The aim of this qualitative study was to address the lack of consensus on the current cyberbullying definition and the limited research on definitions of cyberbullying made by emerging adults in Australia. Six focus groups were conducted with a total of 39 participants aged 18 to 25 years. The focus groups used a semi-structured question protocol to gain a deeper understanding of emerging adults' perceptions, observations, and opinions related to cyberbullying. A thematic analysis revealed that participants perceive cyberbullying to be an extension of traditional bullying comprising similar key components (i.e., intent to harm, repetition, and power imbalance). However, despite a consensus on the components involved, the operationalization of these key components differed among participants depending on whether they adopted a perpetrator, target, or bystander perspective. The current study extends on previous research by focusing on the different perspectives of cyberbullying (i.e., perpetrators, targets, and bystanders) rather than assuming a single perspective, and in turn integrating these perspectives to propose a multifaceted definition of cyberbullying.

To date, there is a limited amount of research exploring how emerging adults cope with cyberbullying despite being prolific users of technology. The aim of this qualitative study was to explore emerging adults’ views, opinions, and perceptions of how individuals within this developmental period cope with being targeted by cyberbullying behaviors. Six focus groups were conducted with 39 participants (64% female) between 18 and 25 years of age in Melbourne, Australia. Thematic analysis of the data identified several coping strategies that can be employed in response to cyberbullying, which were categorized as problem-focused coping, emotion-focused coping, or cyber-specific technological solutions. In addition to these ways of coping, two notable findings provide insight into the complex and dynamic pattern of perceptions of control and coping style selection and the perceived effectiveness of such coping strategies. This study has implications for targets of cyberbullying, research, and practice.