Defender, Passive, and Pro-Bully: Exploring Bystanders' Intentions toward Cyberbullying.

Objective

The present study examines the usefulness of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) in explaining three distinct responses to cyberbullying among adolescents: defending, pro-bully, and passive intentions. A model was constructed to assess intentions, including control variables (gender, age, cyberbullying victimization, and perpetration experiences), social norms (family, friends, and teachers), attitude toward helping cyberbullying victims, perceived behavioral control, and empathy. Method: Data were collected from 2,539 students aged 11 to 18 years (M = 14.07, SD = 1.39) across eighteen schools. The analyses focused on the sample of non-witnesses of cyberbullying (N = 1,825) to assess intentions, using multiple regression analyses.

Results

Empathy and helping attitude play a significant role in the intention of the three types of intentions. Additionally, experiences of cyberbullying, particularly as a cyberbully, and gender were linked to pro-bully intentions. Post hoc gender analyses revealed that friends, family, and teachers' norms were particularly relevant for reducing pro-bully intentions in girls.

Conclusions

These findings suggest that TPB is a useful framework for understanding the intentions of defender, passive, and pro-bully cyberbystanders. Future research should include both non-witnesses and witnesses to better compare intention versus actual behavior and investigate temporal and causal pathways within the TPB model.