Amadori Alberto, Sherwood S Henry, Russell Stephen T, Brighi Antonella
Faculty of Education, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Bolzano, Italy.
Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, USA.
Aggress Behav. 2025 May;51(3):e70034. doi: 10.1002/ab.70034.
Homophobic cyberbullying and other forms of anti-LGBTQ+ bias among adolescents are an emerging and concerning form of online bias-based aggression. However, little research has explored its prevalence and correlates. This study aims to address this gap by investigating homophobic cyberbullying through the theoretical lens of a socioecological stigma framework. Specifically, it examines the association between individual factors (socio-emotional competencies), contextual factors (homophobic social norms), and homophobic cyberbullying. Additionally, it explores the moderating effect of socio-emotional competencies on the relationship between homophobic social norms and social dominance orientation on homophobic cyberbullying. Parallel (in-school and online) survey samples (N = 3807) were collected among Italian youth (M = 16.69; SD = 1.97). A series of multiple linear regression models with two-way and three-way interaction effects were tested. Descriptive results indicated that heterosexual boys reported higher rates of homophobic cyberbullying. The regression analysis demonstrated that socio-emotional competencies were negatively associated with homophobic cyberbullying, whereas homophobic social norms were positively related to it. Furthermore, socio-emotional competencies mitigated the impact of homophobic social norms on the relationship between social dominance orientation and homophobic cyberbullying. The study underscores the urgent need for evidence-based interventions that challenge and reshape gendered and heteronormative beliefs perpetuating homophobic cyberbullying, particularly among adolescent heterosexual boys, by encouraging critical reflection on masculinity and sexuality within educational settings and peer networks.
青少年中的恐同网络欺凌及其他形式的反 LGBTQ+ 偏见是一种新出现且令人担忧的基于偏见的网络攻击形式。然而，很少有研究探讨其普遍性及相关因素。本研究旨在通过社会生态污名框架的理论视角调查恐同网络欺凌，以填补这一空白。具体而言，它考察了个体因素（社会情感能力）、情境因素（恐同社会规范）与恐同网络欺凌之间的关联。此外，它还探究了社会情感能力对恐同社会规范与社会支配取向之间关系对恐同网络欺凌的调节作用。在意大利青年（M = 16.69；SD = 1.97）中收集了平行的（校内和线上）调查样本（N = 3807）。测试了一系列具有双向和三向交互效应的多元线性回归模型。描述性结果表明，异性恋男孩报告的恐同网络欺凌发生率更高。回归分析表明，社会情感能力与恐同网络欺凌呈负相关，而恐同社会规范与之呈正相关。此外，社会情感能力减轻了恐同社会规范对社会支配取向与恐同网络欺凌之间关系的影响。该研究强调迫切需要基于证据的干预措施，通过鼓励在教育环境和同伴网络中对男性气质和性取向进行批判性反思，来挑战和重塑使恐同网络欺凌长期存在的性别化和异性恋规范信念，尤其是在青少年异性恋男孩中。
