Relationships Among Self-Esteem, Bullying, and Cyberbullying in Adolescents A Systematic Review

The current systematic review explored relationships among self-esteem, bullying, and cyberbullying in adolescents. Three databases were used to search for articles pertaining to mental health, health care, and the social sciences. Keywords, including bully, victim, victimization, harassment, aggression, and abuse, were used to describe victims of cyberbullying and locate relevant articles. A total of 861 articles were found during the initial search, 110 were assessed for eligibility, and 10 ultimately met inclusion criteria. Most studies found correlations among self-esteem, bullying, and cyberbullying. Self-esteem was linked to being a victim of cyberbullying but not to being a perpetrator of cyberbullying or bullying in general. Students with high self-esteem at the beginning of the school year were more likely to become bullies as they got older, whereas those with low selfesteem were less likely to do so. In addition, self-esteem was found to have direct negative effects on victimization and cybervictimization, and victimization and cybervictimization were found to have direct negative effects on peer difficulties. Findings suggest that adolescent bullying and cyberbullying perpetration may be mitigated by higher levels of self-esteem. Parents should pay close attention to and limit adolescents' exposure to bullying and cyberbullying and stressful life events. Psychiatric nurses should routinely screen adolescents and develop interventions to enhance self-esteem and reduce bullying and cyberbullying. [Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, xx(xx), xx-xx.]

Automated summary

This systematic review explored the relationships among self-esteem, bullying, and cyberbullying in adolescents. The findings suggest that self-esteem is linked to being a victim of cyberbullying, but not to being a perpetrator. Self-esteem has negative effects on victimization and cybervictimization, and these victimization experiences also have negative effects on peer difficulties. It is suggested that higher levels of self-esteem may mitigate adolescent bullying and cyberbullying.