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Author(s): J. Ortega-Barón [sup.1] , J. M. Machimbarrena [sup.2] , I. Montiel [sup.1] , J. González-Cabrera [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.13825.3d, 0000 0004 0458 0356, Faculty of Education, Universidad Internacional [...], In recent years, viral challenges on the Internet have become a very frequent phenomenon. These allude to the actions that are proposed to Internet users to record themselves performing a challenge and disseminate it on different online platforms so that other users will also perform it. Despite its rapid expansion, there is no evidence of any validated assessment tool of this phenomenon. To meet this need, the Viral Internet Challenges Scale (VICH-S) was designed. The main objective of this study was to establish the psychometric properties of this scale, the prevalence of different types of challenges (social, solidary, and dangerous), as well as the single or conjoint performance of these types of challenges using the VICH-S. Furthermore, the construct validity of the scale was tested with these variables: Fear of Missing Out, Loss of Connection (nomophobia), Self-Online, and Emotional Attention Online. Participants were 417 preadolescents (41.2% boys) with age ranging from 10 to 14 years. Exploratory factor analysis of the VICH-S scale revealed the existence of two factors: Challenge Satisfaction and Social Motivation. Convergent validity indicators showed positive and significant correlations between these two dimensions and the Fear of Missing Out, Loss of Connection (nomophobia), Self-Online, and Emotional Attention Online. The most frequent challenges were social challenges (80.3%), followed by solidary (20.6%) and dangerous challenges (7.7%). This study has relevant implications, as the VICH-S presents adequate psychometric properties to evaluate this barely explored and growing phenomenon of viral challenges on the Internet in preadolescence.

For the Z-Generation, the Internet has become a very important experimentation laboratory for the discovery and validation of their identity. Despite the importance of the process of building the self in the adolescent, there are hardly any validated instruments that measure the self online. The aim of this research was to design and validate the Brief Self Online Scale (SO-8). A total of 843 students (384 boys, 45.6%), with an age range of 10 to 14 years participated. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) confirmed the hypothesized model of two correlated factors (Online Self-Perception and Online Idealized Projection), previously obtained through exploratory factor analysis (EFA). The reliability coefficients of Self Online dimensions were adequate. Indicators of convergent validity were obtained, finding significant correlations with self-concept, problematic Internet use, and online emotional intelligence. The SO-8 has adequate psychometric properties to be considered a reliable and valid tool to measure the construct of the Self Online in adolescents.

Numerous cross-sectional studies have linked health-related quality of life (HRQoL) with peer victimization, but evidence of how this relationship may change over time is lacking. The main objectives of this study were to analyze the prevalence, incidence, and stability of peer victimization and to longitudinally relate peer victimization to HRQoL. A longitudinal study was designed and implemented at three separate time points over a 13-month period. The study involved 1,155 adolescents (43.5% boys; n = 503) aged between 11 and 18 years. The prevalence of victimization for each wave was, respectively, 32.4%, 25.9%, and 23.7%, with a period prevalence of 48.5% and a cumulative incidence of 25%. Eight percent of the victims were stable victims across the three waves. The most frequent type of victimization was direct verbal victimization. Peer victimization correlated significantly across the three waves (r > 0.40; p < 0.001), as did HRQoL (r > 0.50; p < 0.001). Stable victims showed the lowest HRQoL scores. There were no statistically significant differences in HRQoL among new victims, ceased victims, and intermittent victims, but all of them presented lower HRQoLs than non-victims (p < 0.001). In conclusion, this manuscript presents a unique approach to peer victimization through an epidemiological perspective and provides evidence that stable victims experience the greatest loss of HRQoL.

Bullying is a worrisome reality due to its harmful consequences. Although many constructs have been associated with bullying victimization and aggressive behavior, its relationship both with loneliness and personality has received little attention. The main objective of this study is to identify differences in bullying victimization and aggressive behavior scores based on a typology of personality and loneliness profiles. Six hundred and four middle school students (54% female) from the province of León (Spain), aged between 12 and 15 (M[subscript age] = 13.3 ± 1.12), completed the Eysenck Junior Personality Inventory, the Loneliness Scales, the Bullying Victimization Scale, and the Short Aggression Questionnaire. Correlations, linear regressions, and latent profile analysis (LPA) were performed. Age ([beta] = - 0.90, p < 0.001), peer loneliness ([beta] = 0.70, p < 0.001), isolation ([beta] = 0.18, p < 0.001), neuroticism ([beta] = 0.06, p = 0.048), and psychoticism ([beta] = 0.06, p = 0.026) predicted bullying victimization. Moreover, the LPA distinguished five distinct profiles based on the loneliness and personality subscales. The disruptive and peer-alienated profiles obtained the highest scores in bullying victimization, and the former also had the highest aggression scores. Loneliness and personality are closely linked to victimization and aggressive behavior. It is crucial for health and school communities to identify and address these vulnerabilities for the prevention of bullying victimization and aggression.

The aim of this study was to assess the conceptual and operational descriptions of negative social networking site (SNS) use in adolescents. A search was conducted among four databases, following the guidelines set forth in the PRISMA-ScR. The search resulted in 1503 articles, of which 112 met the inclusion criteria. The results showed that the negative use of SNS has been conceptualised from two approaches: (1) the component model of addiction and (2) a cognitive-behavioural problematic use paradigm. Thirty-seven instruments assessing this problem were found, with the Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale and its adaptations being the most widely used ones. These instruments dimensions were vaguely defined and often overlapped with one another. In conclusion, no standardised theoretical framework exists to assess negative SNS use in adolescents. This lack of a theoretical definition makes it difficult to compare results among studies and determine the true extent of the problem., (Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)