The effect of relative deprivation on Online aggressive behavior: the chain-mediated role of just-world beliefs and sense of control

This study surveyed 1,522 college students (M = 21.13, SD = 2.18) from four universities in Jilin Province,China.Results showed that relative deprivation negatively correlated with just-world beliefs (r = -0.111, p < 0.01) and sense of control (r = -0.617, p < 0.01),and positively with online aggressive behavior (r = 0.285, p < 0.01).Just-world beliefs positively correlated with sense of control (r = 0.366, p < 0.01) and negatively with online aggressive behavior (r = -0.290, p < 0.01).

Sense of control negatively correlated with online aggressive behavior (r = -0.293, p < 0.01).Both just-world beliefs and sense of control mediated the relationship between relative deprivation and online aggressive behavior,with chain mediation effect values of 0.07, 0.12, and 0.007.