Gender, Bullying Victimization, Depressive Symptoms, and Suicidality

• Author: Lauren E. Wright,Stephen J. Watts,Emily Strohacker
• Published date: 01 August 2021
• Date: 01 August 2021
• DOI: 10.1177/0306624X19895964
• Subject Matter: Articles

https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624X19895964

International Journal of

Offender Therapy and

Comparative Criminology

2021, Vol. 65(10-11) 1123 –1142

© The Author(s) 2019

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DOI: 10.1177/0306624X19895964

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Article

Gender, Bullying

Victimization, Depressive

Symptoms, and Suicidality

Emily Strohacker1, Lauren E. Wright2,

and Stephen J. Watts3

Abstract

Bullying victimization can have serious consequences for adolescents. This article

examines the association between traditional and cyberbullying victimization,

depressive symptoms, and suicidality in a national school-based sample, utilizing

general strain theory (GST) as a guide to how these variables might relate to each

other. We additionally examine whether the associations between these variables

differ by gender. Results suggest that traditional and cyberbullying victimization have

significant, positive associations with both depressive symptoms and suicidality.

Results are partly supportive of the full model suggested by GST, with the associations

between bullying and suicidality being weakened in some models when accounting for

depressive symptoms. Gender differences also emerge. These findings are discussed

in relation to their relevance for policy and theory.

Keywords

bullying, cyberbullying, depression, suicide, gender, general strain theory

Bullying victimization has been of interest to researchers for many years, but more

recently has become of interest to public health researchers and professionals due to

the vast array of negative health outcomes that are associated with experiencing bully-

ing victimization (Bauman et al., 2013; Hepburn et al., 2012; Hertz et al., 2015

1Penn State Harrisburg, Middletown, PA, USA

2Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, OK, USA

3The University of Memphis, TN, USA

Corresponding Author:

Stephen J. Watts, Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, The University of Memphis, 311

McCord Hall, Memphis, TN 38152, USA.

Email: sjwatts@memphis.edu

895964IJOXXX10.1177/0306624X19895964International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative CriminologyStrohacker et al.

research-article2019

1124 International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology 65(10-11)

Smokowski et al., 2014; Wang et al., 2011). The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention (2014) defines bullying

. . . as any unwanted aggressive behavior(s) by another youth or group of youths who are

not siblings or current dating partners that involves an observed or perceived power

imbalance and is repeated multiple times or is highly likely to be repeated. (p. 1)

Existing literature has shown that a significant proportion of adolescents between

the ages of 12 and 18 years have experienced traditional bullying behaviors from

their peers (Elgar et al., 2014; Modecki et al., 2014; Wang et al., 2011). Exact esti-

mates of traditional bullying victimization vary due to differences in measurement

(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014; Hertz et al., 2015; Kowalski &

Limber, 2007), yet multiple reports have identified that traditional bullying victim-

ization typically occurs among 30% to 40% of adolescents (Elgar et al., 2014;

Modecki et al., 2014).

While traditional bullying has been occurring for decades, researchers have identi-

fied a relatively new form of bullying victimization, termed cyberbullying, as technol-

ogy has advanced and become ever-present in our everyday lives. Cyberbullying has

been defined as the “willful and repeated harm inflicted through the use of computers,

cell phones, and other electronic devices” (Hinduja & Patchin, 2009, p. 11). Regarding

cyberbullying, recent studies show that between 18% and 35% of adolescents have

been victimized (Hinduja & Patchin, 2015). Furthermore, existing literature shows

that the rates of cyberbullying have held constant among adolescents over the past

decade (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014; Schneider et al., 2012).

Current literature on traditional bullying victimization and cyberbullying victim-

ization has established that each of these types of victimization is associated with

negative outcomes for adolescents. For instance, traditional bullying victimization

has been linked to adolescents experiencing issues with mental health (Smokowski

et al., 2014; Wang et al., 2011), such as higher levels of anxiety, depression, and lower

levels of self-esteem (Salmivalli et al., 1999), problems with physical health (Hertz

et al., 2015), and drug and alcohol use (Tharp-Taylor, Haviland, & D’Amico, 2009;

Valdebenito et al., 2015). Similarly, cyberbullying victimization has been found to

relate to various negative outcomes. These negative outcomes range from negative

impacts on physical health (Sourander et al., 2010), and mental health (Elgar et al.,

2014; Kowalski et al., 2012), to increased engagement in risky behaviors such as

binge drinking and marijuana use (Priesman et al., 2017) and increased risk of sui-

cidal ideation and suicide attempts (Elgar et al., 2014; Litwiller & Brausch, 2013).

Although there has been a significant amount of literature that examines the impact

that traditional bullying and cyberbullying have on adolescents, these types of victim-

ization have typically been examined separately. Although some literature has exam-

ined the influence of experiencing both types of bullying, it has been limited and

typically deals with delinquent behavioral issues (Priesman et al., 2017), examines the

types of bullying separately (Reed et al., 2015), the offenders rather than victims

(Mehari & Farrell, 2018), or has been limited by relying on small convenience