Finding the Link between Cyberbullying and Suicidal Behaviour among Adolescents in Peninsular Malaysia

Abstract

Social media engagement has contributed to the rise of cyberbullying, which has recently triggered tragic suicides among adolescents. The objective of this cross-sectional study is to determine the prevalence of cyberbullying, suicidal behaviour, and their association among adolescents in Peninsular Malaysia. The study was conducted among 1290 secondary school adolescents aged between 13 and 17 years old in Peninsular Malaysia using a self-administered and anonymous online questionnaire. Our findings reveal that the prevalence of cyberbullying victimization and perpetrator is 13.7% and 3.8%, respectively. The prevalence of suicidal behaviour among adolescents is 17.1%, in which 11.9% had suicidal thoughts, 10.2% had a suicide plan, and 8.4% had made a suicide attempt. Multiple logistic regression shows that adolescents experiencing cyberbullying victimization is a significant risk factor (p < 0.001) for suicidal behaviour after adjusting for other confounders. An alarming number of adolescents in Peninsular Malaysia found to be involved in cyberbullying and its significant association with suicidal behaviour warrant the need to strengthen current interventions. Since the study was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, our findings make an important contribution in reporting current trends in cyberbullying and suicide among adolescents, especially when they are becoming ever-more present in cyberspaces.

Suicide spectrum among young people during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“… 32 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 84 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 , 89 , 90 , 91 Among these studies, 43 were included in the meta-analytical process, for a total of around 65 million subjects (suicides: 63,120,235; suicidal behaviors: 934,951; suicidal ideation: 156,234): two reporting rates of deaths for suicides, 48 , 50 26 reporting prevalence data about suicidal behaviors 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 <...…”

Burdens of Apprentices Caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic and How They Deal with Them: A Qualitative Study Using Content Analysis One-Year Post-Breakout

“…Qualitative research on the resources of similar-aged school students also showed that social contacts were reported as their main resource to deal with pandemic-related stressors [ 47 ]. In addition, peer relationships protect against psychological problems or help to cope with them better [ 48 , 49 ]. These findings echo well with the developmental period of adolescence, in which the significance of peer contacts increases.…”

Does the COVID-19 Pandemic Increase or Decrease the Global Cyberbullying Behaviors? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Ten studies examined mental or physical health as a factor associated with cyberbullying. Anxiety and depression were both positively associated with cyberbullying victimization (Espinoza, 2022;Fadhli et al, 2022;Varela et al, 2022) and perpetration (Teng et al, 2021;Wang et al, 2022). In addition, three studies documented psychological stress, stress, and acute stress response related to the COVID-19 pandemic as risk factors for cyberbullying perpetration Zhang et al, 2021), and two studies demonstrated that loneliness contributed to more cyberbullying victimization (Han et al, 2021;Varela et al, 2022).…”