Cyber Aggression Victimization Research Articles

Bias-Based Cyberaggression Related To Origin, Religion, Sexual Orientation, Gender, and Weight: Systematic Review of Young People's Experiences, Risk and Protective Factors, and the Consequences.

Bias-based cyberaggression-hateful and bias-based content and interactions via information and communication technologies-is a frequent experience for young internet users that can result in detrimental consequences for both individuals and society. Ample research has focused on the factors related to involvement in bias-based cyberaggression. This study systematically reviews the research published in the past decade about the investigations into exposure, vicarious and direct victimization, and aggression among young people (up to age 30). We aimed to provide a complex summarization of the research findings about the risk and protective factors and the consequences of experiences with bias-based cyberaggression-specifically the diverse manifestations of bias-based cyberaggression targeted toward ethnicity, race, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, gender, weight, and disability. Three academic databases (EBSCO, Scopus, and WoS) were searched and 41 articles were included in the review. The results show a dominant research focus on bias-based cyberaggression victimization and on the bias-based cyberaggression that targets ethnicity, race, nationality, and religion, leaving a gap in the knowledge about the different types of targeted group categories and bias-based cyberaggression perpetration. The identified risk factors for bias-based cyberaggression involvement included being a minority, low psychological well-being, other victimization experiences, higher internet use, and risky internet use. An overlap was found for bias-based cyberaggression involvement with other offline and online victimization experiences. This review showed limited knowledge about protective factors, namely the social-level and contextual factors. The identified factors, as well as the gaps in the knowledge, are discussed in relation to research implications and practice and policy implications.

Perception of cyberdating abuse from the victims’ perspective: effect of the type of suffered behavior and gender

Direct cyberaggression and cybercontrol, although both are manifestations of cyberdating abuse (CDA), seem to show different intentionality and impact. Furthermore, how young people perceive and experience CDA within heterosexual relationships varies by gender. However, no studies have examined whether the victims’ perception of offense and severity in an incident of CDA and the motivations that they attributed to their aggressor’s behavior vary by the type of victimization and gender. This research (N = 92 participants; 56.5% men and 43.5% women) was aimed at addressing this gap in the literature. Participants randomly completed an essay in which the CDA victimization (direct cyberaggression vs. cybercontrol) was manipulated and then responded to dependent measures. The results showed that (a) direct cyberaggression (vs. cybercontrol ) victimization was perceived as more offensive and severe; (b) women (vs. men) perceived greater offense and severity in a CDA victimization incident; (c) direct cyberaggression victimization was more frequently attributed to anger/frustration and online disinhibition, whereas cybercontrol victimization was attributed to personality and jealousy; and (d) a higher percentage of men indicated that their partners had perpetrated CDA against them because of the partners’ personality, whereas a higher percentage of women indicated that they had been victims of CDA because their partners experienced online disinhibition. We discussed the theoretical and practical contributions of our findings in the CDA field.

Cyber bullying and victims among adolescents depending on perceived parental attitudes

Being a cyberbully and being a cyber victim is a common problem that negatively affects the lives and psychological well-being of children and young people. This situation arises with the increase in internet usage. Being a cyber bully and being a cyber victim negatively affects the psychosocial development of children and adolescents. Family environment, parental behavioral attitudes and various factors play an important role in adolescents' involvement in cyber aggression and cyber victimization. Aim: This study aimed to examine the relationships between perceived parental attitudes (democratic, authoritarian, protective and permissive) and cyber bullying (cyber aggression-victimization) in adolescents. These relationships were investigated by taking into account demographic variables such as gender, age, grade level, and own internet usage time. Materials and Methods: The sample of the research consists of 125 high school students between the ages of 14-18 studying at a private high school in Istanbul. Data were collected from students in the classroom using the survey method. As a data collection tool in the research; Personal Information Form, Parental Attitudes Scale and Cyberbullying Scale were used. IBM SPSS Statistic Base 25.0 was used to analyze the data collected in the study. The following analyses, respectively; descriptive, reliability, normality and Pearson Correlation were performed. Conclusion: According to the findings of the research, it was determined that there was a positive and moderate relationship between the characteristics of parents having a permissive attitude (r: 0.365 p: 0.000) and having an authoritarian attitude and the students' exposure to cyber bullying (r: 0.334 p: 0.000). However, it was determined that there was a negative and moderate relationship (r: -0.552 p: 0.000) between parents' democratic attitudes and students' exposure to cyberbullying. Results: According to the results of the research, students' exposure to cyberbullying behavior will increase when they are faced with authoritarian and permissive parental attitudes, and the exposure to cyberbullying behavior will decrease in children of parents whose internet usage time is controlled and who have democratic attitudes.

Predictors of work-related cyberaggression in a random sample of the Swedish working population

PurposeWith greater numbers of employees using computer-mediated communication, cyberaggression is becoming a more pressing problem for employees and their organizations. However, while a growing body of research illustrates its harmful effects, little is known about the factors that drive its occurrence. The authors therefore sought to identify factors that increase the risk of cyberaggression among employees.Design/methodology/approachA random sample of the Swedish working population (N = 11,556) was surveyed via Statistics Sweden (SCB), which produced a final sample of N = 2,847 (response rate = 24.6%).FindingsLogistic regression analysis showed that emotionally demanding work, availability expectations, low perceived work quality, public sector work and being in a managerial position were related to higher levels of experienced cyberaggression. In addition, exploratory analyses indicated that some of these factors were more strongly related to cyberaggression enacted by organizational insiders compared to organizational outsiders.Originality/valueTogether, the authors' findings suggest that situational factors are stronger antecedents of cyberaggression victimization than personal factors. This has implications for organizations, as practical steps can be taken to reduce cyberaggression among employees.

Cyberaggression victimization on anxiety and depression in college students: the role of emotion regulation, social media, social support, and biological sex

Objective: To test a conceptual model by which emotion dysregulation mediates the association between cyberaggression victimization (CAV) and symptoms of depression and anxiety among college students. Participants: Undergraduate students (N = 459) aged 18 to 29 years. Methods: Participants responded to an online questionnaire assessing CAV and distress associated with these experiences. Participants reported on emotion dysregulation, social media use integration, social support, and depression and anxiety symptoms. Results: As expected, emotion dysregulation mediated the relationship between CAV and depressive and anxiety symptoms. Contrary to expectations, biological sex and social media integration did not moderate the relationship between CAV and emotion dysregulation. Social support reduced the negative effects of emotion dysregulation on depressive and anxiety symptoms. Conclusion: These findings point to the need for colleges to invest in prevention and intervention efforts to reduce exposure to CAV and the impact of those experiences on the health and well-being of students.

Cyber Aggression-Victimization Among Malaysians Youth

The usage of the Internet and other related technologies has never been without any consequences. One such consequence is what commonly referred to as cyber aggression, a new form of abusing someone online, which has become a new growing problem in today's society. Cyber aggression offers convenient opportunities to humiliate, bully, or harass another person online. Global studies on cyber aggression found that youths who were aggressed online are reported feeling depressed, anxious, afraid, showing poor academic performance, experiencing eating disorders, and substance abuse usages such as drugs and alcohol. On that account, the study aims to investigate the interrelationships between predictive factors namely peer attachment, parental attachment, exposure to the Internet and cyber aggression-victimization among youths. The renowned general aggression model (GAM) is applied to understand the phenomenon. A sample of 430 urban youths aged between 13 and 18 years living within Klang Valley area were randomly selected to participate in the study. Data were gathered through a self-report questionnaire and later analyzed using SPSS and AMOS. The results revealed several noteworthy findings; the majority of respondents made use of the Internet approximately 7 to 21 hours per day especially during weekends with surfing social media being the major purpose, followed by entertainment and playing online games. A relatively significant number of youths are engaged with cyber victimization through written-verbal and online exclusion. Finally, the structural path analysis indicates that the Internet exposure is the strongest predictor associated with cyber aggression-victimization. Based on these findings, the implications and recommendations for future investigations with reference to the current theoretical framework and empirical findings on cyber aggression-victimization are thoroughly discussed.
 Keywords: Cyber aggression, Cyberbullying, Internet exposure, Klang Valley, Parental and peer attachment, Victimization, Youth.

Loneliness, Depressive Mood and Cyberbullying Victimization in Adolescent Victims of Cyber Dating Violence.

Currently, cyber dating violence (CDV) is a serious health problem among adolescents due to their frequent use of communication technologies in their romantic relationships including the use of these technologies to perpetrate dating violence. However, research on this topic is recent and more studies about victims’ psychosocial adjustment are needed. The objectives of this study were to analyze the prevalence of CDV victimization according to frequency (occasional and frequent) and type (cyber control and cyber-aggression) and to explore their relations with loneliness, depressive mood and cyberbullying victimization. A total of 604 adolescents (M age = 14.32, SD = 1.67) who had a dating relationship at the time or in the past 12 months, participated in this study. The results showed a higher prevalence for cyber-control than cyber-aggression victimization, and positive correlations of CDV victimization with depressive mood and cyberbullying victimization in boys and girls. Positive correlations with loneliness were also observed for girls. The average effect size of the aforementioned correlations was large for girls and medium for boys. Both boys and girls who were frequent victims of CDV also suffered more cyberbullying by peers than those who were never, and occasionally, cyber victimized by their partners. Girls who were frequent victims of CDV also reported higher scores for loneliness and depressive mood, with a small average effect size. All these results highlight close relations between cyberbullying and CDV in adolescents, being necessary to pay greater attention to possible experiences of poly-victimization, and a worse psychosocial adjustment in frequently victimized girls than boys. These findings may be useful for developing more effective intervention programs.

Relations among Romantic Myths, Offline Dating Violence Victimization and Cyber Dating Violence Victimization in Adolescents.

Cyber dating violence is an increasing problem with serious negative consequences for adolescents. Further knowledge about related variables is necessary to develop preventive strategies. The aim of this study was to analyze the correlations among cyber dating violence victimization (cyber-control and cyber-aggression), offline dating violence victimization (physical, verbal–emotional, and relational) and adolescents’ beliefs in myths of romantic love; and to examine possible differences in cyber-control victimization, cyber-aggression victimization and offline dating violence victimization (relational, physical and verbal–emotional) according to adolescents’ levels of belief (low vs. high) in myths of romantic love. The role of offline dating violence victimization (physical, verbal–emotional and relational) and romantic myths as predictor variables of cyber-control and cyber-aggression victimization was also explored. All these analyses were carried out separately with boys and girls. Of an initial sample of 919 adolescents, those who have had a dating relationship in the past year (492 adolescents, M = 15.10, SD = 1.59) were included. The regression analyses revealed that offline dating violence victimization and romantic myths were significant predictors of cyber-control and cyber-aggression victimization for both boys and girls, but explained variance was higher for girls. Verbal–emotional offline dating violence victimization was the main predictor of cyber-control victimization, and physical and relational offline dating violence victimizations were the main predictors of cyber-aggression victimization. These results can be useful for developing more effective offline and cyber dating violence prevention programs.

Cyber and in-person intimate partner violence victimization: Examining maladaptive psychosocial and behavioral correlates

This study examines psychological and behavioral correlates of cyber and in-person intimate partner victimization (IP-IPV; psychological, physical, and sexual violence) including strain (i.e., depression and anger), substance use, and antisocial behavior among young adults. Because intimate partner cyber aggression victimization (C-IPV) has received less research attention than IP-IPV, it is important to learn whether such victimization experiences are similar to in-person victimization experiences in terms of their associations with maladaptive functioning or whether they comprise a unique form of IPV. The study also explores strain as a potential mediator of the link between IPV victimization and maladaptive behavior. A sample of undergraduate students aged 18-25 who were in intimate relationships during the past year participated in a voluntary and anonymous online survey (n = 540). Results signaled that C-IPV and IP-IPV shared similar correlates (e.g. depression, substance use, and antisocial behavior) and C-IPV was linked with more forms of maladaptive behavior than certain types of in-person IPV victimization (e.g., sexual and physical) experiences. Results indicated partial support for the predicted mediation. Males were also at higher risk for engaging in substance use and antisocial behavior across all models. The study suggests that harmful electronic exchanges may have adverse consequences for young adults. As such, services providers and educators addressing the issue of IPV should tailor prevention and intervention strategies in a way that is inclusive of cyber aggression and considers it a public health concern.

College Partner Violence in the Digital Age: Explaining Cyber Aggression Using Routine Activities Theory

Partner violence is prevalent in contemporary society, and certain groups of individuals such as college students are particularly at high risk for becoming involved in aggressive relationships. Cyber aggression is an emerging area of societal concern; however, little is known about the prevalence of these online behaviors between romantic partners. Because of the dearth of literature on cyber aggression among current and former intimate partners, this study examines the correlates of partner cyber aggression using the routine activities theoretical perspective among a sample of undergraduate students at a large Midwestern university. The results revealed that 71% of respondents perpetrated and 75% were victimized by at least one aggressive cyber behavior during the past 12 months. Correlates of partner abusive cyber aggression included athletic participation, increased time online, more text messages received, experiencing sexual abuse, lower self-esteem, being drunk more often, and more online guardianship; receiving more texts, experiencing more physical abuse, and more online guardianship were associated with cyber aggression victimization. The theoretical and policy implications of these findings were also discussed.

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.