Violence exposure and cyberbullying among Chinese adolescents: the mediating role of moral disengagement

IntroductionCyberbullying among adolescents has become a global concern. While existing research confirms a positive association between violence exposure and cyberbullying, the underlying mechanisms, particularly within Chinese adolescent populations, remain poorly understood. This study aims to investigate the mediating role of moral disengagement in the relationship between violence exposure and cyberbullying among Chinese middle school students.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was administered to 936 middle school students (Grades 7, 12) from urban areas in Hunan Province, China. The Violence Exposure Questionnaire, the Moral Disengagement Scale, and the Cyberbullying Questionnaire were employed. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the data and test the mediation model while controlling for demographic variables.ResultsThe results indicated that non-only children reported higher levels of violence exposure than only children, and males scored higher on moral disengagement than females. Older adolescents engaged in more cyberbullying. Violence exposure was significantly and positively associated with adolescent cyberbullying. Furthermore, moral disengagement partially mediated this relationship.DiscussionThis study confirms that violence exposure is a significant predictor of cyberbullying and highlights the crucial mediating mechanism of moral disengagement. These findings extend previous research by providing empirical evidence from a Chinese context and suggest that interventions targeting moral disengagement may be effective in reducing cyberbullying perpetration among adolescents.