This study proposes and tests a moderated mediation model to explore the relationship between Internet altruistic motivation (IAM) and Internet altruistic behavior (IAB), as well as its underlying and conditional mechanisms. A total of 324 Chinese college students (
M
age = 20.31 years,
SD
age = 1.38; 165 females) completed a questionnaire consisting of the IAM Questionnaire, IAB Scale, Mehrabian Trait Empathy Scale and Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Results indicated that IAM was positively correlated with IAB (
r
= 0.44,
p
< 0.001), and self-esteem played a partial mediating role between IAM and IAB. In addition, empathy moderated the relationship between IAM and self-esteem as well as that between IAM and IAB. Specifically, the higher the individual’s empathy, the stronger the predictive effect of IAM on IAB and self-esteem. The findings can deepen understanding of how and when IAM promotes IAB.
Childhood experiences have an important effect on mobile phone addiction, but the relationship between positive childhood experiences and mobile phone addiction and its underlying mechanisms should be explored further. This study aims to explore a model linking early memories of warmth and safeness to mobile phone addiction via the mediating role of alexithymia and moderating role of negative coping styles. A total of 379 Chinese college students ( Mage = 19.80 years, SD = 1.38; 240 females) completed a questionnaire consisting of the Early Memories of Warmth and Safeness Scale, Toronto Alexithymia Scale, Mobile Phone Addiction Scale, and Negative Coping Styles Scale. Results indicate that early memories of warmth and safeness are negatively correlated with mobile phone addiction, and alexithymia plays a mediating role in the link between early memories of warmth and safeness and mobile phone addiction. In addition, negative coping styles significantly moderate the relationship between early memories of warmth and safeness and alexithymia, specifically, the negative association between early memories of warmth and safeness and alexithymia is highly significant at high (vs. low) negative coping styles levels. The findings suggest that early memories of warmth and safeness are an important protective factor against mobile phone addiction, which enrich the literature on mobile phone addiction and provide empirical support for the prevention of mobile phone addiction.
Background:
The development of mobile Internet technology has brought great changes and convenience in our daily life. However, it has also arisen a series of mental health problems, especially problematic mobile phone use (PMPU).
Objective:
This study aimed to explore the relationship between social exclusion and PMPU among Chinese college students, as well as the mediating role of basic psychological needs satisfaction (BPNS).
Method:
We recruited a total of 340 participants (mean age 19.71, 44.7% males) from a university in China by convenience sampling. All of them completed the self-report tests of the Social Exclusion Scale, BPNS Scale and Mobile Phone Addiction Index Scale. Data analysis was performed in SPSS 23.0, using the PROCESS macro to examine the mediating effect.
Results:
Social exclusion was significantly positively correlated with PMPU (r = 0.22, p < 0.001), and significantly negatively correlated with BPNS (r = –0.66, p < 0.001), and BPNS was significantly negatively correlated with PMPU (r = –0.24, p < 0.001). BPNS played a mediating role in the relationship between social exclusion and PMPU. In addition, autonomy needs and competence needs mediated the link of such a relationship, whereas the mediating role of relatedness needs was not significant.
Conclusions:
Results showed that social exclusion was closely related to PMPU, and social exclusion affected PMPU through BPNS. These findings underline the important role of social relationship and BPNS on adolescents’ PMPU.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.