How Threats, School Climate, and Prejudice Influence Cyber Aggression

Introduction/BLUF

The article outlines the reasons behind students that act aggressively online and what social factors cause the said behavior.  The researchers that conducted this study discovered that students that feel threatened and hold negative views about other groups tend to have an increased aptitude towards cyber aggression.  On the other hand, it also communicated that when schools have a positive environment online aggression tend to decrease.  The main point of the article is that emotions, prejudice, and school culture strongly affect how young people behave on the internet. 

Relation/Connection to Social Science Principles

The connection of this study to social science is evident because it focuses on how people behave in groups and how social environments shape their actions.  The biggest principle that reverberated throughout the article was social behavior. Social behavior explains how the feelings of fear and anger lead to aggressive actions online.  The other principle discussed was the influence of institutions, for the sake of the article it focused on schools.  Researchers were able to show that schools act as a place of learning and social systems that influence the student’s behavior online and offline.  The connection between inequality and group dynamics were seen in that prejudice towards certain groups lead to an increase in cyber aggression. 

Research Question /Hypothesis/ Independent Variable/Dependent Variable

  • Research Question: The question presented within the study is, does the feeling of being threatened and school environment affect cyber aggression, and does prejudice play a role in between?
  • Hypothesis: In this study the researchers assume that:
    • Feeling threatened increases cyber aggression
    • Schools climate affects cyber aggression
    • Prejudice helps explain how threats lead to aggression
    • School climate can reduce aggression by lowering prejudice
  • Independent Variable: The independent variables identified are as follows:
    • Threat perception
    • School Climate
  • Dependent Variable: The dependent variable is Cyber aggression

Types of Research Methods used

The research method that was used was a survey based on quantitative study.  It comprises 1100 high school students using a social media-based questionnaire regarding their feelings, school environment, and online behavior.  The statistical method used was defined as Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) and this showed how all the variables were connected and how strongly they influenced one another. 

Types of Data Analysis used

The data analysis of the author was gathered from student surveys that were subsequently turned into numbers and analyzed.  Accuracy was checked and then statistical modeling was used to test the relationship that presented themselves amongst threat perception, prejudice, school climate and cyber aggression.

Connections to other Course Concepts

The article connected what we learn in cybersecurity and social sciences by showing that technology affects how people treat each other and how social media can be used as a tool to create and increase conflict amongst those individuals.  It also supported the thought of human behavior being influenced by social systems like schools, families, and peer groups.  In this regard cybersecurity can be seen as a protector of systems as well as a means to understand people’s behaviors and thinking. 

Connections to the Concerns or contributions of Marginalized Groups

Prejudice was explained towards varying ethnic and social groups.  The article described how such prejudice leads to more online harassment and hate speech.  Such an exhibition leads to the conclusion that marginalized groups are more likely to be the targets of cyber aggression. Studies were referenced that showed racial and minority students experiencing higher levels of online bullying. This was able to communicate why online safety matters and how problematic social problems are in the respective digital spaces. 

Overall societal contributions of the study/Conclusion

In conclusion, this study was able to show how cyber aggression is influenced by socially based environments and emotions.  Per the feeling of threat and the exercising of prejudice, students tend to increase online harm.  When schools provide a positive atmosphere, this helps to decrease such harm.  The biggest contribution of the said environment was that through education and school culture online harassment was decreased.  Another contribution that was mentioned was that through the proof that social issues like fear and discrimination are major drivers of cyber aggression.  Overall, the study helps society understand that improving digital safety requires both technical protections and positive social environments.

Reference

Mardianto, M., Hartati, N., Aulia, F., Fikry, Z., Utami, R. H., & Magistarina, E. (2023). Threat perception, school climate and prejudice as mediator to students’ cyber aggression. Journal of Cybersecurity, 9(1). https://doi.org/10.1093/cybsec/tyac017

Article Link: https://academic.oup.com/cybersecurity/article/9/1/tyac017/7003385