Family cohesion and adaptability reduces mobile phone addiction: the mediating and moderating roles of automatic thoughts and peer attachment

The impact of smartphone addiction on mental health and its relationship with life satisfaction in the post-COVID-19 era

Following the COVID-19 outbreak, smartphone usage among quarantined Chinese college students surged significantly, leading to a growing dependency on their devices and adversely impacting their emotional well-being. Consequently, the negative emotions associated with smartphone addiction have emerged as critical factors influencing students' life satisfaction. However, the psychological mechanisms linking these emotional effects to life satisfaction, as well as potential sustainable educational interventions, remain insufficiently explored. This study assessed a sample of 322 undergraduates (51.6% male) using the Mobile Phone Addiction Index (MPAI), the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21), and the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) to construct a mediation model. The aim was to examine the relationships between smartphone addiction, negative emotions, and life satisfaction. Results revealed that smartphone addiction was significantly positively correlated with negative emotions (r = 0.332, p < 0.01), while negative emotions were significantly negatively correlated with life satisfaction (r = -0.391, p < 0.01). Among these negative emotions, depression emerged as a key factor, intensifying smartphone dependence and detrimentally affecting overall life satisfaction. The mediation analysis demonstrated that smartphone addiction contributes to the development of negative emotions, which in turn reduce life satisfaction. Students with higher levels of smartphone addiction reported heightened negative emotions, leading to more pessimistic coping strategies and, ultimately, a decline in mental health and life satisfaction. This study provides valuable insights into the impact of smartphone addiction on college students' life satisfaction and offers actionable educational recommendations to mitigate its harmful effects, promoting healthier and more sustainable lifestyles for students.

Prevalence, Risk Factors, and Relevant Consequences of Mobile Phone Dependence Among Middle School Students - Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province, China, 2023

What is already known about this topic?

The risk factors for mobile phone dependence (MPD) remain inconsistent and debated in the literature. Previous studies in China reported MPD prevalence rates of 26.2% among junior high students and 27.9% among senior high students in 2012. A 2021 study in Guangzhou City found a prevalence of 13.5% among first-year senior high students.

What is added by this report?

This study reveals that the overall MPD prevalence among middle school students in Guangzhou was 10.0% in 2023, with distinct rates between junior high (7.3%) and senior high (12.4%) students. The research identifies key risk factors for MPD development and documents injury patterns associated with excessive phone use.

What are the implications for public health practice?

These findings provide an evidence base for developing targeted interventions to reduce both MPD occurrence and associated injuries among middle school students.

Mobile phone dependence among Chinese university students: the contribution of irrational beliefs and solitude

This research aimed to explore the impact of selected psychological variables on mobile phone dependence among Chinese university students. Specifically, the study focused on the relationship between solitude and irrational beliefs on mobile phone dependence. The study included 2,888 university students from Guangdong, Southern China, and found that both irrational beliefs and solitude had significant direct effects on mobile phone dependence. The study also revealed that solitude mediated the relationship between irrational beliefs and mobile phone dependence. The results of this study indicate that psychosocial environments, including feelings of solitude and irrational beliefs, can influence mobile phone dependence among undergraduate students. Therefore, it is important to pay attention to these factors and their potential impact on student behavior, particularly when it comes to academic growth and development. Further research in this area may help identify effective strategies to address mobile phone dependence among university students and promote healthier psychosocial environments.

Examining the association of family environment and children emotional/behavioral difficulties in the relationship between parental anxiety and internet addiction in youth

Introduction

Associations between parental anxiety and adolescent internet addiction have been documented in the literature; however, few studies have analyzed the role of the family environment in this relationship. This study aims to explore the relationship between parental anxiety and adolescent internet addiction while also investigating the indirect relationships involving multiple dimensions of the family environment and child emotional behavior issues.

Methods

Surveys were conducted among 6,296 parent-child pairs. We administered SDQ, CIAS-R, and FES-CV to assess adolescents' issues and internet addiction, and evaluate family environment. Additionally, parents completed GAD-7 to assess parental anxiety levels.Results: Correlation analysis revealed that the family environment and adolescent emotional behavior issues played an indirect relationship in the link between parental anxiety and internet addiction.

Discussion

The findings emphasize the importance of addressing parental anxiety and fostering a positive family environment as effective measures to alleviate adolescent emotional behavior problems and reduce the risk of internet addiction.

Mobile phone addiction and academic burnout: the mediating role of technology conflict and the protective role of mindfulness

With the rapid development of Internet technology, more and more college students are facing the threat of mobile phone addiction. However, the relationship and underlying mechanism between mobile phone addiction and academic burnout haven't been explored in depth. This study proves the mediating role of technology conflict and the moderating role of mindfulness in the relation between mobile phone addiction and academic burnout. 752 college students were recruited to complete the questionnaire of mobile phone addiction, technology conflict, mindfulness and academic burnout. Results showed that mobile phone addiction was significantly and positively associated with academic burnout, and this relationship could be mediated by technology conflict. Besides, the direct effect of mobile phone addiction on academic burnout and the indirect effect of technology conflict in this link were moderated by mindfulness. Both these two effects are stronger for college students with lower level of mindfulness. Our findings enrich our understanding of how and when mobile phone addiction was related to academic burnout. Educational professionals and parents should take timely measure to the academic burnout of college students suffering from mobile phone addiction, particularly for those with lower level of mindfulness.

Understanding Perceived Problematic Pornography Use with the Differential Susceptibility to Media Effects Model

Problematic pornography use and its adverse consequences are prevalent, but little is known about its psychosocial contributors. Drawing on the Differential Susceptibility to Media Effects Model (DSMM), this study explores whether and how perceived problematic Internet pornography use is associated with psychological factors from three domains: social (i.e., family adaptability), dispositional (i.e., self-acceptance), and development factors (i.e., impulse control difficulties). Analysis of an anonymous survey of 1,483 Chinese emerging adults showed that family adaptability and self-acceptance were negatively correlated with perceived problematic pornography use, whereas impulse control difficulties were positively correlated with perceived problematic pornography use. Self-acceptance mediated the association between family adaptability and perceived problematic pornography use. Impulse control difficulties moderated such mediation effect, in which the protective effect of family adaptability on self-acceptance and that of self-acceptance on perceived problematic pornography use were attenuated by impulse control difficulties. These findings advance understanding of the complex underlying psychosocial mechanisms of perceived problematic pornography use by providing evidence to the applicability of DSMM on such problematic use and clarifying the direct, indirect, and/or moderating role(s) of family adaptability, self-acceptance, and impulse control difficulties in those mechanisms. They also provide insights for targeted approaches in future intervention programs among emerging adults.