IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v19y2022i11p6560-d825993.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A Phenomenological Investigation into Cyberbullying as Experienced by People Identifying as Transgender or Gender Diverse

Author

Listed:
  • Sophie Evelyn

    (School of Psychology, Deakin University, Geelong 3216, Australia)

  • Elizabeth M. Clancy

    (School of Psychology, Deakin University, Geelong 3216, Australia)

  • Bianca Klettke

    (School of Psychology, Deakin University, Geelong 3216, Australia)

  • Ruth Tatnell

    (School of Psychology, Deakin University, Geelong 3216, Australia)

Abstract

Cyberbullying can present a serious risk for adolescents and young adults, with severe effects on victims including adverse mental health outcomes and increased risk of suicide. Transgender and gender diverse (TGD) individuals are significantly more likely to experience cyberbullying. However, little is presently known about the lived cyberbullying experiences of TGD adults despite the prevalence of cyberbullying experienced by the TGD community. TGD participants ( n = 66, M = 24 years) were recruited through snowball sampling and completed an online questionnaire as part of a larger study, which included qualitative questions regarding cyberbullying. Participants reported that cyberbullying was experienced predominantly on social media sites and was largely anonymous. The content was often physically and sexually threatening and heavily transphobic. Additionally, some cyberbullying experienced by TGD individuals was perpetrated by other TGD individuals and focused on the identity policing and gatekeeping of TGD spaces. Participants reported cyberbullying evoked negative emotions, and they often responded by either arguing with or blocking the perpetrators, thereby demonstrating resilience. Some participants sought social support in response to cyberbullying, which acted as a protective factor. Findings reveal specific harms associated with cyberbullying as experienced by TGD individuals and highlight the need for further research and targeted support.

Suggested Citation

  • Sophie Evelyn & Elizabeth M. Clancy & Bianca Klettke & Ruth Tatnell, 2022. "A Phenomenological Investigation into Cyberbullying as Experienced by People Identifying as Transgender or Gender Diverse," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(11), pages 1-13, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:11:p:6560-:d:825993
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/11/6560/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/11/6560/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Bockting, W.O. & Miner, M.H. & Swinburne Romine, R.E. & Hamilton, A. & Coleman, E., 2013. "Stigma, mental health, and resilience in an online sample of the US transgender population," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 103(5), pages 943-951.
    2. Schneider, S.K. & O'donnell, L. & Stueve, A. & Coulter, R.W.S., 2012. "Cyberbullying, school bullying, and psychological distress: A regional census of high school students," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 102(1), pages 171-177.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sung Seek Moon & Heeyoung Kim & Kristen Seay & Eusebius Small & Youn Kyoung Kim, 2016. "Ecological Factors of Being Bullied Among Adolescents: a Classification and Regression Tree Approach," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 9(3), pages 743-756, September.
    2. Niels C.L. Jacobs & Trijntje Völlink & Francine Dehue & Lilian Lechner, 2015. "The Development of a Self-Report Questionnaire on Coping with Cyberbullying: The Cyberbullying Coping Questionnaire," Societies, MDPI, vol. 5(2), pages 1-32, May.
    3. Xu, Chen & Gong, Xingying & Fu, Wanyan & Xu, Yanjun & Xu, Haiyan & Chen, Wenjing & Li, Min, 2020. "The role of career adaptability and resilience in mental health problems in Chinese adolescents," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    4. Silvia Gabrielli & Silvia Rizzi & Sara Carbone & Enrico Maria Piras, 2021. "School Interventions for Bullying–Cyberbullying Prevention in Adolescents: Insights from the UPRIGHT and CREEP Projects," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(21), pages 1-13, November.
    5. Kia, Hannah & MacKinnon, Kinnon Ross & Abramovich, Alex & Bonato, Sarah, 2021. "Peer support as a protective factor against suicide in trans populations: A scoping review," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 279(C).
    6. Sulimani-Aidan, Yafit & Shilo, Guy & Paul, June C., 2024. "Increasing resilience among LGBTQ youth: The protective role of natural mentors," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 160(C).
    7. Zhang, Adary & Berrahou, Iman & Leonard, Stephanie A. & Main, Elliott K. & Obedin-Maliver, Juno, 2022. "Birth registration policies in the United States and their relevance to sexual and/or gender minority families: Identifying existing strengths and areas of improvement," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 293(C).
    8. Thespina Yamanis & Mannat Malik & Ana María Del Río-González & Andrea L. Wirtz & Erin Cooney & Maren Lujan & Ruby Corado & Tonia Poteat, 2018. "Legal Immigration Status is Associated with Depressive Symptoms among Latina Transgender Women in Washington, DC," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-15, June.
    9. Hafiz Muhammad Ahmad Abbas & Virdah Iram Gull & Khalid Ghaffar, 2018. "The Impact of Social Support on Psychological Distress among Khawajasira Community: The Mediated Effect of Self-Efficacy," Information Management and Business Review, AMH International, vol. 9(6), pages 36-40.
    10. Rachel Brydolf-Horwitz, 2022. "Embodied and entangled: Slow violence and harm via digital technologies," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 40(2), pages 391-408, March.
    11. Lewis, Tom & Doyle, David Matthew & Barreto, Manuela & Jackson, Debby, 2021. "Social relationship experiences of transgender people and their relational partners: A meta-synthesis," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 282(C).
    12. Saleem, Sumera & Khan, Naurin Farooq & Zafar, Saad, 2021. "Prevalence of cyberbullying victimization among Pakistani Youth," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    13. Matteo Angelo Fabris & Claudio Longobardi & Rosalba Morese & Davide Marengo, 2022. "Exploring Multivariate Profiles of Psychological Distress and Empathy in Early Adolescent Victims, Bullies, and Bystanders Involved in Cyberbullying Episodes," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(16), pages 1-14, August.
    14. Geijtenbeek, Lydia & Plug, Erik, 2018. "Is there a penalty for registered women? Is there a premium for registered men? Evidence from a sample of transsexual workers," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 334-347.
    15. Linlin Xie & Qingchen Da & Jingyu Huang & Zhekuan Peng & Liping Li, 2023. "A Cross-Sectional Survey of Different Types of School Bullying before and during COVID-19 in Shantou City, China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-11, January.
    16. Kabir Dasgupta, 2019. "Youth response to state cyberbullying laws," New Zealand Economic Papers, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 53(2), pages 184-202, May.
    17. Jacek Pyżalski & Piotr Plichta & Anna Szuster & Julia Barlińska, 2022. "Cyberbullying Characteristics and Prevention—What Can We Learn from Narratives Provided by Adolescents and Their Teachers?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(18), pages 1-26, September.
    18. Ana María Martínez-Martínez & Remedios López-Liria & José Manuel Aguilar-Parra & Rubén Trigueros & María José Morales-Gázquez & Patricia Rocamora-Pérez, 2020. "Relationship between Emotional Intelligence, Cybervictimization, and Academic Performance in Secondary School Students," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-12, October.
    19. Ann DeSmet & Maddalena Rodelli & Michel Walrave & Gwendolyn Portzky & Eva Dumon & Bart Soenens, 2021. "The Moderating Role of Parenting Dimensions in the Association between Traditional or Cyberbullying Victimization and Mental Health among Adolescents of Different Sexual Orientation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(6), pages 1-18, March.
    20. Zhang, Anao & De Luca, Susan & Oh, Sehun & Liu, Chun & Song, Xiaocan, 2019. "The moderating effect of gender on the relationship between bullying victimization and adolescents' self-rated health: An exploratory study using the Fragile Families and Wellbeing Study," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 155-162.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:11:p:6560-:d:825993. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.