Online Gendered Violence Victimization Among Adults: Prevalence, Predictors and Psychological Outcomes

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was to analyze the prevalence, age and gender differences, and psychological outcomes (anxiety, depression and self-esteem) related to being a victim of different forms of online gendered violence (OGV), namely: digital sexual harassment; physical appearance-based violence; gender role-based violence; and anti-feminism violence. Method: 2,471 respondents (71.1 % women) aged 18–79 years (M = 27.28, SD = 10.08) completed self-report measures. Results: The results showed that 82.6 % of respondents had experienced at least one form of OGV in the last 12 months. The most frequent form of OGV was digital sexual harassment (66.7%), followed by physical appearance-based violence (60.7%), anti-feminism violence (60.7%) and gender role-based violence (25.4%). OGV was significantly higher among women (88%) than men (68.6%), as well as among younger adults. Finally, the results showed that these forms of violence were associated with worse psychological outcomes, especially for younger respondents and for women. Conclusions: OGV is a common phenomenon that may be related to lower psychological well-being. This study provides relevant information that can shape the design of prevention and intervention programs for this form of digital violence.