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. 2024 May 15;14(5):414.
doi: 10.3390/bs14050414.

The Association between Cyberbullying Victimization and Depression among Children: A Moderated Mediation Model

Kuai Song  1   2   3 , Feng-Juan Zhou  1   2   4 , Geng-Feng Niu  1   2 , Cui-Ying Fan  1   2 , Zong-Kui Zhou  1   2
Affiliations

The Association between Cyberbullying Victimization and Depression among Children: A Moderated Mediation Model

Kuai Song et al. Behav Sci (Basel). .

Abstract

Cyberbullying victimization is becoming more prevalent and adversely affects mental health. This research explores the relationship between the two variables and the underlying mechanism, especially for children, as the impact of mental health in childhood might last a lifetime. Primary school students (N = 344; Mage = 9.90; 43.90% girls) completed self-report questionnaires regarding cyberbullying victimization, self-perceived social competence, optimism, and depression at school. Gender and grade were controlled as covariates. Depression was positively predicted by cyberbullying victimization, while self-perceived social competence played a partially mediating role. In addition, optimism directly and indirectly moderated the effects of cyberbullying victimization on depression. Specifically, the effects were stronger for children with low levels of optimism. Therefore, efforts to enhance children's self-perceived social competence and optimism may reduce their depression resulting from cyberbullying victimization.

Keywords: children; cyberbullying victimization; depression; optimism; self-perceived social competence.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that they have no competing or potential conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The proposed moderated mediation model.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Optimism moderated the relationship between cyberbullying victimization and depression.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Optimism moderated the relationship between self-perceived social competence and depression.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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