Research Paper
The International Journal of Indian Psychology
ISSN 2348-5396 (Online) | ISSN: 2349-3429 (Print)
Volume 9, Issue 4, October- December, 2021
DIP: 18.01.132.20210904, DOI: 10.25215/0904.132
http://www.ijip.in
© 2021, Santre S.; licensee IJIP. This is an Open Access Research distributed under the terms of the Creative
Commons Attribution License (www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use,
distribution, and reproduction in any Medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Theory of Empowerment in Female Cyber Victimization
Siriporn Santre
1
*
ABSTRACT
The pervasiveness of digital technology in people’s lives is widely acknowledged, and it is
potential for risky behaviors to be occurred in online. Females have been observed to face
more cyber victimization than males due to the gender issue. Despite the rise in cyber
victimization, research into the theoretical backgrounds of such online behaviors has been
limited, but using the theory of empowerment, the female victim would more accurately pave
a path that could lead to a reduction in the problem. This study provides a brief overview of
the meaning and significance of empowerment theory, concept, and applying theory to
female cyber victimization. During the empowerment process, the victim could be able to
exert more control than the perpetrators, or victims may be able to develop the ability to
change their situations. As a result of employing the empowerment theory, the negative
consequences of cyber victimization can be mitigated.
Keywords: Theory of Empowerment, Women Empowerment, Female, Cyber Victimization
mpowerment is a concept that refers to personal strengths and competencies, natural
helping processes, and proactive social change behaviors (Rappaport, 1984).
Empowerment generally refers to the act of granting power to another, as well as
providing a means of exerting or asserting power as a behavior practiced. The meaning
assumes that the act of power is given upon someone by someone else (Parsons, 1991).
However, it can also refer to the process of assisting individuals, groups, or communities in
increasing their personal, interpersonal, and resilience in the face of difficult situations.
(Gutiérrez, GlenMaye, & DeLois, 1995). Empowerment is more likely to emerge gradually
rather than suddenly (Morton & Crump, 1996). For theory of empowerment include both
process of incremental power among people and the outcome of conversion from powerless
to power. The activities, actions, or structures can be empowering, and the results of such
processes can provide a sense of empowerment (Perkins & Zimmerman, 1995).
Empowerment theory has been revealed in a variety of fields. These include general
psychology, community development, community health, nursing practice, sociology, and
women’s studies (Joseph, 2020). The empowerment process for increasing personal power
focuses on how people can gain a sense of personal power. Individuals can be devastated by
the experience of being powerless, as is common with many victims of violence.
Empowerment can be an outcome due to the results of victim interactions with their
1
College of Public Health Sciences, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
*Corresponding Author
Received: September 27, 2021; Revision Received: December 02, 2021; Accepted: December 20, 2021
E