Northern Illinois University
Department of Psychology
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Cyber-bullying and Peer Victimization

Professor Demaray’s research in bullying and victimization is based on the social-ecological model and is focused on develping a deeper understanding of the construct of bullying and peer victimization, including the role of bystanders and cyber-bullying.

In general, Professor Demaray is interested in learning more about the negative outcomes associated with victims of bullying in schools and what factors may buffer negative outcomes for students. Some of Professor Demaray’s recent work has included co-developing, with Professor Kelly Summers, a measure of the individuals involved in bullying, the Bully Participant Role Survey (BPRS; Summers and Demaray, 2008). She also co-developed, with Christina Brown, a measure of cyberbullying and cyber victimization, the Cyberbullying and Victimization Survey (Brown and Demaray, 2010). 

• Bully Participant Role Survey (BPRS; Summers and Demaray, 2008): Professors Demaray and Summers developed the BPRS to aid in classifying the different roles in the bullying situation, including, bully, victim, outsider, defender of the bully and assistant to the bully. Most measures focus solely on the bully and/or the victim. A measure was needed to assess more broadly the participant roles associated with bullying. A manuscript demonstrating the psychometric properties of this measure is currently submitted for publication. Please contact Professor Demaray or Professor Summers for a copy of this measure.
• Cyber-Bullying and Victimization Survey (CBVS; Brown and Demray, 2010). Professor Demaray and her graduate student, Christina Brown, created this measure to assess online bullying and victimization about students. Given cyberbullying is a relatively new phenomenon, the literature lacked a reliable and valid tool of online bullying and victimization. The CBVS has been used in both a middle school and high school sample. A recent publication using this measure has recently been submitted for publication. Please contact Professor Demaray for a copy of this manuscript or the measure.