Development and validation of school‑based intervention on cyberbullying for adolescents

Abstract

Background: Teenagers are experiencing cyberbullying much more frequently than they did ten years ago and it can affect their mental health and wellbeing. To address these issues, it is necessary to create an efficient school‑based model. Aim: The aim was to develop and validate a school-based intervention on cyberbullying for adolescents. Methods: The school-based cyberbullying intervention was developed by reviewing the literature, expert interviews (N = 10), and focus groups with various stakeholders (N = 58). The developed manual was validated by eight experts using face and content validity. The S-CVI was calculated by averaging the I-CVIs for each category of relevance, suitability, and appropriateness. Results: The I-CVI, S-CVI, and kappa values have attained an excellent level of content validity, ranging between 0.85 and 1. The study adopted a universal intervention program. The following were the final components integrated into the content of the school-based cyberbullying intervention manual: (1) Cyberbullying criteria, types, and platforms; (2) reasons for cyberbullying; (3) consequences of cyberbullying; (4) safe use of the internet and social media; (5) coping strategies; (6) family level intervention; and (7) school level intervention. Conclusion: This study outlines the development of a comprehensive school-based cyberbullying intervention for adolescents.