Who is involved in cyberbullying? Latent class analysis of cyberbullying roles and their associations with aggression, self-esteem, and empathy

Abstract

The present analyses empirically explored the roles in cyberbullying by using Latent Class Analysis. Potential predictors of class membership were also examined using multinomial logistic regression analysis. Participants were 849 German students (52.7% girls, 45.6% boys, Mage = 13.4 years, SDage = 1.1 years). Observed indicators of latent class measured own involvement in cyberbullying, reactions to cyberbullying of classmates, and behavioral willingness as assistant and as defender. Indicators for the post-hoc regression analyses were proactive aggression, reactive aggression, self-esteem, cognitive, and affective empathy. Control variables were age and gender. A model with five classes was chosen. The classes were labeled prosocial defenders, communicating outsiders, aggressive defenders, bully-victims, and assistants. The results of the post-hoc regression analyses showed that students in the classes especially differed regarding types of aggression and social competencies. Based on answer patterns, cyberbullying roles beyond the bullying-triad can be found. Remarkably, three of the classes are bystanders, i.e. they are not directly involved in cyberbullying. Two of these classes showed helping behavior and made up almost two thirds of the sample. Knowledge about cyberbullying roles and their predictors is important to inform the planning and development of interventions. The results further indicate that interventions should especially take into account antisocial and passive behavioral patterns in the context of cyberbullying.

Cyberbullying and Social Anxiety: A Latent Class Analysis among Spanish Adolescents

“…However, they differ with respect to the composition and percentage of subjects included. The prevalence of "not involved" subjects obtained in this study is much lower than findings from past studies [13][14][15]17,20] which found rates of 52% to 77% of adolescents who were not involved in the cyberbullying cases. However, the percentage found by Betts et al (2017), in a sample of youth aged 16 to 19 (33%) is higher [16].…”

“…Another discrepancy is found for the "bully-victim" profile, with the percentage of victims and bullies varying substantially from one study to another. So, we find studies that have a similar prevalence to that of our study [13] while in others [12,14,15,17] the prevalence of this profile is much lower (3-12%). The third profile found in this study, the "rarely victim and bully" group, is characterized by being involved to a greater degree in all of the cyberbullying behaviors (victimization, aggression, and aggression-victimization) as compared to the not-involved group, but not at the levels that are typical of the "bully-victim" group (high cyberbullying).…”

“…For this profile, similarities and differences were found with respect to past study results. So, despite the fact that certain studies using Person-centered analytical approaches have failed to detect this profile [12][13][14][15]17], others have identified this as a group consisting of a high percentage (40%) of adolescents [16]. So, in comparison to the findings from past studies, and reinforcing the conclusions reached by Betts et al (2017) the results of this study suggest that the frequency of participation in cyberbullying is perhaps the factor that best determines the student grouping for on-line bullying.…”

“…In a more recent study, Betts, Gkimitzoudis, Spenser, and Baguley (2017), using a sample of 440 British students aged 16 to 19, identified four student profiles using a cluster analysis technique: "not involved" (33%), "rarely victim and bully" (40%), "typically victim" (26%), and "retaliator" (1%) [16]. In a subsequent study, Schultze-Krumbholz, Hess, Pfetsch, and Scheithauer (2018) used LCA on a sample of 849 German students (11 to 17 years of age), determining five groups: "prosocial defenders", "communicating outsiders", "aggressive defenders", "bully-victims", and "assistants" [17]. A summary of studies on cyberbullying with a person-centered analytical approach are presented in Table 1.…”

The Influence of School Climate and Empathy on Cyberbystanders’ Intention to Assist or Defend in Cyberbullying

“…Further, there are individuals who are labeled as "bystanders" or "outsiders", who are neither targeted by the aggression nor do they participate in it. Recent empirical studies have confirmed the existence of perpetrators/victims, assistants, and different forms of bystanders in the cyberbullying context (e.g., Schultze-Krumbholz et al 2018a). Prevention researchers have especially focused on the role of bystanders due to their influence on social norms of the entire group and the indirect reinforcement of aggressive acts through a perceived passive consent to what is happening (Paluck and Shepherd 2012).…”