Cross-cultural differences in students’ reward addiction and punishment oversensitivity, self-regulation, school burnout, and cyber-aggression

The general aggression model (GAM) explains youth aggression by integrating individual and environmental factors, but their interplay in the digital context remains unclear. This study examined cross-cultural links between school factors (study reward and punishment oversensitivity), individual traits (self-regulation), school burnout, and cyber-aggression in Polish and Turkish students (N = 959, 51% girls, M = 12.95 years). Path and multigroup analyses revealed higher school burnout and cyber-aggression in Polish students. Direct effects of reward and punishment oversensitivity on cyber-aggression were consistent across cultures, but indirect effects varied. The model explained 23% of cyber-aggression variance in Poland and 34% in Türkiye, highlighting the need for culturally sensitive interventions.