Cyberbullying Exposure and Rejection Sensitivity as Predictors of Social Withdrawal

Ahmet Kutsal; Syarifah Maisarah; Camila Viteri

doi:10.61838/kman.jarac.7.2.23

Authors

Ahmet Kutsal Department of Psychology, Necmettin Erbakan University, Seydisehir Vocational School, Konya, Türkiye

Syarifah Maisarah * Faculty of Social Sciences & Liberal Arts, Department of Psychology, UCSI University, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia symaisarah@ucsiuniversity.edu.my

Camila Viteri Department of Educational Psychology, Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Quito, Ecuador

https://doi.org/10.61838/kman.jarac.7.2.23

Keywords:

Cyberbullying, Rejection Sensitivity, Social Withdrawal, Adolescents

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to examine the predictive roles of cyberbullying exposure and rejection sensitivity in explaining social withdrawal among Malaysian adolescents.

Methods and Materials: A correlational descriptive design was employed with a sample of 424 secondary school students in Malaysia, selected based on the Krejcie and Morgan sample size table. Participants completed standardized questionnaires assessing cyberbullying exposure (European Cyberbullying Intervention Project Questionnaire), rejection sensitivity (Rejection Sensitivity Questionnaire), and social withdrawal (Child Behavior Checklist subscale). Data were analyzed using SPSS version 27, with Pearson’s correlation tests used to examine the relationships among variables and standard multiple linear regression employed to identify the predictive power of the independent variables on social withdrawal. All assumptions of linearity, normality, homoscedasticity, and multicollinearity were verified prior to regression analysis.

Findings: Pearson correlation results showed that social withdrawal was significantly and positively correlated with both cyberbullying exposure (r = .41, p < .01) and rejection sensitivity (r = .52, p < .01). The regression model was statistically significant, F(2, 421) = 109.72, p < .001, with an R² of .34, indicating that the model explained 34% of the variance in social withdrawal. Both predictors made significant contributions: cyberbullying exposure (B = 0.21, β = .28, t = 5.25, p < .001) and rejection sensitivity (B = 0.17, β = .41, t = 7.88, p < .001).

Conclusion: These findings highlight the significant influence of both cyberbullying exposure and rejection sensitivity on adolescent social withdrawal. Rejection sensitivity emerged as a stronger predictor, suggesting that internal psychological dispositions may amplify the behavioral consequences of external stressors. Intervention programs targeting both online victimization and emotional-cognitive vulnerabilities are essential for mitigating social withdrawal in adolescents.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Ali, S., & Rohner, R. P. (2025). Parental Rejection in Childhood Leads to Interpersonal Rejection Sensitivity in Adulthood. 153-162. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003441243-10

Andrews, J. L., Khin, A. C., Crayn, T., Humphreys, K., & Schweizer, S. (2022). Measuring Online and Offline Social Rejection Sensitivity in the Digital Age. Psychological assessment, 34(8), 742-751. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0001136

Balaya, M., & Sündermann, O. (2024). The Roles of Appearance-Based Rejection Sensitivity and Race-Based Rejection Sensitivity in Body Dysmorphic Symptoms. Asia Pacific Journal of Counselling and Psychotherapy, 15(1), 16-31. https://doi.org/10.1080/21507686.2024.2363784

Bondü, R., Bilgin, A., & Warschburger, P. (2020). Justice Sensitivity and Rejection Sensitivity as Predictors and Outcomes of Eating Disorder Pathology: A 5‐year Longitudinal Study. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 53(6), 926-936. https://doi.org/10.1002/eat.23273

Charoensukmongkol, P. (2023). The Interaction of Organizational Politics and Political Skill On employees' Exposure To workplace Cyberbullying: The conservation of Resources Theory Perspective. Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Administration, 16(4), 940-957. https://doi.org/10.1108/apjba-08-2022-0364

Denehey, A. M. (2023). Behavioural Reactions to Rejection: The Respective Influence of Attachment and Rejection Sensitivity. https://doi.org/10.26181/21852645.v1

Dorfman, A. (2022). Rejection Sensitivity and Wise Reasoning. https://doi.org/10.17605/osf.io/ftzjx

Dorfman, A., Oakes, H., & Grossmann, I. (2020). Rejection Sensitivity Hurts Your Open Mind: Rejection Sensitivity and Wisdom in Workplace Conflicts. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2020(1), 20479. https://doi.org/10.5465/ambpp.2020.20479abstract

Gong, P., Li, X., Yang, Y., Yang, Y., Xue, M., & Zhang, M. (2024). The Influence of Testosterone on Rejection Sensitivity: Insights From Salivary Testosterone Levels and Genetic Polymorphisms. Journal of Pacific Rim Psychology, 18. https://doi.org/10.1177/18344909241254499

Hafner, N., Pepping, C. A., & Wertheim, E. H. (2019). Dispositional Mindfulness, Rejection Sensitivity, and Behavioural Responses to Rejection: The Role of Emotion Regulation. Australian Journal of Psychology, 71(2), 163-170. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajpy.12224

Jiang, Y., Ren, Y., Liu, T., & You, J. (2020). Rejection Sensitivity and Adolescent Non‐suicidal Self‐injury: Mediation Through Depressive Symptoms and Moderation by Fear of Self‐compassion. Psychology and Psychotherapy Theory Research and Practice, 94(S2), 481-496. https://doi.org/10.1111/papt.12293

Kraines, M. A., Kelberer, L. J., & Wells, T. T. (2018). Rejection Sensitivity, Interpersonal Rejection, and Attention for Emotional Facial Expressions. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 59, 31-39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbtep.2017.11.004

Kuai, S. (2024). The Effect of Violent Online Games Exposure on Chinese Teenagers’ Cyberbullying: The Mediation Role of Cognitive Empathy and Affective Empathy. International Journal of Academic Research in Progressive Education and Development, 13(2). https://doi.org/10.6007/ijarped/v13-i2/21095

Li, A., & Junyan, Z. (2022). A Review on Rejection Sensitivity. Psychology of China, 4(1), 82-91. https://doi.org/10.35534/pc.0401011

Mishra, M., Reis, S., & Allen, M. S. (2024). Predicting Relationship Outcomes From Rejection Sensitivity in Romantic Couples: Testing Actor and Partner Effects. Current Psychology, 43(36), 29095-29107. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-024-06431-5

Murphy, R. (2019). Adverse Personality Traits as Predictors of Rejection Sensitivity to Romantic Rejection. https://doi.org/10.13140/rg.2.2.26631.55206

Richter, M., & Schoebi, D. (2021). Rejection Sensitivity in Intimate Relationships. Zeitschrift Für Psychologie, 229(3), 165-170. https://doi.org/10.1027/2151-2604/a000448

Shin, J., Han, K. S., & Shin, H. J. (2024). Rejection Sensitivity: A Concept Analysis. Journal of Korean Academy of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing, 33(3), 253-261. https://doi.org/10.12934/jkpmhn.2024.33.3.253

Sigler, S. (2024). Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria. 374-374. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003464891-68

Vatansever, Z. A., Astar, M., Cömert, I. T., Ibrahim, I., & Başer, İ. G. (2023). Cyberbullying Perpetration in Adolescence in Terms of Exposure to Cyberbullying Levels. https://doi.org/10.36315/2023inpact019

Zhang, Y. (2024). The Influence of Media Violence Exposure on Cyberbullying Among Adolescents: The Mediating Role of Parental Monitoring. Hc, 1(10). https://doi.org/10.61173/69a8wm57