Cyberbullying and children and young people’s mental health: A systematic map of systematic reviews
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Cyberbullying is associated with considerable negative mental and psychosocial consequences in children and young people, making it a serious public health concern. To review the highest level of available evidence, a systematic mapping review was conducted to identify systematic reviews that investigated the relationship between cyberbullying and mental and psychological outcomes in young people. Topic-relevant bibliographic databases and online resources were searched to identify reviews published since 2007. Data were extracted using a coding tool developed for this study. Methodological quality of included reviews was assessed using AMSTAR criteria. Nineteen systematic reviews satisfied the inclusion criteria and they reported a strong negative association between cyberbullying and mental health outcomes in young people. Meta-analysis was performed in 11 reviews and narrative synthesis in 8 reviews. Data were derived from predominantly cross-sectional studies and a clear causal relationship between cyberbullying and mental outcomes cannot be established. Two-third of the included reviews were classified to be of low or unclear quality, due to the lack of quality assessment of the primary studies included in individual reviews. This systematic map consolidates available evidence at review level and confirms the existing gaps in longitudinal and qualitative evidence synthesis. Closer examination of the moderating factors influencing cyberbullying behaviors in future research can advance our understanding and inform the development of tailored programs of intervention to mitigate the negative impact of this phenomenon.
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Research has noted many negative psychological consequences associated with online victimization including post-traumatic stress, diminished self-esteem, and mental health outcomes such as anxiety, depression, suicide ideation, and self-harm.
“Beyond the school context, research has noted many negative psychological consequences associated with online victimization including post-traumatic stress (102), diminished self-esteem (103), and mental health outcomes such as anxiety, depression, suicide ideation, self-harm (104).”
From A thematic analysis of adolescents’ perceptions of cyberbullying and cyberaggression: definitional distinctions and educational gaps (2026) · cites this paper as [104]
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“Beyond the school context, research has noted many negative psychological consequences associated with online victimization including post-traumatic stress (102), diminished self-esteem (103), and mental health outcomes such as anxiety, depression, suicide ideation, self-harm (104).”
- Authors
- Kwan, I., Dickson, K., Richardson, M., MacDowall, W., Burchett, H., Stansfield, C., Brunton, G., Sutcliffe, K., & Thomas, J.
- Affiliations
- University College London (GB)
- London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Kwan, Irene
- ORCID
- Venue
- Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2020-02
- Volume
- 23
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 72-82
- ISSN
- 2152-2715 (ISSN-L)
- 2152-2723
- PMC
- PMC7044782
- OpenAlex
- W3002553481
- Cited by
- 291
- References
- 66
- Citations by year
- 2026: 32 · 2025: 61 · 2024: 51 · 2023: 49 · 2022: 49 · 2021: 30 · 2020: 19
- FWCI
- 5.93
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Cyberpsychology Behavior and Social Networking (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- LSHTM Research Online (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) (submittedVersion)
- UCL Discovery (University College London) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute for Health and Care Research (PR-R6-0113-11003)
- Department of Health and Social Care (PR-R6-0113-11003)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Artificial Intelligence › Hate Speech and Cyberbullying Detection
- Keywords
- cyberbullying, children, youth, mental health, psychological outcomes, psychosocial consequences, methodological quality of systematic reviews, moderators, bullying intervention programs
- MeSH terms
- Cyberbullying, Systematic Reviews as Topic, Adolescent, Mental Disorders, Child, Cross-Sectional Studies, Female, Humans, Male, Mental Health, Meta-Analysis as Topic
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