Objective: To validate the adolescent victimization through mobile phone and internet scale (CYBVIC) through analysis of its psychometric properties.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in which two independent samples of adolescents aged 11-19, both male and female, participated. The first sample was comprised of 1 934 Spanish adolescents, and the second sample, 1 483 Mexican adolescents. An exploratory factor analysis of the scale was done with the first sample and a confirmatory factor analysis with the second. Multigroup and reliability analyses, as well as an analysis of the correlation of the scale's dimensions with various external variables related to psychological adjustment (depressive symptomatology, perceived stress, loneliness, satisfaction with life, and traditional victimization), were also conducted. Results. Two factors, called cybmóvil [cyber mobile] and cybinternet [cyber internet], were found, which together explained 52% of the variance. These factors were consistent with the original hypothesis. The confirmatory factor analysis showed the model's adequate fit to two correlated factors. The data indicated the factorial invariance of the questionnaire between the Spanish and Mexican samples. The reliability analysis confirmed that the scale has sufficient internal consistency. Significant correlations were found between the cybmóvil/cybinternet factors and the external variables with which they were related.
Conclusions: The CYBVIC scale has adequate psychometric properties and can be used as a valid and reliable measure in new research, which could expand knowledge about the growing international problem of cyberbullying among adolescents.