Cyberbullying, Digital Victimisation and Suicidality Among Adolescents and Sexual and Gender Minority Populations: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Debayan Mandal, Roshan Sutar, Ashish Pakhre, Vijender Singh, Amit AgrawalBackground
Cybersuicide refers to suicidal behaviour influenced by online activities, particularly cyberbullying and cyber-victimisation. Digital harassment is strongly linked to mental health problems that can precipitate suicidal ideation and attempts, especially among adolescents, who experience multiple forms of online abuse leading to depression, anxiety and stress. Gender minority populations may face greater risk due to minority stress and disproportionate online harassment. A comprehensive review is needed to understand this emerging public health challenge and inform targeted prevention and mental health interventions.
Summary
A systematic search following PRISMA guidelines was conducted on 17 March 2025 across PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect and Cochrane CENTRAL after registering protocol on PROSPERO (CRD420251061647). Of 400 studies identified, 21 involved adolescents, youth or university students, and 7 examined gender minority populations. The pooled odds ratio for the association between cyberbullying and suicidality across 9 studies was 3.22 (95% CI: 1.9–5.5;
Key Message
Cyberbullying is a consistent risk factor for suicidal behaviour, amplified by depression, minority stress and low social support. Strengthening digital literacy, integrating cyberbullying prevention into adolescent mental health programmes and implementing inclusive online monitoring protocols are essential to mitigate these risks.