The Association Between Cyberbullying, School Bullying, and Suicidality Among Adolescents

Abstract. Background: Bullying and suicidality are serious worldwide problems with negative effects on the young population and therefore international comparisons in this field are of paramount importance. Aims: To analyze the prevalence of bullying and cyberbullying and their association with suicidal behavior among school-aged children in Israel, Lithuania, and Luxembourg. Method: In total, 3,814 15-year-olds from schools in Israel, Lithuania, and Luxembourg were surveyed in the Health Behavior in School-Aged Children (HBSC) cross-national survey in 2013/2014 using standardized anonymous questionnaires. Data analysis employed logistic regression and structural equation modeling (SEM). Results: In all, 6.5% of the adolescents reported being cyberbullied, 15.6% reported being bullied at school. In the previous 12 months, 38.6% reported experiencing emotions that stopped them from doing their usual activities, 17.8% considered attempting suicide, 12.0% made a suicide plan, and 9.5% attempted suicide. Victims of cyberbullying and school bullying had a significantly higher risk of suicidal ideations, plans, and attempts. The SEM analysis confirmed a significant overall effect of bullying on adolescent suicidality. The strongest effect was seen among Israeli students. Limitations: The prevalence estimates were obtained by self-report. Conclusion: The prevalence of adolescent cyberbullying, school bullying, and suicidal behavior is relatively high in Israel, Lithuania, and Luxembourg. Cyberbullying is a strong predictor of adolescent suicidality.

For the data from all three participated countries, the regression weight of cyberbullying was midway between the regression weights of bullying others and being bullied (Zaborskis, Ilionsky, Tesler & Heinz, 2019). The results confirmed a significant overall effect of bullying on adolescent suicidality, with the highest magnitude of this effect being seen among Israeli students. the findings show a high prevalence of traditional bullying victimization, with 15.6% of all reports indicating that participants had been victims of school bullying at some point in their life. Indeed, looking at each country separately we can see that these results are only valid for Lithuania and Luxembourg and not for Israel, where only a small number of participants, especially girls, reported being bullied at school. In logistic regression analysis, by comparing adolescents who had experienced cyberbullying or traditional bullying with those who had never encountered any victimization by bullying, it is evident that those who were bullied in any way have a significantly higher risk for developing suicidal ideation, plans, and attempts. In Israel, being bullied at school has a greater impact on suicidal ideation and plans than being cyberbullied, and traditional bullying and cyberbullying have almost the same magnitude of effect on suicide attempts. Additionally, the results show that being a bully has a significant effect on adolescent suicidal plans and attempts in Israel.