Cyber-Aggression Typology Questionnaire: Structure and Primary Psychometric Characteristics

Abstract

The problem of online aggression has attracted increasing attention over the past decade. Various studies revealed a need for tools that would identify the causes of aggressive behavior in cyberspace. The article presents the results of the adaptation of the English-language Cyber-Aggression Typology Questionnaire (CATQ) by K. C. Runions on 421 Russian-speaking teenagers aged 10–15 years (St. Petersburg). The method features four types of online aggression. K. C. Runions describes the cyber-aggression in teenagers through their motivational goals and the ability to behavioral self-control. The procedures of exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the four-factor model of the original questionnaire. All factors were balanced by the number of statements. The final version of the questionnaire included 23 statements. The structure of the questionnaire was represented by the following factors: impulsive-aversive cyber-aggression, controlled-aversive cyberaggression, controlled-appetitive cyber-aggression, and impulsive-appetitive cyber-aggression. The questionnaire showed good indicators of discriminativeness and reliability; it can serve as a reliable psychological diagnosis tool for studying the phenomenon of cyber-aggression in scientific and practical purposes. Understanding the motivations behind cyber-aggressive behavior can help to develop new preventive measures based on individual differences in the disadaptive factors of online aggression.