A comparative study on online victimization perceptions (cyberbullying, dating violence, and sexual harassment) and psychological symptoms in sexual and gender minority youth

Résumé fourni par la source

Experiencing worry or perceiving risks in online environments can be linked to undesirable psychological and social outcomes, potentially incrementing the unique challenges that sexual and gender minority (SGM) youths may face in online environments. The purpose of this study is to examine differential perceptions of the frequency of worry about and perceived risk of online victimization and psychological symptoms between sexual and gender minority youths and their non-sexual and gender minority counterparts. This is a cross-sectional study conducted between 2022 and 2023. The sample of 824 Spanish youths was composed by 48.3% females, 49.5% males and 1.8% gender non-binary, aged between 12 and 18 years old (M = 14.53, SD = 1.48). Participants responded to questionnaires based on validated tools to capture the perceived risk and the frequency of worry about three forms of online victimization (cyberbullying, dating violence, and sexual harassment), as well as psychological symptoms (Symptom Checklist-90-R). The data were analysed using one-way and two-way multivariate analysis of variance. The results showed that sexual and gender minority youth reported higher perceptions of risk and worry in relation to online victimization. On the other hand, gender minority participants were found to have significantly elevated levels in all the psychological symptom domains under study. Our results underscore the relevance of understanding psychological correlates in order to develop inclusive interventions and prevention programs addressing SGM-specific online safety concerns.