Michelle F Wright

Inclusive and supportive classroom environments are essential, particularly during political and societal crises such as wars, disinformation, polarization, and rising populism and extremism. While existing research underscores the importance of such environments, few studies comprehensively examine the impact of anti-hate speech prevention program...

The primary objective of this short-term longitudinal study was to investigate how age groups affect the relationships between cyberbullying victimization, bystanding, and depression among a convenience sample of students across different educational levels; there was a total of 234 elementary school students (fourth and fifth graders), 363 middle...

Researchers have concentrated on identifying factors that might mitigate the negative consequences associated with cyber victimization. One key factor that has garnered significant attention is parental mediation in adolescents’ digital technology usage and its role in reducing the risk of cyber victimization. Additionally, the buffering effects of...

Online hate speech (OHS) poses a significant threat to young people's online experiences due to its potential to cause adverse outcomes regarding their mental health and well-being. This brief report provides an overview of recent research investigating OHS, including its prevalence, definitional issues, theoretical frameworks, and correlates and o...

The purpose of this study was to examine the moderating effects of technology use for relationship maintenance on the longitudinal associations among self-isolation during COVID-19, depressive symptoms, and financial stress. Participants were 606 (53% female; M age = 20.36, SD = .99; 57% Caucasian) emerging adults. Data were collected in May 2020 (...

Background/Objectives: This longitudinal study aimed to examine how gender influences the relationship between popularity goals and cyberbullying perpetration among adolescents in China and the United States, controlling for peer-nominated popularity. Additionally, the study sought to identify potential cross-cultural differences in these dynamics....

Researchers have focused on identifying factors that may mitigate the negative consequences associated with cyberbullying victimization. A significant factor that has received considerable attention is perceived social support from parents and friends and its potential to reduce the risk of cyberbullying victimization and the associated negative me...

The goal of this study was to investigate the moderating effect of parental mediation in the longitudinal associations among cyberbullying bystanding, depression, subjective health complaints, and self-harm. Participants were 1,067 seventh and eighth graders ( M age = 13.93; 50% female) from the suburbs of a large Midwestern city in the United Stat...

Background/Objectives: The primary objective of this research was to assess age differences in the associations between cyberbullying victimization and bystanding and depression among 234 elementary school students (4th and 5th graders; 51% female), 363 middle school students (6th to 8th grades; 53% female), and 341 high school students (9th to 12t...

These studies highlight the importance of analyzing prosocial behavior in online contexts and its interdependence with psychosocial development and offline life during adolescence and young adulthood. Development from infancy to young adulthood occurs in multiple interconnected settings, and the digital context is taking on greater prominence, tran...

Hate speech, a societal scourge, has found a potent conduit in modern technology, exacerbating its reach and impact. Adolescents are particularly vulnerable to the pernicious effects of online hate speech, which threaten their well-being and social cohesion. Addressing this critical issue, the current study uses a quasi-experimental design to evalu...

Prior research into bystander responses to hate speech has utilized variable-centered analyses — such approaches risk simplifying the complex nature of bystander behaviors. Hence, the present study used a person-centered analysis to investigate latent hate speech bystander profiles. In addition, individual and classroom-level correlates associated...

This one-year longitudinal study examined the moderating effect of perceived social support from school-based Gay-Straight Alliances in the associations between homophobic cyberbullying involvement (i.e., victimization, bystanding) and academic outcomes (e.g., classroom misconduct, school readiness, academic performance, absenteeism, school behavio...

The present study investigated the moderating effect of adolescent demographic variables in the longitudinal associations among different types of sexting, mental health (i.e., depression, self-harm, subjective health complaints), and sexual risk behaviors. There were 1113 adolescents (ages 14-17 years; Mage = 16.36; SD age = .81; 50% female) from...

The purpose of this study was to investigate the associations between school-based racial discrimination by teachers and peers and academic outcomes (i.e., classroom misconduct, absenteeism, academic performance, school readiness, and school behavioral problems) over one year (Time 2) through the moderation of perceived social support from friends....

The aim of this chapter is to view cyberbullying as a worldwide public health issue. It commences by providing a definition of cyberbullying and enumerating the various behaviors and technologies associated with it. Subsequently, it delves into the risk factors linked to children and adolescents being involved in cyberbullying, followed by an exami...

The aim of the present study was to examine cyberbullies’ attributions pertaining to their perpetration of cyberbullying, and how such attributions relate to their cyberbullying behaviors six months later. Participants were 216 adolescents (M = 13.46, SD = 0.62 years; 55% female) from the suburbs of a large Midwestern city in the United States. The...

Currently, there is a lack of empirically evaluated prevention programs targeting hate speech among adolescents. This is problematic because hate speech jeopardizes adolescents' well-being and social integration. To this end, this study aims to evaluate the short-term effects of the newly developed anti-hate speech prevention program, "HateLess. To...

One aim of this study was to investigate differences in cyberbullying involvement (i.e., victimization, bystanding, perpetration) across four age groups, including 234 elementary school students (4th and 5th grades; 51% female), 363 middle school students (6th through 8th grades; 53% female), 341 high school students (9th through 12th grade; 51% fe...

Adolescent cyberbullying continues to be a global public health concern, which garnered the attention of scholars around the world. Cyberbullying is concerning for adolescents as adolescents have increasingly relied on social media, which increases their risk of cyberbullying victimization. This chapter aims to review the existing research literatu...

The rapid spread of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in recent decades has pushed the use of smartphones, tablets, and their applications to become pervasive tools used in everyday life, especially among adolescents (Khang et al., 2013; Odaci & Çıkrıkçı, 2014). The possibility of being constantly connected significantly increases t...

The purpose of the present study was to examine the associations between attained status and adolescents’ social behaviors, as well as the moderating effects of social status goals, culture, and gender. Participants were 1,267 adolescents (Mage = 13.36; 49% girls overall) from China (n = 667) and the United Sates (n = 600). Adolescents completed qu...

Not much is known about bystanders’ emotional reactions after not intervening in cyberbullying might impact their health issues. Narrowing this gap in the literature, the present study focused on examining the moderating effects of emotional reactions (i.e., guilt, sadness, anger) after not intervening in cyberbullying on the longitudinal relations...

Biased-based aggression and cyberaggression are important societal topics, as these online risks have become more present and visible over the last few years. This special issue, “Socio-ecological Predictors, Consequences, and Prevention of Bias-Based Aggression and Cyberaggression in Early Adolescence” brings together researchers from various disc...

Cyberbullying has become a major focus of not only youths, educators, and researchers, but also among the general population, due to high profile cases of cyberbullying victimization involving suicide and the increasing prevalence of these behaviors. The purpose of this chapter is to examine cyberbullying among children and adolescents, referred to...

This study investigated the role of medium (face-to-face, cyber) and publicity (public, private) in adolescents’ perceptions of severity and coping strategies (i.e., avoidant, ignoring, helplessness, social support seeking, retaliation) for victimization, while accounting for gender and cultural values. There were 3,432 adolescents (ages 11-15, 49%...

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the moderating effect of perceived social support from friends in the associations between self-isolation practices during the COVID-19 pandemic and adolescents’ mental health (i.e., depression, subjective health complaints, self-harm), measured six months later (Time 2). Participants were 1,567 7...

The purpose of this pilot study was to examine Home Safety Hero an innovative serious game simulation designed to train parents on home safety risks and how to resolve those risks. The aim of this research was to compare whether the reaction times for multiple plays of Home Safety Hero would improve identification, with or without distraction, and...

Cyberhate represents a risk to adolescents’ development and peaceful coexistence in democratic societies. Yet, not much is known about the relationship between adolescents’ ability to cope with cyberhate and their cyberhate involvement. To fill current gaps in the literature and inform the development of media education programs, the present study...

The purpose of this chapter was to review the definition and core characteristics of hate speech, the relevance of the online environment for offering a unique context for hate speech, outcomes of online hate crimes, frequency rates of hate speech and hate crimes, characteristics and functions of hate groups and their appeal to adolescents, and cor...

The purpose of this one-year longitudinal study was to investigate the moderating effect of perceived social support from Gay-Straight Alliances in the relationships among homophobic cyberbullying victimization and bystanding and depressive and anxiety symptoms among 466 LGBTQIA adolescents (Mage = 15.76; 52% female). Perceived social support from...

Drawing on the social-ecological perspective, this longitudinal study investigated the potential moderating effect of gender in the relationships among Machiavellianism, popularity goals, and cyberbullying involvement (i.e., victimization, perpetration) among adolescents from China, Cyprus, India, and the United States. Another aim was to examine c...

Introduction The aim of this study is to develop a new measure of victimization and perpetration of two frequent forms of image‐based sexual abuse, namely sextortion (i.e., the threat of distributing sexual images to pressure the victim into doing something) and nonconsensual sexting (i.e., distributing sexual images of someone without the consent...

The present study proposes and tests pathways by which racial discrimination might be positively related to bullying victimization among Black and White adolescents. Data were derived from the 2016 National Survey of Children’s Health, a national survey that provides data on children’s physical and mental health and their families. Data were collec...

Cyberhate represents a risk to adolescents’ development and peaceful coexistence in democratic societies. And yet, not much is known about the relationship between adolescents’ ability to cope with cyberhate and their cyberhate involvement. To fill current gaps in the literature and inform the development of media education programs, the present st...

Introduction: Unintentional home injuries are common and costly, with over 1.6 million occurring among U.S. children ages 0-4 in 2018. Home visitors and other early childhood professionals can provide valuable prevention education and intervention to reduce unintentional injury risk for children. This proof-of-concept study aimed to test the feasi...

Online hate speech has become a widespread problem in the daily life of adolescents. Despite growing societal and academic interest in this online risk, not much is known about the relationship between online hate speech victimization and adolescents’ mental well-being. In addition, potential factors influencing the magnitude of this relationship r...

Objective: The open expression of hatred, hostility, and violence against minorities has become a common online phenomenon. Adolescents are at particular risk of being involved in different hate speech roles (e.g., witness, perpetrator). However, the correlates of their involvement as perpetrators and the mechanisms that might explain their involve...

Children and adolescents spend a great deal of time using and interacting through electronic technologies, including cell phones, gaming consoles, and the internet. Cyberbullying occurs through electronic technologies, including gaming consoles, email, instant messaging, chatrooms, social media, and text messages via mobile phones. The attention gi...

The purpose of this article is to examine cyberbullying among children and adolescents, referred to as “youths” throughout the article. An extension of traditional bullying, cyberbullying is a form of bullying which takes place by means of electronic technologies, such as email, instant messaging, Facebook, and text messaging through mobile devices...

The first objective of the present study was to describe the nature of cyber aggression and victimization among emerging adults by focusing on what digital technologies are used and the relationship between the perpetrator and the victim. The second objective of the present study was to investigate the longitudinal, reciprocal relationships between...

As competition over peer status becomes intense during adolescence, some adolescents develop insecure feelings regarding their social standing among their peers (i.e., social status insecurity). These adolescents sometimes use aggression to defend or promote their status. The aim of this study was to examine the relationships among social status in...

Adolescents around the globe are increasingly exposed to online hate speech. And yet little is known about the varying roles of involvement and the determinants of adolescents’ hate speech perpetration. Building on previous research, the present study aims to test the cycle of violence hypothesis for online hate speech and to analyze whether moral...

The purpose of this study was to examine the moderating effects of console-gaming aggression (i.e., verbal aggression, camping, trolling) on the longitudinal associations among problematic online gaming and subjective health complaints and depression. Participants were 202 adolescents (86% boys; M age = 12.99) in the 7th or 8th grade who played fir...

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the moderating effect of technology use for friendship maintenance in the associations between self-isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic and friendship quality, measured six months later (Time 2). Participants were 1,567 7th and 8th graders (51% female; 51% white; M age = 13.47) from the United...

Child sexual abuse (CSA) is associated with revictimization and sexual risk-taking behaviours. The Internet has increased the opportunities for teens to access sexually explicit imagery and has provided new avenues for victimization and exploitation. Online URL activity and offline psychosocial factors were assessed for 460 females aged 12–16 (CSA...

School bullying research began in the 1970s through seminal research conducted on these experiences among Norwegian boys. From this initial research, multiple studies have been conducted over the past 40 years, revealing the nature, extent, causes, and consequences of school bullying. More recent investigations have also focused on cyberbullying, b...

Previous research indicates that racial and ethnic minority adolescents show an increased risk for bullying involvement. However, research on racial and ethnic differences in bullying has mainly focused on the differences between Whites and African American adolescents in the United States. Research on the bullying perpetration of foreign-born stud...

This one-year longitudinal study examined the moderating effect of perceived parental social support in the associations between homophobic cyberbullying involvement (victimization, bystanding) and suicidal ideation, non-suicidal self-harm, and subjective health complaints among 467 adolescents (Mage = 13.81 years; 59% female) who identified as LGB...

Little attention has been given to whether country of origin as well as perceptions of severity impact adolescents’ attributions for public and private face-to-face and cyber victimization. The objective of the present study was to examine the role of medium (face-to-face, cyber), setting (public, private), and perceptions of severity in adolescent...

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, higher educational institutions worldwide switched to emergency distance learning in early 2020. The less structured environment of distance learning forced students to regulate their learning and motivation more independently. According to self-determination theory (SDT), satisfaction of the three basic psychological...

Hate speech is often discussed and investigated as an online phenomenon, while hate speech among adolescents in the real world (e.g., in schools) has rarely been researched. Consequently, not much is known about potential interpersonal correlates and theoretical frameworks that might help us better understand why adolescents engage in hate speech i...

Objective: Little attention has been given to the relationship between cyber polyvictimization and academic outcomes (e.g., classroom misconduct, school readiness, academic performance, absenteeism, school behavioral problems), and the factors, such as parent social support, that buffer against the negative outcomes associated with experiencing mul...

Bullying has been mostly studied in Western countries; however, research in other parts of the world has been catching up in recent years. The phenomenon of bullying is present worldwide as demonstrated by cross-national surveys. In this paper, we review the cultural aspects of bullying mainly reflected as cross-national differences in the research...

Using an ecological perspective, this one-year longitudinal study examined the moderating effect of sex in the associations among peer-related contexts (i.e., peer attachment, social preference goals) and cyberbullying involvement among adolescents from China, Cyprus, India, and the United States, along with investigating cross-cultural differences...

Serious game simulations can improve engagement with intervention material, provide individualized scaffolding of new skills, circumvent literacy issues, and allow for skill practice in a simulated low-risk environment. Although serious games can offer flexibility, prevent frustration, and potentially reduce disengagement and attrition, most injury...

With the nationwide closures of educational institutions in the United States due to the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), many schools transitioned from face-to-face instruction to eLearning formats at the beginning of the pandemic, while many students and their families self-isolated at home. The literature has revealed that self-isolati...

This study investigates multiple-level antecedents of cyberbullying victimization among early adolescents. Data from the Health Behavior in School-Aged Children, 2009 to 2010 cohort study in the United States were used. The sample included White, Black, Latino, and Asian adolescents, ages 10-14 (N = 8,481). Bivariate analysis, logistic regression,...

Background Online child grooming includes the online behaviors of an adult aimed at achieving some type of sexual interaction with a minor. However, to date, quantitative research that has investigated the strategies online groomers employ to gain their victim's trust is scarce. Objective To this end, the main aim of this study was to distinguish...

The purpose of this study was to examine the moderating effects of technology use for relationship maintenance on the longitudinal associations among self-isolation during COVID-19 and romantic relationship quality among adolescents. Participants were 239 (120 female; M age = 16.69, SD = .61; 60% Caucasian) 11th and 12th graders from three Midweste...

Bullying has been mostly studied in Western countries; however, research in other parts of the world has been catching up in recent years (Sittichai & Smith, 2015; Smith, Kwak, & Toda, 2016a; Zych, Ortega-Ruiz, & Del Rey, 2015). The phenomenon of bullying is pres-ent worldwide as demonstrated by cross-national surveys (e.g., Craig et al., 2009; Lia...

Recent evidence shows that young people across Europe are encountering hateful content on the Internet. However, there is a lack of empirically tested theories and investigation of correlates that could help to understand young people’s involvement in cyberhate. To fill this gap, the present study aims to test the Routine Activity Theory to explain...

Academic dishonesty has serious consequences for human lives, social values, and economy. The main aim of the study was to explore a model of relations between personal and cultural variables and academic dishonesty. The participants in the study were N = 2,586 individuals from nine countries (Pakistan, Israel, Italy, India, the USA, Peru, Romania,...

The sudden switch to distance education to contain the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has fundamentally altered adolescents’ lives around the globe. The present research aims to identify psychological characteristics that relate to adolescents’ well-being in terms of positive emotion and intrinsic learning motivation, and key characteristics of...

The present study focused on comparing parenting styles (i.e., authoritative, authoritarian, permissive) based on parents’ adolescent victimization status (victims vs. non-victims) and examining the moderating role of parents’ adolescent victimization status in the associations between parenting styles and adjustment problems (i.e., depression, anx...

Sexting among adolescents has triggered controversial debates among scholars and the general public. However, questions regarding the associations between different types of sexting, namely consensual, non-consensual, and pressured sexting, depressive symptoms, and non-suicidal self-harm remain. In addition, little attention has been given to wheth...

The authors wish to add the following corrections to their paper published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health [...]

While the role of and consequences of being a bystander to face-to-face homophobic bullying has received some attention in the literature, to date, very little is known about the relationship between witnessing and perpetrating homophobic cyberbullying. It is also unknown how empathy and toxic online disinhibition might impact the association betwe...

As competition over peer status becomes intense during adolescence, some adolescents develop insecure feelings regarding their social standing among their peers (i.e., social status insecurity). These adolescents sometimes use aggression to defend or promote their status. The aim of this study was to examine the relationships among social status in...

It is well known that victims of violence are more likely than non-victims to be perpetrators, and that perpetrators are more likely than non-perpetrators to be victims. However, the overlap between being the victim of violence and the perpetrator of violence is not well understood when it comes to online hate. An explanatory mechanism in this rela...

While the role of and consequences of being a bystander to face-to-face bullying has received some attention in the literature, to date, little is known about the effects of being a bystander to cyberbullying. It is also unknown how empathy might impact the negative consequences associated with being a bystander of cyberbullying. The present study...

Cyberbullying is a new form of bullying. Cyberbullying research began in the early 2000s; however, most of the research was cross-sectional, making it difficult to evaluate the risks and protective factors associated with cyberbullying perpetration and victimization. This short-term longitudinal study had two main aims: (1) to examine the stability...

Problematic internet use (PIU) has been a topic of discussion in the popular and academic literature for over a decade. There are a variety of causes and consequences associated with PIU among adolescents. In this chapter, we explore the benefits and risks of digital technology use, describe behavioral addictions, and explain the classification and...

The purpose of this chapter is to examine the negative online experiences among maltreated children and adolescents. Drawing on research from a variety of disciplines such as psychology, education, social work, sociology, and computer science, this chapter is organized into seven sections. The chapter draws on multidisciplinary qualitative, quantit...

The purpose of this chapter is to examine cyberbullying among children and adolescents, referred to as “youths” throughout the chapter. An extension of traditional bullying, cyberbullying is a form of bullying which takes place by means of electronic technologies, such as email, instant messaging, Facebook, and text messaging through mobile devices...

Children and adolescents spend a great deal of time using and interacting through electronic technologies, including cell phones, gaming consoles, and the internet. Cyberbullying occurs through electronic technologies, including gaming consoles, email, instant messaging, chatrooms, social media, and text messages via mobile phones. The attention gi...

The purpose of the present study was to examine the moderation of parental mediation in the longitudinal association between being a bystander of cyberbullying and cyberbullying perpetration and cyberbullying victimization. Participants were 1067 7th and 8th graders between 12 and 15 years old (51% female) from six middle schools in predominantly m...

This study compares 477 Chinese and 342 American adolescents’ responses to open-ended questions regarding attribution and outcome expectancies of relational aggression, and investigates how cultural values were related to these social cognitive processes. Results revealed cross-cultural similarities and differences. In particular, American adolesce...

Adolescents around the world are increasingly exposed to cyberhate. More knowledge is needed to understand how adolescents cope with cyberhate and how they can be supported when exposed. To this end, the present study investigated the associations between parental mediation of Internet use and adolescents’ problem-focused coping strategies for hypo...

Background: Cyberhate is a growing form of online aggression against a person or a group based on race, ethnicity, nationality, sexual orientation, gender, religion, or disability. The present study aims to examine psychometric properties of the Coping with Cyberhate Questionnaire, the prevalence of coping strategies in Spanish adolescents, differ...

Some studies reveal that adolescents with intellectual disabilities and developmental disabilities are more likely to be victims of both face-to-face bullying and cyberbullying. Research also suggests that these adolescents are likely to witness bullying victimization. More research is needed to better understand the negative outcomes associated wi...

This study’s aim was to investigate the associations among narcissism, Machiavellianism, callous and unemotional traits, and cyber-bullying perpetration among 1,637 adolescents (M age = 13.53 years, 48% girls overall) from C