Beyond the Numbers : Exploring More Completely the Cyberbullying Experiences of Adolescents

Abstract

The current project seeks to evaluate qualitative responses to questions about the nature of cyberbullying experiences among a national sample of 5,500 middle and high school students. Consistent with thematic analysis, researchers reviewed responses to several open-ended questions about cyberbullying victimization and perpetration, created a rubric, and categorized the respondent's experience based on the rubric. Preliminary results show wide variation in experiences with cyberbullying, with some students significantly impacted and others not so much. Implications for intervention will also be discussed.