Associations Between Independent Self-Construal, Gender-Role Orientation, and Cyber-bullying / Cyber-victimization: Findings from a University Student Sample in North Cyprus
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2014 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Journal of Cyprus Studies |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Field | Psychology |
| Keywords | Self-construal; Femininity; Masculinity; Cyberbullying; Cybervictimization; Emerging adulthood |
| Description | The major aim of this study was to test the associations among independent self-contrual, femininitymasculinity and cyberbullying/cybervictimization among a university student sample. Atotal of 393 participants (56.2% females, 44.8% males) between the ages of 19 and 35 (M= 24.25, SD =2.51) were enrolled in three North Cyprus universities. The sample included the students from various national and cultural backgrounds. Following the empirical evidence and indirect/interaction models of risk and resilience proposed by Masten (2001), we hypothesized that independent self-construal would mediate and moderate the association between femininity-masculinity and cyberbullying / cyber-victimization. Specifically, independent self-construal was operationalized as a protective factor and femininity-masculinity dimensions were defined as risk factors when cyberbullying and cybervictimization was into account. The findings partly supported our hypotheses. The proposed mediator and moderator roles were not significant for the models which included masculinity and cyberbullying. However, the results revealed that higher independent self-construal orientation mediated and moderated significantly between femininity and cybervictimization. In other words, independent self-construal has been found as a protective factor against cybervictimization when the participants had feminine tendencies as a risk factor. The findings might have implications especially for practitioners who are working with vulnerable populations like victims of cyberbullying. |
| Related projects: |