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KiS baner

Vol. 70 No. 3 (2026)

Articles and essays

Peer Rejection in Digital Communication: Between Cyberostracism and Exclusion as a Form of Cyberbullying

DOI: https://doi.org/10.35757/KiS.2026.70.3.6
Submitted: January 21, 2026
Published: September 22, 2026

Abstract

The article examines mechanisms of peer rejection experienced by children aged 10–12 in digital communication. Peer rejection is treated as a broad relational process involving loss of acceptance, omission and weakened group belonging. Exclusion is defined more narrowly as intentionally denying access to or removing a person from an online group; when intentionality, repetition or persistent exposure and a power imbalance are present, it may constitute cyberbullying. However, not every experience of rejection or cyberostracism meets these criteria. The qualitative, exploratory-interpretive study involved 60 semi-structured inter-views, selected excerpts from digital communication and four focus groups. Participants were purposively selected after a screening survey in five primary schools in the Silesian Voivodeship (N = 220). The analysis drew on constructivist grounded theory and the constant comparative method. Three phases were identified: an initiating digital act; the interpretation and internalisation of rejection; and coping strategies. The most frequent practices were informational exclusion, non-invitation to subgroups, systematic ignoring and removal from online conversations. Messaging affordances increased the visibility, persistence and verifiability of rejection, while bystander silence was often read as social legitimisation. The findings support the inclusion of online peer relations in school-based prevention, assessment and intervention.

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