The Relationship between Personal Resources and Depression in a Sample of Victims of Cyberbullying: Comparison of Groups with and without Symptoms of Depression

Lourdes Rey, Cirenia Quintana-Orts, Sergio Mérida-López and Natalio Extremera
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Lourdes Rey: Department of Personality, Evaluation and Psychological Treatment, University of Malaga, 29071 Malaga, Spain
Cirenia Quintana-Orts: Department of Personality, Evaluation and Psychological Treatment, University of Granada, 51001 Granada, Spain
Sergio Mérida-López: Department of Social Psychology, Social Work, Social Anthropology and East Asian Studies, University of Malaga, 29071 Malaga, Spain
Natalio Extremera: Department of Social Psychology, Social Work, Social Anthropology and East Asian Studies, University of Malaga, 29071 Malaga, Spain

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 24, 1-14

Abstract: Previous research has highlighted the relationship between being cybervictimised and the presence of clinical symptoms, such as depression. To date, however, there has been no comparative analysis of the personal resources profiles of adolescent victims of cyberbullying with and without depressive symptoms. The current study analysed the relationship between positive personal resources and clinical symptoms in 251 adolescent victims of cyberbullying at several Spanish high schools. It examined how several positive personal resources varied in adolescent victims of cyberbullying who displayed symptoms of depression ( n = 89) or did not ( n = 162). Victims of cyberbullying who displayed depressive symptoms reported lower levels of personal resources (emotional intelligence, gratitude, optimism, and forgiveness) than those who did not. Logistic regression provided evidence that gratitude was the strongest predictor of depressive symptoms in victims of cyberbullying, followed by emotional intelligence and optimism. These findings expand the existing literature on the role of personal resources in mental health and highlight the need for their development in youths to help them cope more effectively and function better after being cyberbullied.

Keywords: cyberbullying; victimisation; adolescents; depressive symptomatology; personal resources (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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