The role of self-efficacy and parental communication in the association between cyber victimization and depression among adolescents and young adults: a structural equation model

Abstract

Background: With the rapid advancement and revolutionization of information and communication technologies, adolescents and young adults use smartphones, the internet, and social networking services more frequently, as a result, the problem of cyber-bullying sharply increases, and eventually it causes psychological issues and negative thoughts in the victims. This study aimed to examine the role of self-efficacy and parental communication in the relationship between cyber victimization and depression among adolescents and young adults in India.

Methods: Secondary data analysis was performed on a cross-sectional dataset obtained from the Understanding the Lives of Adolescents and Young Adults (UDAYA) wave 2 survey. The sample included 16,292 adolescent and young adult boys and girls aged 12-23 years. Karl Pearson Correlation coefficient analysis was done to examine the correlation between outcome variable (depressive symptoms), mediator variables (self-efficacy and parental communication) and key explanatory variable (cyber victimization). Further, structural equation modeling technique was applied to examine the hypothesized pathways.

Results: Adolescents and young adults being victims of cyber-bullying [β = 0.1357, p < 0.001] and those witnessed inter-parental violence were positively [β = 0.0026, p < 0.001] correlated with depressive symptoms. Self-efficacy and parental communication were negatively related to depressive symptoms among adolescents and young adults. There was a significant positive relationship between cyber victimization [β = 0.258, p < 0.001] and depressive symptoms. Cyber victimization was positively related to self-efficacy [β = 0.043, p < 0.001] among adolescents and young adults. Self-efficacy [β= -0.150, p < 0.001] and parental communication [β=-0.261, p < 0.001] reduced depressive symptoms among the participants.

Conclusions: The findings suggest that adolescents and young adults who are victims of cyber-bully may have depressive symptoms and their mental health can be improved through the enhancement of self-efficacy and increased parental communication. Improved peer attitudes and familial support for empowering cyber victims should be taken into account while framing programs and interventions.

Keywords: Cyber victimization; Depressive symptoms; Parental communication; Self-efficacy.

Fig. 1

Standardized parameter estimates (βcoefficients) of the structural equation model (refer to Table 4 for the label name). Latent and observed variables are in oval and rectangular shapes, respectively Note: AC1: Discussed school performance, AC2:Discussed about friendship, AC3: Discussed about teasing, AC4: Discussed about physical changes, AC5: Discussed about pregnancy, D1: Trouble in sleep, D2: Feeling tired, D3: Poor appetite, D4: Trouble in concentration, D5: Little interest in doing things, D6: Feeling down, D7: Feeling bad, D8: Moving or speaking slowly, SE1: Sure about spending own time, SE2: Sure about participation in family/non-school related events/functions, SE3: Sure about earn income, SE4: Sure about talking freely to parents/in-laws about your aspirations, SE5: Sure about could choose clothing ***: 95% level of significance; Direct effect = 0.258; Indirect effect (via self-efficacy) = 0.011* (-0.261) =-0.00287; Indirect effect (via parental communication) = 0.043*(-0.150) =-0.00645