Exploring the Effects of Traditional and Cyberbullying Victimization on Chinese Adolescents’ Mental Health: Emotion Regulation as a Mediator and Family Support as a Moderator

With the increasing prevalence of traditional and cyberbullying, their negative impact on adolescents’ mental health has drawn growing attention. However, the differences in their underlying psychological mechanisms remain insufficiently explored, particularly concerning how emotion regulation and family support influence these processes. To compensate for this shortcoming in prior studies, this study proposes a moderated mediation framework drawing upon the theoretical perspectives of stress coping mechanisms and the process model of emotional regulation, aiming to examine the distinct pathways through which traditional and cyberbullying victimization affect adolescents’ mental health. A total of 582 Chinese secondary school students completed validated questionnaires assessing bullying victimization, emotion regulation strategies, family support, and mental health. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to test the proposed model and hypotheses. Both traditional and cyberbullying victimization significantly and negatively associated with adolescents’ mental health. Cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression acted as partial mediators. Family support served as a significant moderator, especially in traditional bullying contexts. This study highlights the differential psychological mechanisms of traditional and cyberbullying victimization. The findings support the presence of the mediating role of emotion regulation and the moderating effect of family support, offering theoretical insights and practical implications adolescent mental health interventions.