Cyberbullying, psychological distress and self-esteem among youth in Quebec schools

Background: The advent of new technologies and social media offers a host of possibilities for teenagers to consolidate social networks. Unfortunately, new technologies also represent a potential setting for experiences of victimization. Methods: The present study explores the prevalence of cyberbullying victimization in a representative sample of 8 194 teenagers in Quebec and the adverse associated consequences. Results: Results indicate that 18% of boys and close to 1 out of 4 girls report at least one incident of cyberbullying in the past 12 months. Cyberbullying victimization contributes to the prediction of low selfesteem and psychological distress over and above other experiences of bullying in schools or other settings. Conclusions: Cyberbullying appear as one important target for the design of prevention and intervention services designed for youth. (C) 2014 Elsevier BM. All rights reserved.