The impact of social anxiety, social skills, and cyber bullying on online communication

Abstract

This study relates to an analysis of the impact of social anxiety, social skills, and cyber bullying on online communication. Online communication included elements related to the time elapsed, the platforms used, the people they interact with and the reasons for connecting to the network. Social anxiety was assessed using the Revised Children's Social Anxiety Scale, social skills using the Mattson Questionnaire subscale, and online victimization using the Internet Vulnerability Scale. The results showed that the group with high social skills and low anxiety spent more time communicating online and used more instant messaging to talk to friends. In contrast, the online behavior of the group with high social anxiety and low skills are more motivated by the desire to make friends. Victims of cyber bullying spend more time online, use chat rooms more and communicate more with strangers. These findings suggest that despite the risks, the Internet also makes it possible to maintain and expand the existing social network.