Exploring the relationship between paternal co‐parenting behaviors and cyberbullying perpetration in Chinese adolescents: The moderating roles of psychological entitlement and gender

Abstract

This study examined the relationships between paternal co‐parenting dimensions (including integrity, consistency, conflict, and bias) and adolescent cyberbullying perpetration, delving into potential moderating mechanisms. A sample of 795 Chinese adolescents (Mage = 14.79 years, SD = 1.67) completed questionnaires assessing parental co‐parenting, cyberbullying perpetration, and psychological entitlement. Results showed a positive association only between paternal co‐parenting bias and cyberbullying perpetration. The study identified a moderating role of psychological entitlement, indicating a stronger link between paternal co‐parenting bias and cyberbullying perpetration for adolescents with higher psychological entitlement than for those with lower psychological entitlement. Notably, the significant association between paternal co‐parenting bias and cyberbullying perpetration only existed among boys. The study provides new insights into the roles of paternal co‐parenting and adolescent psychological entitlement in cyberbullying perpetration among adolescent boys, emphasizing the importance of mitigating paternal co‐parenting bias and reducing adolescent psychological entitlement to prevent cyberbullying perpetration.