Cyberbullying Victimization and Depression in Youth: Brazilian Findings

Cyberbullying victimization (CBV) is widely linked to adolescent depression, but most studies collapse depression into a single score. Far less is known about which specific depressive symptoms track with CBV—and whether those patterns differ by gender—especially in Brazilian youth. We surveyed 268 public-school students in southern Brazil (Mage 13.4 years; 50.7% girls) using the Children’s Depression Inventory and the victimization subscale of the Revised Cyberbullying Inventory. Girls reported higher depressive symptoms overall (p < 0.05), although CBV did not differ by gender (p = 0.11). In gender-stratified analyses, CBV among girls was tied to every depression domain (anhedonia, ineffectiveness, interpersonal problems, negative mood, and negative self-esteem) as well as the total score; among boys, CBV was related only to overall depression. When domains were entered together, anhedonia and interpersonal problems uniquely signaled greater odds of any CBV for girls, whereas no single domain stood out for boys (ineffectiveness showed a modest, nonsignificant trend). Taken together, these results suggest that CBV travels with a distinct emotional–interpersonal profile for girls but aligns with general depressive burden for boys. Practically, schools and clinicians should pair universal digital-safety efforts with targeted supports—behavioral activation and peer-skills work for girls, and broad depression screening and stepped care for boys.