Abstract
Cyberbullying victimization research on individual and familial correlates is scarce in Spain. By building upon previous studies, this research examines the role of Internet usage and parental mediation in online victimization. Spanish children from rural public schools (10–12 years; n = 1068) completed a self-report questionnaire which measured being cyberbullied, Internet use and parental mediation strategies. Logistic regression analyses examined the association among cyberbullying victimization, online activities, intensity and purposes of online communication, and restricting, evaluating and co-using parental mediation. The results show that Internet use, specifically online communication, increases the likelihood of cyberbullying victimization. Conversely, monitoring software installed on the computer, joint creation of rules regarding the time spent online and personal information shared help lessen the likelihood of online victimization. The results are examined in the light of previous research, while implications for practice and future research are considered.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.
References
Akbulut, Y., Sahin, Y. L., & Eristi, B. (2010). Cyberbullying victimization among Turkish online social utility members. Educational Technology & Society, 13(4), 192–201.
Aricak, T., Siyahhan, S., Uzunhasanoglu, A., Saribeyoglu, S., Ciplak, S., Yilmaz, N., & Memmedov, C. (2008). Cyberbullying among Turkish adolescents. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 11, 253–261.
Bauman, S. (2010). Cyberbullying in a rural intermediate school: An exploratory study. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 30(6), 803–833.
Bonetti, L., Campbell, M. A., & Gilmore, L. (2010). The relationship of loneliness and social anxiety with children’s and adolescents’ online communication. Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking, 13(3), 279–285.
Bryant, J. A., Sanders-Jackson, A., & Smallwood, A. M. K. (2006). IMing, text messaging, and adolescent social networks. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communicationn, 11(2), 577–592.
Brown, T. (2006). CFA with equality constraints, multiple groups, and mean structures. In T. Brown (Ed.), Confirmatory factor analysis for applied research (pp. 236–319). New York: Guildford.
Buelga, S., Cava, M. J., & Musitu, G. (2010). Cyberbullying: Victimización entre adolescentes a través del teléfono móvil y de Internet. Psicothema, 22(4), 784–789.
Chou, C., Condron, L., & Belland, J. (2005). A review of the research on Internet Addiction. Educational Psychology Review, 17(4), 363–388.
Daniel, W. W. (1999). Biostatistics: A foundation for analysis in the health sciences (7th ed.). New York: Wiley.
Dehue, F., Bolman, C., & Völlink, T. (2008). Cyberbullying: Youngsters’ experiences and parental perception. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 11(2), 217–223.
Dempsey, A. G., Sulkowski, M. L., & Nichols, R. (2009). Differences between peer victimization in cyber and physical settings and associated psychosocial adjustment in early adolescence. Psychology in the Schools, 46(10), 962–972.
Estévez, A., Villardón, L., Calvete, E., Padilla, P., & Orue, I. (2010). Adolescentes vÃctimas de cyberbullying: Prevalencia y caracterÃsticas. Behavioral Psychology, 18(1), 73–89.
Gross, E. F. (2004). Adolescent Internet use: What we expect, what teens report. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 25, 633–649.
Gross, E. F., Juvonen, J., & Gable, S. L. (2002). Internet use and well-being in adolescents. The Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues, 58(1), 75–90.
Houbre, B., Traquinio, C., & Thuillier, I. (2006). Bullying among students and its consequences on health. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 21(2), 183–208.
INE (2010). Encuesta sobre Equipamiento y Uso de TecnologÃas de la Información y Comunicación en los hogares 2010. Retrieved from: http://www.ine.es/jaxi/menu.do?type=pcaxis&path=/t25/p450/a2010&file=pcaxis
INTECO. (2009). Study on safe habits in the use of ICT by children and adolescents and e-trust of their parents. Madrid: INTECO.
JCCM (2010). EstadÃstica educativa sobre el alumnado matriculado en el curso académico 2009/2010. Retrieved from http://www.educa.jccm.es/educa-jccm/cm/educa_jccm/tkContent?idContent=70349&locale=es_ES&textOnly=false
Juvonen, J., & Gross, E. (2008). Extending the school grounds? bullying experiences in cyberspace. The Journal of School Health, 78(9), 496–505.
Katzer, C., Fetchenhauer, D., & Belschak, F. (2009). Cyberbullying: Who are the victims? a comparison of victimization in Internet chatrooms and victimization in school. Journal of Media Psychology, 21(1), 25–36.
Kowalski, R. M., Limber, S. P., & Agatston, P. W. (2008). Cyber bullying: Bullying in the digital age. Malden: Blackwell.
Kraut, R., Kiesler, S., Boneva, B., Cummings, J., Helgeson, V., & Crawford, A. (2002). Internet paradox revisited. Journal of Social Issues, 58(1), 49–74.
Lee, S. J. (2009). Online communication and adolescent social ties: Who benefits more from Internet use? Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 14, 509–531.
Lee, S. J., & Chae, Y. G. (2007). Children’s Internet use in a family context: Influence on family relationships and parental mediation. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 10, 640–644.
Li, Q. (2006). Cyberbullying in schools: A research of gender differences. School Psychology International, 27, 157–170.
Livingstone, S., & Brake, D. R. (2009). On the rapid rise of social networking sites: New findings and policy implications. Children & Society, 24, 75–83.
Livingstone, S., & Helsper, E. J. (2008). Parental mediation of children’s Internet use. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 52(4), 581–599.
McNeil, D. (1996). Epidemiological research methods. New York: Wiley.
Mesch, G. S. (2009). Parental mediation, online activities, and cyberbullying. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 12, 387–393.
Navarro, R., Yubero, S., Larrañaga, E., & MartÃnez, V. (2012). Children’s cyberbullying victimization: associations with social anxiety and social competence in a Spanish sample. Child Indicators Research, 5, 281–295.
Patchin, J. W., & Hinduja, S. (2006). Bullies move beyond the schoolyard: A preliminary look at cyberbullying. Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice, 4, 148–169.
Peter, J., Valkenburg, P. M., & Schouten, A. P. (2006). Characteristics and motives of adolescents talking with strangers on the Internet. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 9, 526–530.
Scheithauer, H., Hayer, T., Petermann, F., & Jugert, G. (2006). Physical, verbal, and relational forms of bullying among German students: Age trends, gender differences, and correlates. Aggressive Behavior, 32, 1–15.
Slonje, R., & Smith, P. K. (2008). Cyberbullying: Another main type of bullying? Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 49, 147–154.
Smith, P. K., Mahdavi, J., Carvalho, M., Fisher, S., Russell, S., & Tippett, N. (2008). Cyberbullying: Its nature and impact in secondary school pupils. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 49(4), 376–385.
Subrahmanyam, K., & Šmahel, D. (2011). The darker sides of the Internet: Violence, cyber bullying and victimization. In K. Subrahmanyam & D. Šmahel (Eds.), Digital youth: The role of media in development (pp. 179–199). New York: Springer.
Topçu, Ç., Erdur-Baker, Ö., & Çapa-Aydin, Y. (2008). Examination of cyberbullying experiences among Turkish students from different school types. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 11(6), 643–664.
Tokunaga, R. S. (2010). Following you home from school: A critical review and synthesis of research on cyberbullying victimization. Computers in Human Behavior, 26, 277–287.
Twyman, K., Saylor, C., Taylor, L. A., & Comeaux, C. (2010). Comparing children and adolescents engaged in cyberbullying to matched peers. Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking, 13(2), 195–199.
Valkenburg, P. M., & Peter, J. (2007a). Preadolescents’ and adolescents’ online communication and their closeness to friends. Developmental Psychology, 43, 267–277.
Valkenburg, P. M., & Peter, J. (2007b). Online communication and adolescent well-being: Testing the stimulation versus the displacement hypothesis. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 12(4), 1169–1182.
Van Den Eijnden, R., Meerkerk, G., Vermulst, A., Spijkerman, R., & Engels, R. C. M. E. (2008). Online communication, compulsive Internet use, and psychosocial well-being among adolescents: A longitudinal study. Developmental Psychology, 44(3), 655–665.
Van Den Eijnden, R., Spijkerman, R., Vermulst, A. A., Van Rooij, T. J., & Engels, R. C. M. E. (2010). Compulsive Internet use among adolescents: Bidirectional parent–child relationships. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 38, 77–89.
Walrave, M., & Heirman, W. (2011). Cyberbullying: Predicting victimization and perpetration. Children & Society, 25, 59–72.
Willard, N. E. (2006). Cyberbullying and cyberthreats. Eugene: Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use.
Ybarra, M. L., Alexander, C., & Mitchell, K. J. (2005). Depressive symptomatology, youth Internet use, and online interactions: A national survey. Journal of Adolescent Health, 36(1), 9–18.
Ybarra, M. L., & Mitchell, K. J. (2004). Online aggressors/targets, aggressors, and targets: A comparison of associated youth characteristics. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45(7), 1308–1316.
Ybarra, M. L., Mitchell, K. J., Finkelhor, D., & Wolak, J. (2007). Internet prevention messages: Targeting the right online behaviors. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, 161, 138–145.
Zhao, S. (2006). Do Internet users have more social ties? a call for differentiated analyses of Internet use. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 11, 844–862.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Raúl Navarro. University of Castilla-La Mancha, Faculty of Education and Humanities, Department of Psychology. Avda. de los Alfares, 42, 16071 Cuenca, Spain. Email: Raul.Navarro@uclm.es
Current themes of research:
Gender differences in aggressive behaviour. Social and educational factors associated with bullying and cyberbullying. School adjustment and aggression.
Most relevant publications in the field of Psychology of Education:
Navarro, R., Larrañaga, E. & Yubero, S. (2011). Bullying-victimization problems and aggressive tendencies in Spanish secondary school students: the role of gender stereotypical traits. Social Psychology of Education, 14, 457–473.
Navarro, R., Yubero, S., Larrañaga, E., & MartÃnez, V. (2012). Children’s Cyberbullying Victimization: Associations with Social Anxiety and Social Competence in a Spanish Sample. Child Indicators Research, 5, 281–295.
Cristina Serna. University of Castilla-La Mancha, Faculty of Social Work, Department of Psychology. Campus Universitario, s/n, 16071, Cuenca, Spain. Email: cristina.serna@uclm.es
Current themes of research:
School failure. Psychosocial factors associated with school adjustment.
Most relevant publications in the field of Psychology of Education:
Yubero, S., Larrañaga, E., & Serna, C. (2011). School and school failure. The challenges of educational exclusion. In L. Amador y G. Musitu (coords.), Social exclusion and diversity (pp. 169–192). México: Trillas. [Spanish language].
Yubero, S., Serna, C., & Larrañaga, E. (2009). School failure as a type of social exclusion. In S. Yubero, E. Larrañaga & J. F. Morales (coord.), Exclusion: new forms and new contexts (pp. 157–170). Cuenca: Editions of University of Castilla-La Mancha. [Spanish language].
Verónica MartÃnez. University of Castilla-La Mancha, Faculty of Education and Humanities, Department of Psychology. Avda. de los Alfares, 42, 16071 Cuenca, Spain. Email: v.martinezsp@gmail.com
Current themes of research:
Cyberbullying and bullying in schools. Gender stereotypes and learning processes.
Most relevant publications in the field of Psychology of Education:
Navarro, R., Yubero, S., Larrañaga, E., & MartÃnez, V. (2012). Children’s Cyberbullying Victimization: Associations with Social Anxiety and Social Competence in a Spanish Sample. Child Indicators Research, 5, 281–295.
Roberto Ruiz-Oliva. Málaga University, Faculty of Communication Science, Department of Journalism. Campus de Teatinos, 29071, Málaga, Spain.
Current themes of research:
Social Media, online communication and stereotypes in television.
Most relevant publications in the field of Psychology of Education:
Ruiz-Oliva, R. (2011). The talk show genre. Analysis and proposals for the academic study of an international television format and regional adaptations. In I. Bort, S. GarcÃa, & M. MartÃn (eds.) New trends and hybrids of speeches in audiovisual contempary digital culture (pp. 319–330). Madrid: Social Science Editions. [Spanish language].
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Navarro, R., Serna, C., MartÃnez, V. et al. The role of Internet use and parental mediation on cyberbullying victimization among Spanish children from rural public schools. Eur J Psychol Educ 28, 725–745 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-012-0137-2
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-012-0137-2