Teacher and peer support and adolescent mental health and well-being in the context of cyberbullying victimization: a cross-national multilevel study

Cyberbullying victimization is associated with adverse adolescent mental health and well-being outcomes, but less is known about how individual- and country-level interpersonal support relate to these associations across national contexts. This study examined associations between cyberbullying victimization, teacher support, peer support, and three complementary outcomes: life satisfaction, psychological symptoms, and somatic symptoms. Data were drawn from 183,928 adolescents from 42 countries participating in the 2017/2018 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children survey. A pooled confirmatory factor analysis and internal consistency analyses were used to assess the support measures; formal cross-national measurement invariance was not tested. Multilevel mixed-effects models were estimated to account for clustering across countries, schools, and classroom/school units, allowing the cyberbullying slope to vary across countries and schools. Individual- and country-average effects were separated using within- and between-country decomposition, with additional individual-level support interactions. Cyberbullying victimization was associated with lower life satisfaction and higher psychological and somatic symptoms. Higher individual teacher and peer support were associated with better outcomes. Country-average teacher and peer support did not significantly moderate the cyberbullying associations. Individual-level teacher and peer support interactions were significant for psychological symptoms, and individual-level peer support also moderated somatic symptoms, although these interactions were not consistent with buffering. Cyberbullying victimization was associated with lower life satisfaction and more frequent psychological and somatic complaints, whereas higher perceived teacher and peer support were associated with more favourable outcomes. Neither country-average teacher support nor country-average peer support provided evidence of cross-level buffering. Significant individual-level interactions were also not consistent with protective buffering. These findings identify perceived interpersonal support as a relevant correlate of adolescent mental health and well-being, without establishing a causal protective effect. Not applicable.