Affiliations: [a] Department of Epidemiology, School of Medicine, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan, China | [b] Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Xiangya School of Public Health, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, China
Correspondence:
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Corresponding author: Xin Huang, Department of Epidemiology, School of Medicine, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan, China. E-mail: xin.huang@hunnu.edu.cn.
Abstract: BACKGROUND: In the wave of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic, there is a need to investigate the mental health status of Chinese university students. OBJECTIVE: To examine the effects of witnessing cyberbullying on psychological distress and the mediating role of coping on these effects in Chinese university students, which is yet to be examined. METHODS: 306 Chinese university students were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Linear regression was conducted to analyze the relationship between depression, anxiety and being a bystander to cyberbullying, whereas the bootstrapping approach tested the mediation effects of coping strategies. RESULTS: Results indicated that 27.12% of subjects (95% CI: 22.22%, 32.48%) suffered from anxiety and 44.12% (95% CI: 38.47%, 49.88%) were depressed. Meanwhile, 89.87% of subjects were involved in witnessing cyberbullying. Being a bystander to cyberbullying was weakly but significantly associated with anxiety (β= 0.195, 95% CI: 0.068, 0.292) and depression (β= 0.223, 95% CI: 0.113,0.333). Negative coping partially mediated between witnessing cyberbullying and anxiety, with mediation effect values of 0.04 (P< 0.05). While being a bystander to cyberbullying was only directly associated with depression. CONCLUSION: Based on our findings, college students in Hunan, China, are experiencing anxiety, depression and cyberbullying after COVID-19. Being a bystander to cyberbullying is associated with coping strategies, anxiety, and depression. Cyberbullying has a direct impact on anxiety, but it also influences anxiety through mediating effects on coping.
Keywords: Bystander of cyberbullying, anxiety, depression, coping strategies, mediation analysis
