Goal Understanding and Anonymous Cyberbullying in Social Media: How Victims Interpret, Cope with, and Respond to Hurtful Messages Online

Abstract

We experimentally manipulated social media affordances theoretically linked to cyberbullies’ anonymity using hypothetical scenarios taking advantage of the diverse ways people get bullied by someone they can identify versus an anonymous cyberbully. Nine different social media platforms–from TikTok, Twitter, and Tumblr to Instagram, iMessage, and Email–manipulated a cyberbully’s anonymity to uncover pathways known to precipitate poor mental health in a 2 × 9 design. Inferring upward-mobility and highlight-difference goals did not predict affective outcomes; whereas inferring insecurity goals predicted increased hurt and negative emotion regardless of anonymity but inferring personal-attack goals was more hurtful, emotionally negative, and severe when victims knew the bully. Second, inferring the goals predicted decreased coping via increased use of motivation (but not identity) uncertainty reduction strategies, especially if the bully was anonymous. Third, inferences of the insecurity and personal attack goals predicted decreased attraction to the cyberbully via increased coping if the bully was anonymous.