The Effect of Cyberbullying Victimization on Perception of Societal Safety: Exploring the Mechanism through Two Factors of Self-Esteem and Internalized Homophobia Among South Korean LGB Individuals

Background and Purpose: In Korean society, homosexuality is culturally sanctioned, and individuals attracted to the same sex are routinely exposed to direct and subtle forms of violence in their daily lives. Bullying towards these individuals often occurs in virtual cyberspaces, which can diminish personal self-esteem and potentially contribute to internalizing homophobia. In a society marked by various other forms of inequalities, these experiences may interact with other positions LGB individuals occupy. Yet, studies addressing the relationship between their victimization experience and individual/societal-level outcomes are limited. Thus, this study aimed to explore the effect of cyberbullying victimization (CV) on perceptions of safety within Korean society and identify potential mediating pathways of self-esteem and internalized homophobia.

Methods: We utilized a dataset collected from 266 Korean LGB individuals residing in Korea (predominantly aged in their 20s=63.2%, homosexual=66.9%, bisexual=33.1%). CV was measured using the Cyber-Bullying Victimization Scale (11 items; Cronbach’s α=.92) with terms slightly modified to fit experiences related to gender identity/sexual orientation. Additionally, perception of societal safety (PSS) was assessed using a continuous variable ranging from 0 to 10. As mediating variables, individual self-esteem (ISE; 6 items; Cronbach’s α=.67) and collective self-esteem (CSE; 6 items; Cronbach’s α=.70) were used from a validated scale of two factors. The final mediating variable, internalized homophobia, was evaluated employing the developed IHP Scale (IH; 9 items; Cronbach’s α=.85). Ten demographic covariates, such as sexual orientation, age, and level of education, were also included in the model. Process Macro v4.2, bootstrapping with 5,000 samples (p<.05) was utilized for analysis.

Results: The regression analysis showed that the total effect of CV on PSS was significant (β=.04, p<.01), along with several significant direct effects observed for each path between the variables: (a) CV on CSE (β=-.07, p<.001), (b) CV (β=.22, p<.001) and CSE (β=-.38, p<.05) on IH, and (c) IH on PSS (β=.04, p<.05). Nonetheless, the direct effects on the pathway from (1) CV on ISE (β=-.02, p=.335), (2) ISE on IH (β=-.27, p=.117), and (3) CV (β=.02, p=.091), ISE (β=-.03, p=.473), and CSE (β=-.04, p=.414) on PSS were not statistically significant. Regarding the indirect effects, CV significantly influenced PSS mediated by (a) IH (β=.009, 95% CI [.001, .022]) and (b) via CSE to IH (β=.001, 95% CI [.000, .004]).

Conclusions and Implications: The findings suggest that higher levels of CV among Korean LGB people are associated with higher IH and that IH may increase PSS. This may be because the increase in IH may likely function as a mechanism for LGB individuals to separate themselves from the queer community and align with the dominant heteronormative Korean society. Also, the increase in CV based on sexual orientation may not only directly decrease CSE but also affect PSS through CSE and IH. Ultimately, the results imply that for marginalized members of society to perceive the system as safe and to prevent the internalization of homophobia and decline of self-esteem, specific measures need to be implemented in online spaces to address discrimination and provide remedies for victimization based on gender/sexual identity.