Building Resilience in Cyberbullying Victims
Condition: Cyberbullying; Depression; Non Suicidal Self Injury; Social Anxiety; Eating Disorders
MeSH terms: Depression; Feeding and Eating Disorders; Self-Injurious Behavior; Cyberbullying
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      This study evaluates the effectiveness of a wise intervention based on self-affirmation (SA)
      and Implicit Theories of Personality (ITP) building resilience in victims. Half of the
      participants will receive the experimental intervention, while the other half will receive a
      control intervention.
    

Detailed description: 
      Bullying victimization can harm victims' mental health. Numerous studies have shown that,
      when an adolescent is a victim of cyberbullying, the risk of developing numerous mental
      health problems increases. Tackling the problem of cyberbullying victims' worsening mental
      health involves at least (1) reducing bullying itself, as this would reduce the prevalence of
      victimization, and (2) building resilience in the victims so that their mental health does
      not worsen. In recent years, a number of preventive interventions have been developed aimed
      at reducing cyberbullying but not so much focused on building resilience in the victims. Very
      recently, interest in scientific social psychology has grown due to a new approach to
      interventions, which have been called "wise interventions." This approach involves a set of
      rigorous techniques, based on theory and research, that address specific psychological
      processes to help people thrive in various life environments. The main objective of this
      project is to extend the previous findings to the mental health effects of online
      victimization in adolescents. In this project it will be designed and evaluated the
      effectiveness of an wise intervention aimed at (1) reducing online bullying, as this would
      reduce the prevalence of victimization; and (2) building resilience in victims so that the
      negative impact of victimization on their mental health will be reduced. The secondary
      objective will be to evaluate the moderating role of gender and the degree of development in
      the effects of the intervention.The study will involve the evaluation of the intervention in
      a sample of around 600 adolescents randomly allocated to experimental and control condition.
    

Intervention name(s): Wise Intervention (SA, ITP and resilience); Standard preventive intervention
Intervention type(s): Behavioral; Behavioral
Intervention description(s): The intervention will be based on four general types of change strategies: (1) scientific knowledge, (2) generation of new meanings, (3) commitment through action, and (4) active reflection. This will include activities such as reading scientific information about social behavior and its role in people's well-being and mental health, the meaning of online victimization experiences and ways to react to them, experiences of other young people of their age, and self-persuasion exercises that involve an active commitment to change. Furthermore, it provides a number of strategies to manage everyday conflicts among adolescents. This intervention teaches them new ways to manage these difficulties through different actions (relaxation, distraction, sports, etc.). Finally, they are asked to plan the strategies they will use in the future in the face of some difficulties and to recommend some guidelines for another adolescent who may be going through a similar situation.; The control intervention will involve scientific information and education about internet risks such as sexting and grooming.
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Intervention model description: Participants will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio blocked by gender to one of two groups: experimental condition (SA, ITP and resilience condition) versus control condition (anti-grooming/sexting condition) in parallel for the duration of the study.
Masking: Double (Participant, Outcomes Assessor)
Primary purpose: Prevention
Keywords: Adolescence; Prevention; Cyberbullying; Depression; Non Suicidal Self Injury; Social Anxiety; Eating Disorders