The dynamic of cyberbullying in university students: moderating effects of gender and culture

Abstract

The present study aims to analyze the influence of gender and cultural issues on the role overlapping of cyberbullying. For this purpose, 1340 university students (34.1% men; 65.9% women) from Brazil (44.2%) and Portugal (55.8%) participated in the study. Moderation analyses reveal a significant gender interaction in the relationship between cybervictims and cyberaggressors, as well as between cyberbystander and cyberaggressors. In addition, cybervictims and cyberbystander from Brazil presented a greater tendency to be cyberaggressors than university students from Portugal. Finally, we found that men from both countries who are cybervictims showed a greater tendency than women to be cyberaggressors. The results are discussed, and the implications of the study are presented. We conclude by highlighting the importance of knowing the cultural and gender aspects in the dynamics established in cyberbullying and especially in the overlapping of roles, since such information can be valuable in intervention programs. In addition, the need to work on cyberbullying in higher education is emphasized.