How family cohesion affects adolescents’ cyberbullying: The chain mediating role of social support and self-esteem

Despite the recognition of the impact of family cohesion, social support, and self-esteem on cyberbullying, the precise pathways by which family cohesion affects cyberbullying - particularly through the mediating roles of social support and self-esteem - remain unclear. This study seeks to elucidate how family cohesion affects adolescents' cyberbullying through the chain mediating roles of social support and self-esteem. In December 2024, an anonymous paper-based survey was successfully conducted on 944 middle school students (M = 15.27, SD = 1.619) in Jiangsu and Shandong Provinces. Structural Equation Modeling using AMOS 24.0 and SPSS 24.0 (IBM Corporation, Armonk) was applied to analyze the pathways. The analysis revealed a significant direct negative association between family cohesion and adolescent cyberbullying. Furthermore, family cohesion exhibited an indirect negative effect on cyberbullying through 2 distinct pathways: via social support and via self-esteem. Additionally, a sequential mediation effect was observed, indicating that family cohesion reduced cyberbullying through the chain pathway of social support and self-esteem. Notably, the strongest indirect effect emerged in the path family cohesion →social support → cyberbullying. These findings elucidate the mechanisms linking family cohesion to reduced adolescent cyberbullying, offering valuable insights for developing targeted intervention and prevention strategies.