The Impact of Cyberbullying Victimization on Suicidal Ideation, Depression, Anxiety, and Stress among Young Adolescents

Abstract

The present study sought to investigate the relationship between cyberbullying victimization and suicidal ideation, depression, anxiety and stress of youth in Pakistan. A quantitative correlational research design was used with a sample of 50 adolescents who were drawn using convenience sampling techniques from some schools of Hyderabad and Jamshoro. The Cyberbullying Victimization Scale (CVS), Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21), and the Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire (SIQ-A) were used to gather data. The statistical analysis comprised descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation and independent samples t-test in SPSS version 26. The results showed that there were strong positive correlations among cyberbullying victimization, depression, anxiety and stress.

However, there was no significant correlation between victimization by cyberbullying and suicidal thinking. Gender differences identified male adolescents had significantly higher depression scores, while no significant difference was found in cyberbullying victimization, thoughts of suicide, anxiety and stress. The study underscores the psychological effects of cyberbullying and the need for preventive measures, digital awareness, counseling, and parental guidance to safeguard the mental health of adolescents.