Cyberbullying and its risk factors among Chinese high school students

Abstract

Cyberbullying has become a common occurrence among adolescents worldwide; however, it has yet to receive adequate scholarly attention in China, especially in the mainland. The present study investigated the epidemiological characteristics and risk factors of cyberbullying, utilizing a sample of 1,438 high school students from central China. Findings revealed that cyberbullying among high school students in the heartland of central China is relatively common with 34.84% ( N = 501) of participants reported having bullied someone and 56.88% ( N = 818) reported having been bullied by online. Significant gender differences were found, suggesting that boys are more likely to be involved in cyberbullying both as perpetrators and victims. Students with lower academic achievement were more likely to be perpetrators online than were students with better academic achievement. Students who spend more time on online, have access to the internet in their bedrooms, have themselves experienced traditional bullying as victims, and are frequently involved in instant-messaging and other forms of online entertainment are more likely to experience cyberbullying. Increased parent and teacher supervision reduced students’ involvement in cyberbullying. Implications for intervention are explored.