Offline networks, online bullying: a social network analysis of cyberbullying in a school context

Young adolescents increasingly bully each other in 'cyberspace', which has raised a significant amount of academic attention. The present study contributes to this body of research by linking cyberbullying to young people's offline social relationships. It considers the influence of social position on victimization, and the interactions between online victims and perpetrators. For this purpose an entire grade of 174 pupils, age 12 and 13, was surveyed. The pupil's social networks were analyzed to predict who is being victimized and by whom adolescents are cyberbullied. Results indicate that victims of cyberbullying have fewer mutual friends at school, regardless of traditional bullying involvement. In contrast, their number of mutual 'best friends' does not significantly differ. Furthermore, cyberbullying proves to be a true extension of offline bullying; victims are being bullied by the same perpetrators offline and online, which is particularly problematic. In sum, offline relationships and interactions do influence online bullying.