Developing an Explanatory Model of Cyberostracism and Psychological Adjustment Among Adolescents
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61838/kman.jayps.6357Keywords:
cyberostracism, psychological adjustmentpsychological adjustment, adolescents, social exclusion, being ignored, structural equation modeling, MalaysiaAbstract
Objective: This study aimed to develop and empirically test an explanatory model of cyberostracism and psychological adjustment among Malaysian adolescents, with emphasis on the effects of direct exclusion, indirect exclusion, and being ignored.
Methods and Materials: This quantitative cross-sectional correlational study was conducted among 486 adolescents aged 13–17 years who were recruited from public secondary schools in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Johor, and Penang, Malaysia, using multistage cluster sampling. Data were collected using a demographic information form, the Cyberostracism Scale, and the Brief Adjustment Scale–6. Cyberostracism was conceptualized as a higher-order construct comprising direct exclusion, indirect exclusion, and being ignored, whereas psychological adjustment was modeled as a latent outcome construct. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics and AMOS. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to assess the measurement model, and structural equation modeling was employed to test the explanatory relationships. Model adequacy was evaluated using χ²/df, CFI, TLI, RMSEA, and SRMR.
Findings: The measurement model demonstrated acceptable fit, χ²(189) = 421.36, χ²/df = 2.23, CFI = .953, TLI = .944, RMSEA = .050, and SRMR = .043. Cyberostracism significantly and negatively predicted psychological adjustment, β = −.62, p < .001. Among its dimensions, being ignored had the strongest unique negative effect on psychological adjustment, β = −.35, p < .001, followed by indirect exclusion, β = −.23, p < .001, and direct exclusion, β = −.17, p = .003. Age, β = −.09, p = .020, and daily Internet use, β = −.12, p = .006, were also significant negative predictors, whereas sex was not significant, β = .04, p = .318. The final structural model showed acceptable fit, χ²(201) = 447.81, χ²/df = 2.23, CFI = .948, TLI = .939, RMSEA = .050, and SRMR = .047, and explained 46% of the variance in psychological adjustment.
Conclusion: Cyberostracism represents a significant multidimensional digital interpersonal stressor associated with poorer psychological adjustment among Malaysian adolescents, with being ignored emerging as the most influential dimension; therefore, prevention and intervention efforts should address subtle as well as explicit forms of online exclusion.
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