Cyberbullying in adolescents consulting at a pediatric referral hospital: frequency and forms of victimization

Introduction: the use of the Internet carries risks, such as the appearance of different forms of harassment or cyberbullying. Objectives: To determine the frequency of different forms of cyberbullying victimization in adolescents. Materials and Methods: This was an observational, descriptive and prospective study. Adolescents from 12 to 18 years of age, who consulted at Pediatric Referral Hospital, were invited to participate in a survey via Google form, sent by WhatsApp, using a validated questionnaire in Spanish from March to October 2020. Variables: demographic data, exposure to threatening messages, humiliating images, jokes, rumors, online dissemination of personal information or images of a sexual nature, and exclusion from their peer group. The results were analyzed in SPSS. The ethics committee approved the study with the informed consent of the participants and their parents. Results: 406 respondents were included, with a mean age of 15.4 +/- 1.99. 60.1% female, 88.4% urban residence. 22.5% suffered at least one episode of cyberbullying. 19.7% and 26.6% received threatening messages, via instant messaging and social networks, respectively. 14.5% were humiliated with images on the internet and 30.3% with exposure of personal data. 10.3% were stripped of their passwords. 7.9% have been recorded in humiliating situations and 1% have been recorded in situations of physical violence. 49.3% of those surveyed have been excluded from their peer group. Conclusion: 22.5% of adolescents were subjected to some type of online bullying. The most frequent were the exposure of personal information and exclusion from their peer group.