Cyberbullying and Fan Identity in the Online K-Pop Fan Community

abstract: K-pop has become popular around the world, with over tens of millions of fans on Twitter. Little research has examined cyberbullying in online fan communities. This thesis study aims to examine (a) the pervasiveness of cyberbullying in the K-Pop fan community on Twitter, (b) the differences in how victims and witnesses of cyberbullying in the K-pop fandom respond to cyberbullying, and (c) how one’s identity as a fan factors into one’s response to cyberbullying. An online survey was sent out to 201 participants of K-pop fan community on Twitter, all of these participants were 18 years old or above. Participants reported their own experiences with cyberbullying and the extent to which they identify as a fan of K-pop. Findings show that (i) cyberbullying among adult members in the K-pop community was at least as prevalent as cyberbullying in children populations; (ii) no significant difference was found in how victims and witnesses were affected by cyberbullying as measured by the Center of Epidemiological Studies Depression scale; and (iii) fan identity and witness depression levels while witnessing cyberbullying were significantly related. Notably, victims had significantly stronger identification with the K-pop fan community than witnesses as measured by the Inclusion of Others in the Self scale and the Collective Self-Esteem scale. Victims were significantly less depressed at the time they took the survey than when they were cyberbullied, suggesting that victims might have recovered from their experiences with cyberbullying. Together, the findings of this study may inform future research, especially when addressing cyberbullying in adults and cyberbullying within fandoms