Co-occurrence of online and offline bullying and sexual harassment among youth in Sweden: Implications for studies on victimization and health a short communication
Open accessAbstract
Studies of co-occurrence of online and offline victimisation of bullying and sexual harassment and its associations to mental health outcomes among youth are scarce. To inform future study designs, the aim of this brief communication was to map co-occurrence of online and offline bullying and sexual harassment victimisation among adolescents. Data were collected in 2011 in nine schools in Northern Sweden, n = 1193 (boys = 566; girls = 627). Absolute and relative frequencies were calculated to find combinations of victimisation: one, two, three, or four forms. Reflecting a picture of the early days of online victimisation, in total fifty seven percent (57%) of adolescents were victimised. Single occurrence victimisation was 21.2% (offline sexual harassment was most common irrespective of gender), showing that most youths were victimised in a co-occurrence of two or more forms. Seven percent (7%) were victimised by all four forms of victimisation. Offline sexual harassment victimisation was present in the most common co-occurrences. Directions for future studies of victimisation and its associations to mental health outcomes are discussed.
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Cybervictimization and online sexual harassment represent variations of the same in-person behavior and are extensions of offline or face-to-face sexual harassment and bullying.
“Cybervictimization and online sexual harassment represent variations of the same in-person behavior and are merely extensions of offline or face-to-face sexual harassment and bullying [23].”
From Cybervictimization and Online Sexual Harassment: Prevalence, Association, and Predictors (2024) · cites this paper as [23]
The Discussion (page unavailable) reports that offline sexual harassment commonly co-occurs with other forms of victimisation and may indicate online victimisation. The Methodological considerations section also reports an association between online and offline sexual harassment. Neither passage establishes that online bullying and sexual harassment are merely variations or extensions of the same in-person behaviour. (LLM, conf=0.86)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredPrior studies have reported consistent co-occurrence between traditional/cyber bullying and sexual harassment, with 9% of middle and high school students involved in all traditional and cyber forms of bullying and sexual harassment, and 7% of Swedish adolescents victimized by all four forms.
“A consistent co-occurrence has been reported by few studies: one study reported whether 9% of middle and high school students were involved in all the traditional and cyber forms of bullying and sexual harassment [22], and, coherently, 7% of Swedish adolescents were victimized by all four forms of victimization (traditional and online bullying and sexual harassment) [23].”
From Cybervictimization and Online Sexual Harassment: Prevalence, Association, and Predictors (2024) · cites this paper as [23]
The findings of this study are consistent with previous studies that have reported a consistent co-occurrence between the two phenomena.
“These findings are consistent with previous studies that have reported a consistent co-occurrence between the two phenomena [22,23].”
From Cybervictimization and Online Sexual Harassment: Prevalence, Association, and Predictors (2024) · cites this paper as [23]
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- Authors
- Dahlqvist, H., Svensson, Å., & Gillander Gådin, K.
- Affiliations
- Mid Sweden University (SE)
- Department of Health Sciences, Mid Sweden University, Sundsvall, Sweden
- Corresponding author
- Dahlqvist, Heléne
- Venue
- International Journal of Circumpolar Health
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2022-09-30
- Volume
- 81
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 2130362-2130362
- ISSN
- 1239-9736 (ISSN-L)
- 2242-3982
- PMC
- PMC9543120
- OpenAlex
- W4298088784
- Cited by
- 9
- References
- 23
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 1
- FWCI
- 1.89
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- International Journal of Circumpolar Health (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Funders
- The Public Health Agency of Sweden (HFA 2008/212)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression
- Social Sciences › Gender Studies › Sexual Assault and Victimization Studies
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Workplace Violence and Bullying
- Keywords
- cyberbullying, sexual harassment, adolescents, youth victimization, mental health, school-based survey, gender differences
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Female, Humans, Male, Sweden, Sexual Harassment, Crime Victims, Bullying
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