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Evidence Base

Cyberbullying Victimization in Context: The Role of Social Inequalities in Countries and Regions

Keywords

cyberbullying cross-national comparison bullying victimization culture contextual analyses multi-level analyses

Publication details

Year: 2017
DOI: 10.1177/00220022116686186
Issued: 2017
Language: English
Volume: 48
Issue: 8
Start Page: 1198
End Page: 1215
Editors:
Authors: Staksrud E.; Görzig A.; Milosevic T.
Type: Journal article
Journal: Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology
Publisher: Sage
Topics: Internet usage, practices and engagement; Content-related issues; Wellbeing; Risks and harms; Online safety and policy regulation; Access, inequalities and vulnerabilities
Sample: EU Kids Online Data - The final data used for this study came from 15,813 participants (49.5% female) with a mean age of 12.43 years (SD = 2.28).
Implications For Parents About: Parental practices / parental mediation; Parenting guidance / support
Implications For Educators About: Digital citizenship; Professional development
Implications For Policy Makers About: Stepping up awareness and empowerment; Creating a safe environment for children online

Abstract

The phenomenon of cyberbullying is gaining ever more attention by media and policy makers in many countries. Theoretical frameworks using a socio-ecological approach emphasize the importance of contextual explanatory factors located at the societal level. It has been suggested that in addition to cross-national differences, the analysis of smaller units of more adjacent cultural contexts (i.e., regions) might yield more explanatory power. Leaning on previous findings and theory, the current article aims to identify and compare contextual explanatory factors associated with social inequality (i.e., crime rates, gross domestic product [GDP], life expectancy, and population density) for variation in cyber- and face-to- face bullying victimization rates within one sample. Moreover, corresponding explanatory factors are investigated across national and regional levels. Cyber- and face-to-face bullying victimization of 15,813 nine- to sixteen-year-olds (50% female) from the cross-national survey data of EU Kids Online were linked with contextual variables of 18 countries and 179 regions obtained from data of the European Social Survey (ESS). Hierarchical multilevel- modeling analyses, adding first regional and then country-level contextual predictors for bullying victimization, were performed. Against expectations, differences for cyber- and face-to-face victimization between regions within countries were smaller than differences between countries. Regional-level life expectancy showed a negative and crime rates showed a marginal positive relation with both cyber- and face-to-face victimization. Population density showed a negative and GDP a positive relationship with cyber- but not face-to-face victimization. Adding the same predictors on the country level did not improve model fit. Possible research and policy implications are discussed.

Outcome

Against expectations, differences for cyber- and face-to-face victimization between regions within countries were smaller than differences between countries. Regional-level life expectancy showed a negative and crime rates showed a marginal positive relation with both cyber- and face-to-face victimization. Population density showed a negative and GDP a positive relationship with cyber- but not face-to-face victimization. Adding the same predictors on the country level did not improve model fit. Possible research and policy implications are discussed.
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