Cyber Context Research Articles

The Relationship Between Young Adults' Beliefs About Anonymity and Subsequent Cyber Aggression

Anonymity is considered a key motivator for cyber aggression, but few investigations have focused on the connection between anonymity and the subsequent engagement in aggression through the cyber context. The present longitudinal study utilized structural equation modeling to reveal indirect associations between two types of anonymity (i.e., punishment by authority figures and retaliation from the target) and later cyber aggression among 130 young adults. These relationships were examined through the influence of beliefs about not getting caught and not believing in the permanency of online content. Findings indicated that both forms of anonymity were related to cyber aggression 6 months later through two explanatory mechanisms (i.e., confidence with not getting caught and believing online content is not permanent), after controlling for gender and cyber aggression at Time 1. The implications of these findings are discussed, and an appeal for additional research investigating cyber aggression among young adults is given.

The Association Between Cyber Victimization and Subsequent Cyber Aggression: The Moderating Effect of Peer Rejection

Adolescents experience various forms of strain in their lives that may contribute jointly to their engagement in cyber aggression. However, little attention has been given to this idea. To address this gap in the literature, the present longitudinal study examined the moderating influence of peer rejection on the relationship between cyber victimization at Time 1 (T1) and subsequent cyber aggression at Time 2 (T2; 6months later) among 261 (150 girls) 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. Our findings indicated that both peer rejection and cyber victimization were related to T2 peer-nominated and self-reported cyber aggression, both relational and verbal, after controlling for gender and T1 cyber aggression. Furthermore, T1 cyber victimization was related more strongly to T2 peer-nominated and self-reported cyber aggression at higher levels of T1 peer rejection. These results extend previous findings regarding the relationship between peer rejection and face-to-face aggressive behaviors to the cyber context. In addition, our findings underscore the importance of utilizing multiple methods, such as peer-nomination and self-report, to assess cyber aggression in a school setting.

MAC-Aware and Power-Aware Image Aggregation Scheme in Wireless Visual Sensor Networks

Traditional wireless sensor networks (WSNs) transmit the scalar data (e.g., temperature and irradiation) to the sink node. A new wireless visual sensor network (WVSN) that can transmit images data is a more promising solution than the WSN on sensing, detecting, and monitoring the environment to enhance awareness of the cyber, physical, and social contexts of our daily activities. However, the size of image data is much bigger than the scalar data that makes image transmission a challenging issue in battery-limited WVSN. In this paper, we study the energy efficient image aggregation scheme in WVSN. Image aggregation is a possible way to eliminate the redundant portions of the image captured by different data source nodes. Hence, transmission power could be reduced via the image aggregation scheme. However, image aggregation requires image processing that incurs node processing power. Besides the additional energy consumption from node processing, there is another MAC-aware retransmission energy loss from image aggregation. In this paper, we first propose the mathematical model to capture these three factors (image transmission, image processing, and MAC retransmission) in WVSN. Numerical results based on the mathematical model and real WVSN sensor node (i.e., Meerkats node) are performed to optimize the energy consumption tradeoff between image transmission, image processing, and MAC retransmission.

Kicking the Digital Dog: A Longitudinal Investigation of Young Adults' Victimization and Cyber-Displaced Aggression

Using the general strain theory as a theoretical framework, the present longitudinal study investigated both face-to-face and cyber victimization in relation to cyber-displaced aggression. Longitudinal data were collected from 130 (70 women) young adults who completed measures assessing their victimization (face-to-face and cyber), cyber aggression, and both face-to-face and cyber-displaced aggression. Findings indicated that victimization in both social contexts (face-to-face and cyber) contributed to cyber-displaced aggression 6 months later (Time 2), after controlling for gender, cyber aggression, face-to-face displaced aggression, and cyber-displaced aggression at Time 1. A significant two-way interaction revealed that Time 1 cyber victimization was more strongly related to Time 2 cyber-displaced aggression when young adults had higher levels of face-to-face victimization at Time 1. Implications of these findings are discussed as well as a call for more research investigating displaced aggression in the cyber context.

Risky eBusiness: An Examination of Risk-taking, Online Disclosiveness, and Cyberstalking Victimization

The expansion of online social networking sites and the relative accessibility to personal information provided by these sites has raised concerns about the risks for a variety of negative experiences, including cyberstalking. The present study investigated whether the theoretical concepts of Routine Activities Theory (RAT) could account for patterns of cyberstalking victimization among social networking site users. The study employed a self-report survey design using a convenience sample of 321 female undergraduate students. RAT was operationalized in the cyber context by measuring the level of online disclosure, frequency of internet use (online exposure) and general proclivity for risk-taking behaviours among participants. Personal experiences of cyberstalking were also assessed. Analyses specifically examined the relationship between RAT variables and cyberstalking outcomes and the extent to which a specific form of guardianship, online disclosiveness, served as a mediator between online activities and the risk for victimization. Online exposure and a proclivity for social risk-taking were associated with cyberstalking victimization. Levels of online disclosure demonstrated a direct positive impact on cyberstalking victimization, however our findings elucidating the role of online disclosure as a guardianship effort mediating the effects of exposure on cyberstalking victimization were mixed.

Cyberbullying: The Challenge to Define

Cyberbullying is a reality of the digital age. To address this phenomenon, it becomes imperative to understand exactly what cyberbullying is. Thus, establishing a workable and theoretically sound definition is essential. This article contributes to the existing literature in relation to the definition of cyberbullying. The specific elements of repetition, power imbalance, intention, and aggression, regarded as essential criteria of traditional face-to-face bullying, are considered in the cyber context. It is posited that the core bullying elements retain their importance and applicability in relation to cyberbullying. The element of repetition is in need of redefining, given the public nature of material in the online environment. In this article, a clear distinction between direct and indirect cyberbullying is made and a model definition of cyberbullying is offered. Overall, the analysis provided lends insight into how the essential bullying elements have evolved and should apply in our parallel cyber universe.

The Judicial System in the Digital Age: Revisiting the Relationship between Privacy and Accessibility in the Cyber Context

Despite technology’s reach into all parts of social life, its effects on the judiciary have been under-theorized. The “Digital Age”, and unfettered usage and access to digital information, will have untold effects on core values of judicial independence, impartiality and the delicate balance between privacy and the “open court” principle. Technology—as well as the dramatically increased availability of information of all kinds and quality—is distorting the judicial process and its outcomes. It is of primary importance, therefore, to identify the broad issues that emerge from the growing use of technology, and to provide a theoretical basis for adjudicating the ongoing tension between privacy and transparency in the judicial setting. Too often the judiciary pits privacy against the “open court” principle and accepts a culturally narrow view of what constitutes privacy and how it affects the judicial process. In particular, this article investigates the effects of online court documents to establish why, despite the current preference for openness and transparency, a contextualized understanding of privacy is desirable. Indeed, if we rethink privacy within the cyber context, it can be considered an ally of openness in the court system.

The effect of online store atmosphere on consumer's emotional responses – an experimental study of music and colour

The current study is a convergence of two research orientations: the effect of ambient factors (e.g. music and colour) in physical stores and the website design in cyber context. The former emphasises the influence of sensory stimuli on the shoppers' responses; whereas the latter address the relationship between website design factors (e.g. usability) and the performance of a virtual store. This article aims to bridge the gap between the above research orientations and explores the impact of two environmental elements – music and colour – of an online store on the consumers' emotions – considered as direct antecedents to shopping behaviours – by employing a laboratory experiment. The results indicated that both music and colour reveal significant effects on respondents' emotional responses. To be more specific, participants felt more aroused and pleasant when they were under fast music and warm colour conditions than those who were exposed to an environment with slow music and cool colour. In addition, the congruency of these two atmospheric factors enhances the effects of atmosphere on people's emotional responses.

Asian students' construction of their multiple identities in real-life and online contexts

This study investigates how four Asian students' investment in English learning is connected to the negotiation of their multiple identities not only in real-life contexts (high education institution) but also in cyber contexts. Observations, interviews, questionnaires, and e-mail correspondence were employed to look at how these students create 'interactional opportunities' to access 'linguistic resources' in a variety of contexts. The results of the study reveal that the students constantly negotiate their subject positions to maximize 'interactional opportunities' in their academic disciplines where they serve as graduate assistants or research assistants. However, the students often feel marginalized because of their non-nativeness such as foreign accent or appearance. Therefore, to empower their marginalized subject positions, the students utilize cyber space to gain equal access to 'linguistic resources' and to develop cultural-specific knowledge and discourse in the target society. Implications for connection between English as Second Language (ESL) students' investment in language learning and their academic success will follow.

Cyberbullying Definition and Measurement

This definition implies that cyberbullying is similar to traditional bullying, but involving the use of new communication technologies. Its hostile trait derives from the aggressive nature of the behavior. The intention refers to the degree of awareness of harming others, although we might argue to what extent perpetrators are aware of the seriousness of their acts. The indirect nature of cyberbullying makes it difficult to evaluate the intentional or reactive nature of the attack. Moreover some authors stated that cyberbullying, even if a single individual act, can be circulated widely or copied by others meeting the criteria of repetition and frequently creating an imbalance of power. It is hard to detail the concept of imbalance of power in the cyber context, since in face-to-face bullying it was derived by the higher physical or psychological strength of the bully or by a numeric criterion (the number of bullies in comparison with just one victim). How can we define in the cyber context? Can we refer just to a higher technological ability of the bully or, conversely, to a higher rank position of the bullies in the virtual community? Wolak, Finkelhor, Mitchell, and Ybarra (2007) and Ybarra and Mitchell (2004), showed that in many cases youth harassed online or by phone were not distressed or could easily block the harasser. The easy termination of these episodes suggests that part of online harassment may not involve imbalance of power in which victims have difficulty defending themselves from aggressors. It also involves other criteria to distinguish between bullying and harassment such as the number of incidents and the degree of reported distress by the victim. In relation to this issue scholars have proposed alternative terms, such as online, cyber, Internet harassment, or attacks (Dooley, Py_ zalski, & Cross, 2009; Patchin & Hinduja, 2006; Wolak et al., 2007). Measurement