Logo image
Back
Gender differences in brain activity when exposed to cyberbullying: Associations between wellbeing and cyberbullying experience using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Gender differences in brain activity when exposed to cyberbullying: Associations between wellbeing and cyberbullying experience using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Larisa McLoughlin, Zack Shan, Abdalla Z Mohamed, Amanda Boyes, Christina Driver, Jim Lagopoulos and Daniel F Hermens
Current Research in Neurobiology, Vol.3, pp.1-8
2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crneur.2022.100054
PMCID: PMC9743052
PMID: 36518336
Appears in  Thompson Institute Research Collection
pdf
Gender differences in brain activity when exposed to cyberbullying- Associations between wellbeing and cyberbullying experience using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging2.71 MBDownloadView
Published Version Open Access CC BY-NC-ND V4.0
url
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crneur.2022.100054View
Published Version

Abstract

cyberbullying functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) cyberbullying picture series (CyPicS) neurobiology gender wellbeing Youth mental health Neuroimaging Thompson Institute Special Collection UniSC Diversity Area - Gender Equity UniSC Diversity Area - Life Stages
The role of gender and the associated brain activation when witnessing cyberbullying requires investigation. The current study aimed to determine whether brain responses to cyberbullying differ according to gender and level of wellbeing. We hypothesised that females and males would activate different regions of the brain when witnessing cyberbullying, and that this would be influenced by wellbeing levels and prior cyberbullying experiences. Blood-oxygenation-level-dependent (BOLD) responses were examined in participants (N = 32, aged 18–25 years; 66% female) whilst observing cyberbullying versus neutral stimuli during a functional MRI. Results revealed significant correlations between BOLD signal and achievement scores among males, but not females, with previous experiences of cyberbullying, in regions including the cerebellum, the superior and inferior frontal gyrus, and the precuneus. Furthermore, males who previously cyberbullied others, with higher scores in achievement (a wellbeing sub-category), activated brain regions associated with executive function, social cognition, and self-evaluation, when viewing the cyberbullying stimuli. In addition, despite gender, BOLD signal in the cingulate gyrus was negatively correlated with cyberbullying scores, and BOLD signal in the left dorsal caudate and the cerebellum was independently and positively correlated with achievement scores. Taken together, these findings provide insights into brain responses to cyberbullying scenarios and emphasize that there are some significant variations according to gender. The overall finding that males activated brain regions linked to varying aspects of cognition, whereas females more often activated regions linked to emotion processing and empathy is important for future research in this area.

Details

Metrics

212 File views/ downloads
52 Record Views
Logo image