The Suppression Mediate the Relations between Cyberbullying and Depression, Anxiety and Self-esteem

Using Internet can be fun, attractive and educative for adolescents but can have also negative consequences. One important threat of the internet is cyberbullying which can be defined as an aggressive behaviour carried out using electronic devices. Many studies have previous demonstrated that cyberbullying is associated with many emotional (fear, angry) and psychological (depression, anxiety) problems. Also, research has shown that adolescents who experience cyberbullying have problems in emotion regulation. The aim of this research is to study the mediated role of suppression in relationships of cyberbullying with depression, anxiety and self-esteem. There were 310 adolescents, aged from 13 to 18 years old (145 males, 165 females) from secondary and high schools of Galati area who completed the questionnaires. The results found a partial mediated role of suppression on the relations between cybervictimisation and depression, anxiety and self-esteem. Higher use of suppression mediates the negative effects of cybervictimisation on psychological states of youth. Specifically, cybervictimisation lead to a higher use of suppression and suppression lead to higher depression and anxiety and to lower self-esteem. The findings of this study could be useful for schools and communities in setting plans and strategies to prevention and treatment of consequences of cyberbullying.