Cyberbullying has become a common occurrence among adolescents worldwide; however, it has yet to receive adequate scholarly attention in China, especially in the mainland. The present study investigated the epidemiological characteristics and risk factors of cyberbullying, utilizing a sample of 1,438 high school students from central China. Findings revealed that cyberbullying among high school students in the heartland of central China is relatively common with 34.84% (N = 501) of participants reported having bullied someone and 56.88% (N = 818) reported having been bullied by online. Significant gender differences were found, suggesting that boys are more likely to be involved in cyberbullying both as perpetrators and victims. Students with lower academic achievement were more likely to be perpetrators online than were students with better academic achievement. Students who spend more time on online, have access to the internet in their bedrooms, have themselves experienced traditional bullying as victims, and are frequently involved in instant-messaging and other forms of online entertainment are more likely to experience cyberbullying. Increased parent and teacher supervision reduced students’ involvement in cyberbullying. Implications for intervention are explored.

With China’s rapidly developing economy and increasing urbanization, many adults from rural areas migrate to urban areas for better paid jobs. A side effect of this migration is that parents frequently leave their children behind (left-behind children). This research investigated left-behind children’s and non-left-behind children’s psychological, behavioral, and educational functioning. Survey participants included 1,708 adolescents (54.8% female; mean age = 15.03 ± 1.93 years) from rural areas in Central China. Additionally, 32 left-behind children and 32 head teachers were interviewed. Data indicated that in comparison to non-left-behind children, left-behind children were at a disadvantage in regard to emotional adjustment (i.e. lower life satisfaction, lower self-esteem, and higher depression), but fared better in educational adjustment (greater school engagement). Mitigating factors which positively influenced outcomes of certain subgroups of left-behind children included the presence of one parent, increased parental contact, and shorter length of time since parental migration. Information gathered from interviews with LBC also indicated adverse effects of parent absence on children’s development. Teachers identified education measures and support offered to left-behind children and reported difficulties in communicating with parents. Based on this study’s findings, and considering the perspective of educators, implications for school-based interventions are explored.