title: The Development and Psychometric Investigation of the Cyberbullying Scale.
abstract: Accurate assessment of cyberbullying is essential for intervention planning and evaluation. Limitations to many currently available self-report measures of cyberbullying victimization include a lack of psychometric information and a limited scope (i.e., not assessing multiple electronic mediums of cybervictimization). To address these limitations, we developed and investigated the psychometric properties of a broad self-report measure of cyberbullying, the Cyberbullying Scale (CBS). We examined the factor structure and reliability of the CBS across 736 students in Grades 6 to 12 in six Northern Mississippi schools. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) results indicated that the structure of the CBS was best represented by a one-factor model. The finding of a single-factor structure suggests that cyberbullying is a unidimensional construct, which is consistent with previous research. In the current sample, the CBS demonstrated strong psychometric properties, including excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's α = .94) and significant positive correlations with related constructs of anxiety, depression, and loneliness. Results from the present study provide initial support for the CBS as a measure of cybervictimization among adolescents.
authors.affiliation: University of Mississippi, University, USA rstewart@go.olemiss.edu.
authors.forename: Regan W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Stewart
authors.affiliation: University of Mississippi, University, USA.
authors.forename: Christopher F
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Drescher
authors.affiliation: University of Mississippi, University, USA.
authors.forename: Danielle J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Maack
authors.affiliation: Duksung University, Seoul, South Korea.
authors.forename: Chad
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ebesutani
authors.affiliation: University of Mississippi, University, USA.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Young
keywords: cyberbullying; factor analysis; instrument development