The correlation of digital addiction with cyberbullying and cyber victimization in secondary school students

While technological tools can make life easier when used correctly, their unconscious use can lead to negative effects such as digital addiction, cyberbullying, and cyber victimization, especially in children. This study aims to determine the levels of digital addiction, cyberbullying, and cyber victimization among secondary school students and to identify the relationships between them. The study group consisted of 1828 students from six middle schools in the central districts of Van Province during the 2023/2024 academic year. A correlational survey model, one of the quantitative research methods, was applied in the study. "Personal Information Form", "RCBI-II: The Second Revision of the Revised Cyber Bullying Inventory" and "Digital Addiction Scale for Children" were used as data collection tools. The data were analyzed using the SPSS 26.0 program. The analysis revealed that the data were normally distributed, so parametric tests were used. The findings revealed that demographic characteristics such as gender, age, grade level, and daily digital environment usage time had significant effects on digital addiction, cyberbullying, and cyber victimization levels. While no correlation was found with parents' employment status, it was determined that the father's level of education was related to cyberbullying. It was observed that digital addiction to tablets and phones increased cyberbullying. The use of digital environments for social media, gaming, shopping, education/research, and entertainment purposes increases both digital addiction and the risk of cyberbullying/victimization, while communication-related use is only associated with cyberbullying and cyber victimization. Students' levels of digital addiction, cyberbullying, and cyber victimization were generally found to be low. Additionally, it was determined that digital addiction significantly predicts cyberbullying and cyber victimization. However, it was concluded that there is a moderate, positive, and significant relationship between cyberbullying and cyber victimization levels. The findings were discussed, and recommendations were presented.