Relationship and Predictive Contributions of Social Media Literacy, Self-Esteem and Peer Pressure to Cyberbullying among Undergraduates

Over-reliance on digital platforms has made cyberbullying prevalent and a pressing issue within university settings. This study investigates the influence of self-esteem, social media literacy, and peer influence on cyberbullying behaviours among undergraduates in the Federal University Oye-Ekiti. Using a descriptive survey, a stratified sampling strategy was used to select 600 participants from six faculties randomly. Of these, 558 valid replies were obtained and examined. Four standardised instruments were used, and the data obtained were analysed using Pearson product-moment correlation and multiple regression. Cyberbullying exhibited a positive correlation with social media literacy (r=.405, p<.05) and peer pressure (r=.654, p<.05), with a negative correlation with self-esteem (r=-.240, p<.05). The findings further showed that social media literacy, peer pressure, and self-esteem accounted for about 45.5 per cent of the cyberbullying behaviour. Peer pressure was the biggest predictor (β=.574, p<.05), followed by social media literacy (β=.176, p<.05). It is recommended that students should be assisted in managing these issues through the university's provision of specific initiatives such as digital ethics workshops, peer-led awareness campaigns, and strong counselling support.