Effects of victimization experience, gender, and empathic distress on bystanders’ intervening behavior in cyberbullying

ABSTRACT

Cyberbullying often occurs in the presence of bystanders, and these individuals play an influential role in easing negative outcomes of cyberbullying by engaging in intervening behavior. This study identifies and examines adult bystanders’ personal victimization experiences with cyberbullying as well as gender and empathic distress as key predictors of their intervening behavior. Findings from a nationally representative survey (N = 2,888) revealed that bystanders with cybervictimization experiences were more likely to engage in helping behavior when witnessing cyberbullying than those without. There were also gender differences in reactive behaviors of bystanders; women were more willing to intervene while men tended to remain passive. Furthermore, empathic distress evoked by witnessing cyberbullying was positively related to bystander intervention.

KEYWORDS:

• Cyberbullying
• bystander
• intervention
• gender
• empathic distress
• victimization

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the Pew Research Center for the permission to use the data generated by the American Trends Panel Wave 24 survey. The authors acknowledge that the Pew Research Center bears no responsibility for any conclusions drawn by the authors in this study.