Applying Routine Activities Theory to Assess On and Offline Bullying Victimization among Australian Youth

ABSTRACT

Juvenile populations face a substantial risk of emotional, physical, and psychological harm as a result of bullying and cyberbullying experiences. As a result, there is a need to assess the situational and individual factors contributing to the risk of bullying victimization. There is, however, little research examining cyberbullying victimization using frequency-based measures of victimization. To address this gap in the literature, this study utilized a sample of over 37,000 youth from South Australia to explore the risk factors associated with cyberbullying victimization through a routine activities framework while controlling for verbal, social, and physical bullying. The findings noted partial support for the routine activities theory framework to account for cyberbullying victimization. Additionally, the study found differences in cyberbullying risk factors relative to the frequency with which it was reported, as well as the role of school support from peers and adults in increasing risks.

KEYWORDS:

• Criminological theory
• health
• victimization
• youth
• protective factors

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Rebecca Malinski

Rebecca Malinski is an assistant professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Moravian University. Her research focuses primarily on youth violence, bullying, and cyberbullying. She received her PhD in 2020 from the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University.

Thomas J. Holt

Thomas J. Holt is a professor in the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University, whose research focuses on cybercrime and cyberterrorism. Dr. Holt has published over 100 peer reviewed articles, appearing in a variety of criminological and computer science outlets. He received his PhD in 2005 from the University of Missouri-Saint Louis.

Jesse Cale

Jesse Cale is an associate professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Griffith University. He completed his PhD in Criminology in 2010 from Simon Fraser University in Canada. His main areas of research interest are sexual offending, developmental and life-course criminology, victimization and victimology, crime prevention and criminal justice policy.

Russell Brewer

Russell Brewer is an Associate Professor of Criminology at the University of Adelaide and leads the Adelaide Cybercrime Laboratory (www.AdelaideCybercrime.org). He has a PhD from the Australian National University. His research interests include cybercrime, youth delinquency, crime prevention, and policing.

Andrew Goldsmith

Andrew Goldsmith is a Matthew Flinders Distinguished Emeritus Professor of Criminology at Flinders University. His research covers a wide range of issues from cybercrime to violence.