Abstract
The possible protective factor of gratitude on experiences of cyberbullying behaviours and anxiety symptomatology was examined. A sample of 981 adolescents (55.45% females) participated in a two-wave study, completing three self-report measures. There was a period of 16 weeks between the two data collections. The measuring instruments assessed gratitude (Gratitude Questionnaire: GQ-5), cybervictimisation (European Cyberbullying Intervention Project Questionnaire: ECIPQ) and anxiety symptomatology (Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scales: DASS). A serial mediation analysis was performed to examine the possible predictor role of gratitude on cybervictimisation and anxiety symptomatology. Outcomes reported that gratitude was related to cybervictimisation (Time 1) and anxiety symptomatology (Time 2). Furthermore, a sequential pathway was found from gratitude to cybervictimisation 16 weeks later, firstly through cybervictimisation (Time 1) and then through anxiety symptomatology (Time 2). These findings confirm previous research about the protective role of gratitude to minimise the negative impact of cyberbullying behaviours. Moreover, the first evidence on the potential protective role of gratitude for decreasing the likelihood of suffering cybervictimisation is provided.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data Availability
The data that support the findings of this study are available on reasonable request from the corresponding author, MTC-N, mtchamizo@uma.es.
References
Algoe, S. B. (2012). Find, remind, and bind: The functions of gratitude in everyday relationships. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 6(6), 455–469. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9004.2012.00439.x
Alonso, C., & Romero, E. (2020). Estudio longitudinal de predictores y consecuencias del ciberacoso en adolescentes españoles [Longitudinal study of predictors and outcomes of cyberbullying in Spanish adolescents]. Behavioral Psychology/ Psicologia Conductual, 28(1), 73–93.
Audrin, C., & Blaya, C. (2020). Psychological well-being in a connected world: The impact of cybervictimization in children’s and young people’s life in france. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 1427. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01427
Bados, A., Solanas, A., & Andrés, R. (2005). Psychometric properties of the Spanish version of Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scales (DASS). Psicothema, 17(4), 679–683.
Balgiu, B. A. (2019). Possible mechanism of the influence of gratitude on life satisfaction. Journal of Psychological and Educational Research, 27(2), 75–87.
Bernabé-Valero, G., Blasco-Magraner, J. S., & Moret-Tatay, C. (2019). Testing motivational theories in music education: The role of effort and gratitude. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 13, 172. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2019.00172
Bono, G., Froh, J. J., Disabato, D., Blalock, D., McKnight, P., & Bausert, S. (2019). Gratitude’s role in adolescent antisocial and prosocial behavior: A 4-year longitudinal investigation. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 14(1), 230–243. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2017.1402078
Caleon, I. S., Ilham, N. Q. B., Ong, C. L., & Tan, J. P. L. (2019). Cascading effects of gratitude: A sequential mediation analysis of gratitude, interpersonal relationships, school resilience and school well-being. Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 28(4), 303–312. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40299-019-00440-w
Camerini, A.-L., Marciano, L., Carrara, A., & Schulz, P. J. (2020). Cyberbullying perpetration and victimization among children and adolescents: A systematic review of longitudinal studies. Telematics and Informatics, 49, 101362. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tele.2020.101362
Chen, Y., & Zhu, J. (2022). Longitudinal associations between cybervictimization and adolescent sleep problems: The role of anxiety and depressive symptoms. Journal of Interpersonal Violence. https://doi.org/10.1177/08862605221102485
Cho, Y., & Fast, N. J. (2012). Power, defensive denigration, and the assuaging effect of gratitude expression. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 48, 778–782. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2011.12.016
Cortés-Pascual, A., Cano-Escorianza, J., Elboj-Saso, C., & Iñiguez-Berrozpe, T. (2020). Positive relationships for the prevention of bullying and cyberbullying: A study in Aragón (Spain). International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, 25(1), 182–199. https://doi.org/10.1080/02673843.2019.1602064
de Lijster, J. M., Dieleman, G. C., Utens, E. M. W. J., Dierckx, B., Wierenga, M., Verhulst, F. C., & Legerstee, J. S. (2018). Social and academic functioning in adolescents with anxiety disorders: A systematic review. Journal of Affective Disorders, 230, 108–117. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2018.01.008
Declaration of Helsinki. (2013). Ethical principles for medical research involving human subjects. Journal of the American Medical Association, 310(20), 2191–2194. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2013.281053
Del Rey, R., Casas, J. A., Ortega-Ruiz, R., Schultze-Krumbholz, A., Scheithauer, H., Smith, P., Thompson, F., Barkoukis, V., Tsorbatzoudis, H., Brighi, A., Guarini, A., Pyzalski, J., & Plichta, P. (2015). Structural validation and cross-cultural robustness of the European Cyberbullying Intervention Project Questionnaire. Computers in Human Behavior, 50, 141–147. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.03.065
Dennis, A., & Ogden, J. (2022). Nostalgia, gratitude, or optimism: The impact of a two-week intervention on well-being during COVID-19. Journal of Happiness Studies, 23(6), 2613–2634. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-022-00513-6
Evangelio, C., Rodríguez-González, P., Fernández-Río, J., & González-Villora, S. (2022). Cyberbullying in elementary and middle school students: A systematic review. Computers and Education, 176, 104356. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2021.104356
Fredrickson, B. L. (1998). What good are positive emotions? Review of General Psychology, 2(3), 300–319.
Hayes, A. F. (2018). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis. A regression-based approach (2nd ed.). Guilford Press.
Hinduja, S., & Patchin, J. W. (2019). Connecting adolescent suicide to the severity of bullying and cyberbullying. Journal of School Violence, 18(3), 333–346. https://doi.org/10.1080/15388220.2018.1492417
Holfeld, B., & Mishna, F. (2019). Internalizing symptoms and externalizing problems: Risk factors for or consequences of cyber victimization? Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 48(3), 567–580. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-018-0974-7
Iodice, J. A., Malouff, J. M., & Schutte, N. S. (2021). The association between gratitude and depression: A meta-analysis. International Journal of Depression and Anxiety, 4(1), 024. https://doi.org/10.23937/2643-4059/1710024
Jans-Beken, L. (2019). The dialectic dynamics between trait gratitude, subjective well-being, and psychopathology across 30 weeks. Counselling Psychology Quarterly, 32(3–4), 502–515. https://doi.org/10.1080/09515070.2019.1638228
Jiang, Y., Ren, Y., Zhu, J., & You, J. (2022). Gratitude and hope relate to adolescent nonsuicidal self-injury: Mediation through self-compassion and family and school experiences. Current Psychology, 41(2), 935–942. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-020-00624-4
Kabadayi, F., & Sari, S. V. (2018). What is the role of resilience in predicting cyber bullying perpetrators and their victims? Journal of Psycologists and Counsellors in Schools, 28(1), 102–117. https://doi.org/10.1017/jgc.2017.20
Kong, F., Yang, K., Yan, W., & Li, X. (2021). How does trait gratitude relate to subjective well-being in Chinese adolescents? The mediating role of resilience and social support. Journal of Happiness Studies, 22(4), 1611–1622. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-020-00286-w
Kowalski, R. M., Limber, S. P., & McCord, A. (2019). A developmental approach to cyberbullying: Prevalence and protective factors. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 45, 20–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2018.02.009
Lovibond, P. F., & Lovibond, S. H. (1995). The structure of negative emotional states: Comparison of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS) with the Beck Depression and Anxiety Inventories. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 33(3), 335–343. https://doi.org/10.1016/0005-7967(94)00075-U
Marciano, L., Schulz, P. J., & Camerini, A.-L. (2020). Cyberbullying perpetration and victimization in youth: A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 25(2), 163–181. https://doi.org/10.1093/jcmc/zmz031
Marín Cortés, A. F., Hoyos De los Ríos, O. L., & Sierra Pérez, A. (2019). Factores de riesgo y factores protectores relacionados con el ciberbullying entre adolescentes: una revisión sistemática [Risk and protective factors related to cyberbullying among adolescents: A systematic review]. Papeles Del Psicólogo, 40(2), 109–124. https://doi.org/10.23923/pap.psicol2019.2899
Martínez-Martí, M. L., Avia, M. D., & Hernández-Lloreda, M. J. (2010). The effects of counting blessings on subjective well-being: A gratitude intervention in a Spanish sample. Spanish Journal of Psychology, 13(2), 886–896. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1138741600002535
Martínez-Monteagudo, M. C., Delgado, B., Díaz-Herrero, Á., & García-Fernández, J. M. (2020). Relationship between suicidal thinking, anxiety, depression and stress in university students who are victims of cyberbullying. Psychiatry Research, 286, 112856. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2020.112856
McCullough, M. E., Emmons, R. A., & Tsang, J.-A. (2002). The grateful disposition: A conceptual and empirical topography. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 82(1), 112–127. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.82.1.112
Ortega-Ruiz, R., Del Rey, R., & Casas, J. A. (2016). Evaluar el bullying y el cyberbullying validación española del EBIP-Q y del ECIP-Q [Assessing bullying and cyberbullying: Spanish validation of EBIPQ and ECIPQ]. Psicología Educativa, 22(1), 71–79. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pse.2016.01.004
Pérez-Rojo, G., López, J., Noriega, C., Martínez-Huertas, J. Á., Velasco, C., Carretero, I., López-Frutos, P., Galarraga, L., & Pillemer, K. (2021). Older people’s personal strengths during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Psicothema, 33(3), 423–432. https://doi.org/10.7334/psicothema2020.453
Petrocchi, N., & Couyoumdjian, A. (2016). The impact of gratitude on depression and anxiety: The mediating role of criticizing, attacking, and reassuring the self. Self and Identity, 15(2), 191–205. https://doi.org/10.1080/15298868.2015.1095794
Portocarrero, F. F., Gonzalez, K., & Ekema-Agbaw, M. (2020). A meta-analytic review of the relationship between dispositional gratitude and well-being. Personality and Individual Differences, 164, 110101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2020.110101
Rey, L., Sánchez-Álvarez, N., & Extremera, N. (2018). Spanish Gratitude Questionnaire: Psychometric properties in adolescents and relationships with negative and positive psychological outcomes. Personality and Individual Differences, 135, 173–175. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2018.07.005
Rey, L., Quintana-Orts, C., Mérida-López, S., & Extremera, N. (2019). Being bullied at school: Gratitude as potential protective factor for suicide risk in adolescents. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 662. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00662
Rose, C. A., & Tynes, B. M. (2015). Longitudinal associations between cybervictimization and mental health among U.S. adolescents. Journal of Adolescent Health, 57(3), 305–312. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2015.05.002
Rosen, P. J., Milich, R., & Harris, M. J. (2009). Why’s everybody always picking on me? Social cognition, emotion regulation, and chronic peer victimization in children. In M. J. Harris (Ed.), Bullying, rejection, & peer victimization: A social cognitive neuroscience perspective (pp. 79–100). Springer Publishing Company.
Salvador-Ferrer, C. (2017). The relationship between Gratitude and Life Satisfaction in a sample of Spanish university students: The moderation role of gender. Anales De Psicologia, 33(1), 114–119. https://doi.org/10.6018/analesps.33.1.226671
Sánchez-Álvarez, N., Extremera, N., Rey, L., Chang, E. C., & Chang, O. D. (2020). Optimism and gratitude on suicide risk in Spanish adults: Evidence for doubling up or doubling down? Journal of Clinical Psychology, 76(10), 1882–1892. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.22962
Smith, P. K., Mahdavi, J., Carvalho, M., Fisher, S., Russell, S., & Tippett, N. (2008). Cyberbullying: Its nature and impact in secondary school pupils. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, 49(4), 376–385. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7610.2007.01846.x
Stieger, M., Hill, P. L., & Allemand, M. (2020). Looking on the bright side of life: Gratitude and experiences of interpersonal transgressions in adulthood and daily life. Journal of Personality, 88(3), 430–446. https://doi.org/10.1111/jopy.12501
Strohmeier, D., & Gradinger, P. (2022). Cyberbullying and cyber victimization as online risks for children and adolescents. European Psychologist, 27(2), 141–150. https://doi.org/10.1027/1016-9040/a000479
Sun, P., Sun, Y., Jiang, H., Jia, R., & Li, Z. (2020). Gratitude as a protective factor against anxiety and depression among Chinese adolescents: The mediating role of coping flexibility. Asian Journal of Social Psychology, 23(4), 447–456. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajsp.12419
Valikhani, A., Ahmadnia, F., Karimi, A., & Mills, P. J. (2019). The relationship between dispositional gratitude and quality of life: The mediating role of perceived stress and mental health. Personality and Individual Differences, 141, 40–46. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2018.12.014
Wang, D., Chen, X.-Y., Zhai, S., & Fan, F. (2022). Gratitude and internalizing/externalizing symptoms among adolescents after the Wenchuan earthquake: Mediating roles of social support and resilience. Journal of Adolescence, 94(6), 867–879. https://doi.org/10.1002/jad.12070
Wood, A. M., Froh, J. J., & Geraghty, A. W. A. (2010). Gratitude and well-being: A review and theoretical integration. Clinical Psychology Review, 30(7), 890–905. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2010.03.005
Xiang, Y., & Yuan, R. (2021). Why do people with high dispositional gratitude tend to experience high life satisfaction? A broaden-and-build theory perspective. Journal of Happiness Studies, 22(6), 2485–2498. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-020-00310-z
Yang, K., Yan, W., Jia, N., Wang, Q., & Kong, F. (2021). Longitudinal relationship between trait gratitude and subjective well-being in adolescents: Evidence from the bi-factor model. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 16(6), 802–810. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2020.1818812
Zeng, P., Wang, P., Nie, J., Ouyang, M., & Lei, L. (2020). Gratitude and cyberbullying perpetration: The mediating role of self-compassion and moral disengagement. Children and Youth Services Review, 119(59), 105608. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2020.105608
Zhang, X., Luo, J., Peng, T., Hong, Y., & Li, X. (2020). The impact of gratitude on core self-evaluations of rural junior middle school students: A chain mediation analysis. Psychology, 11(08), 1141–1152. https://doi.org/10.4236/psych.2020.118075
Zhu, C., Huang, S., Evans, R., & Zhang, W. (2021). Cyberbullying among adolescents and children: A comprehensive review of the global situation, risk factors, and preventive measures. Frontiers in Public Health, 9, 634909. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.634909
Zych, I., Farrington, D. P., & Ttofi, M. M. (2019). Protective factors against bullying and cyberbullying: A systematic review of meta-analyses. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 45, 4–19. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2018.06.008
Funding
This work was supported by University of Málaga, PAIDI Group CTS-1048 (Junta de Andalucía) and R + D + i project of the Ministry for Science and Innovation in Spain (PID2020-117006RB-I00).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
Writing – original draft preparation was performed by MTC-N; writing – review and editing was performed by LR; and funding acquisition was performed by LR. Both authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Ethics Approval
This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of University of Málaga (62–2016-H) and was performed in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki.
Consent to Participate
In four education centres, written informed consent was obtained from the parents. In one education centre, a passive consent was obtained from the parents (they did not clearly refuse adolescent’s participation in the study).
Conflicts of Interests
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Chamizo-Nieto, M.T., Rey, L. Gratitude as a Protective Factor for Cybervictimisation and Anxiety Symptomatology: A Prospective Study. Applied Research Quality Life 18, 1057–1071 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-022-10131-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-022-10131-2