Victims of bullying possible cyber-aggressors

Abstract

In the last decade, many of the studies related to school coexistence analyze the detection and analysis of situations of bullying and cyberbullying among peers. Their results have revealed that they are two closely linked phenomena and that the existence of one can highly predict the appearance of the other. This study analyzes the co-occurrence of bullying and cyberbullying phenomena from the transfer of the role of victim to cyber-aggressor, forming a new aggressive-victim profile. The sample consisted of 1.648 adolescents of ages from 12 to 16 years. The results reveal the existence of 152 adolescents who play the role of cyberaggressive-victims. In relation to the synergy detected between the type of abuse suffered and committed, the results indicate that young people generally use the modalities 'visual' and 'verbal-written' to attempt against their peers with the same frequency with which they suffer other aggressions. That is, e-mails, instant messaging and sending of compromised images or videos are the most used behaviors by these cyberaggressive-victims. Finally, this study will promote a greater understanding of the processes of aggression and victimization with the aim of contributing to the adjustment of prevention and intervention programs in situations of bullying and cyberbullying.