Validation of Attitudes and Behavioral Intentions of Cyberbullying Witnesses Questionnaire: Exploring Mechanisms of Intention in the Relationship Between Attitudes and Perpetration

Abstract

The role of witnesses is central to understanding and preventing cyberbullying, yet tools for measuring their attitudes and intentions remain limited. This study aimed to: (1) validate the Attitudes toward Witnesses’ Actions questionnaire, (2) validate a new instrument designed to measure the Behavioral Intentions of Cyberbullying Witnesses (BICW), and (3) examine whether witnesses’ cyberbullying intentions mediate the relationship between their attitudes and cyberbullying perpetration. A total of 1,156 adolescents (M_age = 14.39, SD = 1.65; girls = 54.30%) participated in this longitudinal study by completing self-report questionnaires across three waves. Both exploratory and confirmatory analyses were conducted to evaluate the structure of the instruments. Exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM) and bifactor analyses were applied to the Attitudes toward Witnesses’ Actions questionnaire, while path analysis was used to examine the mediating role of intentions in the relationship between attitudes and cyberbullying perpetration. The findings supported a bifactor ESEM model for the Attitudes toward Witnesses’ Actions questionnaire, identifying a total score and five different factors. For the BICW questionnaire, factor analysis supported a unidimensional structure. Both instruments demonstrated adequate psychometric properties. Although witnesses’ attitudes, intentions, and perpetration were correlated, cyberbullying intentions did not mediate the relationship between attitudes and cyberbullying perpetration. This study provides validated tools for assessing witnesses’ attitudes and intentions in cyberbullying contexts, offering critical insights for clinical practice. These tools can facilitate the promotion of provictim behaviors and inform the development of interventions targeting attitudinal changes to prevent cyberbullying.

Keywords

behavioral intentions of cyberbullying witnesses witnesses’ cyberbullying attitudes cyberbullying perpetration validation mediational effect

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