Abstract

NAVARRO, Raúl  and  YUBERO, Santiago. Impact of Social Anxiety, Social Skills and Cyberbullying on online Communication. Escritos de Psicología [online]. 2012, vol.5, n.3, pp.4-15. ISSN 1989-3809.  https://dx.doi.org/10.5231/psy.writ.2012.2009.

The present research examined online communication behaviour in a sample of preadolescents (10-12 years, n= 812). In addition, we examined the effect of social anxiety, social skills and experiences of cyberbullying on online communication behaviour. Online communication measures included items related to time online, platforms used, relationships and motives to go online. Social anxiety was assessed using the Social Anxiety Scale of Children Revised, social skills were measured using the Matson Questionnaire subscale and cyberbullying using the Victimization Scale via Internet. The results show that the group with high social skills and low levels of anxiety spend more time communicating online and use instant messages to talk to friends. In contrast, the online behaviour of the group with high levels of anxiety and low social skills are more motivated to communicate online by their desire to make new friends. Cybervictims spend more time online, use chat rooms and communicate more with strangers than those who do not suffer cyberbullying. These findings suggest that the Internet offers opportunities to maintain and extend social networks but also exposes young people to online risks.

Keywords : Online Communication; Preadolescents; Social anxiety; Social skills; Cyber victimizacion.

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