Digital gender violence and family honor coercion: cyberbullying and digital blackmail among Palestinian women

BACKGROUND: Cyberbullying and digital blackmail (ibtizaz) have emerged as serious threats to psychological well-being, especially for women in conservative and honor-based societies. In Palestine, these digital abuses intersect with patriarchal norms, cultural stigma, and the broader context of political occupation. While global research addresses cyberbullying's psychological impact, there remains limited empirical insight into how these phenomena manifest in occupied Palestinian territories and affect women subject to collective codes of honor, shame, and silence. AIMS: This study aims to fill a critical gap in the literature by examining the intersection of digital violence with Palestinian cultural and political contexts. Specifically, we explore Palestinian women's experiences of cyberbullying and digital blackmail, with a focus on how these forms of violence are shaped by cultural, gendered, and colonial dynamics. We seek to identify psychological consequences, survival strategies, and systemic responses or lack thereof within this sociopolitical context. METHODS: Anchored in a social constructionist and feminist epistemology, the study employed qualitative thematic analysis of 305 Arabic-language posts from two Palestinian Facebook groups. Data were translated, coded inductively, and analyzed for recurring themes. Rigorous coding procedures, intercoder reliability (ƙ = 0.937), and saturation protocols ensured analytic trustworthiness. Ethical considerations included anonymization and IRB approval. RESULTS: Four core themes were constructed through the analysis: [1] the continuum of gendered violence from physical/verbal abuse to digital surveillance; [2] sextortion as a mechanism of control leveraging patriarchal honor and shame codes; [3] individual and collective strategies of resistance and agency; and [4] the collective demand for institutional accountability and cultural reform. Findings show that digital abuse operates as a technological extension of pre-existing social controls, leading to self-reported anxiety, social isolation, and "social death" under threats of exposure. However, women actively resist these dynamics by creating protective digital networks, reclaiming agency through defiance, and framing digital abuse as a social crime rather than a private shame. CONCLUSIONS: Cyberbullying and blackmail in Palestine are social processes of control situated within patriarchal norms and the broader socio-political instability of the occupation. The study's novelty lies in its examination of how digital violence is shaped by family honor codes while being exacerbated by the lack of sovereign legal protections. Effective intervention requires culturally sensitive legal structures, public education, and accessible psychosocial services. Framing digital abuse as a form of gendered violence and social crime is essential for meaningful reform and protection of women's digital rights and mental health in occupied and conservative contexts.