Serious Game-based Psychosocial Intervention to Foster Prosociality in Cyberbullying Bystanders

Abstract

Bystanders of cyberbullying play an important role in the resolution of such situations and therefore, it is beneficial to promote self-regulation strategies that enable them to engage in prosocial behavior in these contexts. We propose that serious game-based psychosocial interventions with profile-based social agents can encourage prosocial bystander behavior in cyberbullying. A pilot quasi-experimental study with repeated and pre/post measurements was performed. We randomly assigned 194 7th and 8th graders to three conditions, namely experimental condition (n = 103, M age = 13.91, SD = 1.02, 53.3% male); alternative condition (n = 37, M age = 14, SD = 0.86, 54.1% female) and control condition (n = 54, M age = 13.92, SD = 0.85, 50.9% female). An analysis of covariance showed that players revealed higher levels of prosocial assertive behavior when compared to other participants. Through multilevel modelling of longitudinal log-file data, we found that those who did not experience the game tended to interpret the cyberbullying situations more as non-serious, avoid assuming responsibility for intervening, and engage in aggressive behavior toward the victim. Players tended to support more and were less aggressive with victims from their in-group than those from the out-group. Insights for the development of games to promote prosocial behavior in bystanders of cyberbullying are presented. P. C. Ferreira et al. / Psychosocial Intervention (2022) xx(x) xx-xx

A comparative analysis of adolescents' emotions and emotion regulation strategies when witnessing different cyberbullying scenarios

“…There are few studies (e.g., Ref. [ 89 ]) assessing validated games’ efficacy in real world settings [ 90 ], and no studies using these resources to intervene in a longitudinal manner with social interaction among peers [ 91 , 92 ]. Thus, C@mViver game was created based on the Social Cognitive Theory [ 93 ] and the Bystander Intervention Model [ 94 ] and we believe that by playing a game that recreates a real social network, participants become more involved, reducing bias.…”

“…It is a multiplayer game where players form groups of three students from the same class who can interact with each other but cannot interact with the other groups of three players. The interactions occur through a fictional social network with 12 social agents who interact with each other and the players [ 91 , 92 ]. The posts that appear in the news feed of this social network are essentially centered on the organization of the trip and everyday situations.…”

How beliefs and unpleasant emotions direct cyberbullying intentions

“…Moreover, these prevention programs may consider all those involved in cyberbullying and emphasize the importance of working with normative beliefs, with the aim of minimizing such situations. These programs can be delivered through blended learning methodologies, such as in-person sessions and using games to foster empathic reactions ( Ferreira et al., 2021 ) and pro-social behavior ( Ferreira et al., 2022 ). By striving in this direction, schools may be safer, more inclusive and favorable places to learn and can focus on the cognitive and emotional development of adolescents, particularly in their social interpersonal relationships online and offline.…”

“…Since cyberbullying is often undisclosed by victims, making it difficult to aid them during real-time events ( Francisco et al., 2015 ), it is crucial to investigate what is associated with bystanders’ reactions to such events ( Ferreira et al., 2021 ). In fact, bystanders have a determining role in the process of cyberbullying situations, as they can offer social support ( Ferreira et al., 2022 ), and contribute to reducing the negative consequences associated with this phenomenon ( Desmet et al., 2015 ). Thus, research should investigate bystanders’ affective reactions and their normative beliefs since these variables may affect behavior ( Macháčková and Pfetsch, 2016 ; Reisenzein, 2015 ).…”

Moral disengagement and empathy in cyberbullying: how they are related in reflection activities about a serious game

“…Moreover, despite the fact that an important role in cyberbullying situations is played by bystanders, either by joining in or stopping the phenomenon [ 3 , 4 ], few interventions have focused on changing bystander behavior [ 5 ]. Thus, interventions to tackle cyberbullying are one of the main challenges to increase prosocial behavior online [ 6 , 7 ], because cyberbullying is one of the major contributors to poor mental wellbeing [ 8 ]. These interventions have accompanied the technological advances, and serious games and gamified tasks have been incorporated, since they are educational tools that are effective, motivate students, and are efficient in raising awareness and changing attitudes of youth in several areas [ 9 ].…”