Bullying and victimization among Turkish adolescents: the predictive role of problematic internet use, school burnout and parental monitoring

Abstract

This study aims to examine the paths between excessive Internet use, school burnout and parental monitoring and their predictor effects in peer bullying and victimization among Turkish adolescents. The relational survey design was employed in the study. The study group consisted of 362 students (108 females, 254 males, aged 15–18 years) from three different vocational high schools including each grade level. “Internet Addiction Scale”, “School Burnout Scale”, “Parental Monitoring Scale”, and “Peer Bullying / Victimization Scale” were used as data collection instruments. Structural Equation Modeling was employed in order to test the hypotheses argued in the study. Findings indicate that the tendency of becoming a victim among vocational high school students is higher than becoming a bully. Furthermore, according to model analysis findings, it was established that bullying and victimization was predicted by factors of problematic Internet use, school burnout, and parental monitoring. Furthermore, a positive relationship was found between problematic Internet use and school burnout as well as parental monitoring and school burnout in line with the hypotheses. As a result, it was recommended that reducing the problematic Internet use through psycho-educational programs as well as increasing school engagement and family functioning with both indoor and outdoor social and cultural activities may prevent the emergence of bullying and victimization.