization in the Cyber and Real World: Examining the Extent of Cyber Aggression Experiences and Its Association With In-Person Dating Violence

This study explores the extent of cyber aggression victimization in intimate relationships and its co-occurrence with in-person experiences of psychological, physical, and sexual partner violence. Data were collected from 540 college students who reported being in a dating relationship in the past 12 months. Participants were asked to complete an online questionnaire that included measures assessing intimate partner victimization experiences in differing social contexts (through socially interactive technology and in face-to-face encounters). Findings indicated that intimate partner cyber aggression victimization is not uncommon, as nearly three quarters of respondents reported having experienced some form of it in the past year. Multivariate analyses also indicate that such aggression may be part of a larger violence nexus given its relation to in-person psychological, physical, and sexual partner violence victimization experiences. In light of these findings, it is recommended that longitudinal research encompassing multiple violence victimization experiences in varying social contexts is completed to determine whether online experiences foreshadow offline ones and, if so, consider interaction effects on outcomes as well as potential intervention strategies to reduce harm associated with such negative experiences.

Cyber Victimization and Depression among Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder: The Buffering Effects of Parental Mediation and Social Support

The purpose of the present study was to examine the buffering effect of parental mediation of technology use and social support from parents on the association between cyber victimization and depression, assessed over one year. Participants were 113 7th through 9th graders from the Midwestern United States (age ranged from 12 to 17 years old; 86% were male) who were diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. They completed questionnaires on their perceptions of parental mediation of technology use, perceived social support from parents, and self-reported face-to-face and cyber victimization and depression at Wave 1. One year later, at Wave 2, they completed a questionnaire on their depression. Results indicated that the associations between cyber victimization and depression were more negative at higher levels of perceived parental technology mediation and social support, while these associations were more negative at lower levels of these variables, after controlling for face-to-face victimization and Wave 1 depression.

Cyber Victimization on College Campuses

Although much is known about the cross-sectional associations between cyber victimization and the negative socioemotional outcomes associated with this experience, not much is known about the longitudinal associations among college students. The purpose of the present study was to examine longitudinal, bidirectional associations between cyber victimization, suicidal ideation, depression, and anxiety among college students, using cross-lagged models. These relationships were examined over 4 years. Participants were 1,483 college students ( Mage = 24.67; 60% female; 35% White, 15% Black/African American, 10% Latino/Latina, 6% Asian, and 4% biracial) from Southeastern universities in the United States. They completed self-reports of face-to-face and cyber victimization and questionnaires on suicidal ideation, depression, and anxiety at four time points over 4 years. Findings revealed that cyber victimization contributed to suicidal ideation, depression, and anxiety over time, and that suicidal ideation, depression, and anxiety each contributed to cyber victimization over time as well. Such findings suggest bidirectional relationships between these variables, although there were differences in the size of the bivariate relationships. In particular, the magnitudes of the associations were stronger when cyber victimization predicted suicidal ideation, depression, and anxiety. Recommendations are provided to help reduce or eliminate cyber victimization among students on college campuses.

Modeling the anti-cyberbullying preferences of university students: Adaptive choice-based conjoint analysis

Adaptive choice-based conjoint analysis was used to study the anti-cyberbullying program preferences of 1,004 university students. More than 60% reported involvement in cyberbullying as witnesses (45.7%), victims (5.7%), perpetrator-victims (4.9%), or perpetrators (4.5%). Men were more likely to report involvement as perpetrators and perpetrator-victims than were women. Students recommended advertisements featuring famous people who emphasized the impact of cyberbullying on victims. They preferred a comprehensive approach teaching skills to prevent cyberbullying, encouraging students to report incidents, enabling anonymous online reporting, and terminating the internet privileges of students involved as perpetrators. Those who cyberbully were least likely, and victims of cyberbullying were most likely, to support an approach combining prevention and consequences. Simulations introducing mandatory reporting, suspensions, or police charges predicted a substantial reduction in the support of uninvolved students, witnesses, victims, and perpetrators.

Bullying prevalence across contexts: a meta-analysis measuring cyber and traditional bullying

Bullying involvement in any form can have lasting physical and emotional consequences for adolescents. For programs and policies to best safeguard youth, it is important to understand prevalence of bullying across cyber and traditional contexts. We conducted a thorough review of the literature and identified 80 studies that reported corresponding prevalence rates for cyber and traditional bullying and/or aggression in adolescents. Weighted mean effect sizes were calculated, and measurement features were entered as moderators to explain variation in prevalence rates and in traditional-cyber correlations within the sample of studies. Prevalence rates for cyber bullying were lower than for traditional bullying, and cyber and traditional bullying were highly correlated. A number of measurement features moderated variability in bullying prevalence; whereas a focus on traditional relational aggression increased correlations between cyber and traditional aggressions. In our meta-analytic review, traditional bullying was twice as common as cyber bullying. Cyber and traditional bullying were also highly correlated, suggesting that polyaggression involvement should be a primary target for interventions and policy. Results of moderation analyses highlight the need for greater consensus in measurement approaches for both cyber and traditional bullying.