Cyberbullying is a type of bullying that has been gaining increased attention and involves using digital or online technologies to harass, threaten or humiliate the target intentionally, repeatedly and over time. It happens anywhere at anytime, by known and unknown people, allows the anonymity of the aggressor and has several negative effects on the victims, such as anxiety symptoms, lower academic performance and in severe cases suicide attempts. This kind of behaviors significantly target people based on their race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, or other aspects of their identity (i.e., bias-based bullying).
Research on bullying has traditionally focused on an individualistic approach, focusing on those who experience these incidents and on the aggressors. However, recent studies consider bullying and cyberbullying as a group phenomenon, rather than solely as personal behavior. There are many bystanders present in bullying episodes and when they intervene in favor of the victim, they reduce the continuity of victimization by 50%. Recent research has examined the factors that promote or inhibit bystanders’ behaviors. Evidence suggests that intergroup factors (e.g., intergroup contact) can increase bystanders’ helping behavioral intentions in face-to-face bullying episodes. However, less is known about the potential positive effects of intergroup factors on bystanders’ behaviors when witnessing bias-based cyberbullying episodes. Only one study explored the relation between intergroup factors and bystanders’ behaviors in the online context. Findings revealed that having direct contact and more inclusive forms of identity are associated with more helping behaviors. However, no studies focused on the efficacy of these interventions on improving bystanders’ helping behaviors. Addressing this gap, this project will examine what can influence bystanders’ behaviors in bias-based cyberbullying episodes. Specifically, we will examine intergroup factors that may promote or inhibit bystanders’ behaviors during cyberbullying episodes, thus extending the literature on what is already known about these processes in face-to-face bullying.
The main contributions and innovations of this work are a) considering bias-based cyberbullying as a group process, identifying intergroup factors that influence the behavior of bystanders, as well as the mechanisms through which this happens; b) experimentally testing how these factors influence the different behaviors of bystanders; and c) explore technical features of online communication that may impact the responses of bystanders online, such as anonymity. The results of this project will also have a high potential for application, as they significantly contribute to the development of specific interventions to foster helping behaviors among youth.

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With the objective to increase the research activity directed towards the achievement of the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, the possibility of associating scientific projects with the Sustainable Development Goals is now available in Ciência_Iscte. These are the Sustainable Development Goals identified for this project. For more detailed information on the Sustainable Development Goals, click here.