Executive Functions and Problematic Internet Use among University Students: The Mediator Role of Self-Esteem

Pichardo, Carmen; López, Miriam Romero; Ruiz-Durán, Alba; García-Berbén, Trinidad

doi:10.3390/su131911003

Cited by 10 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 45 publications

(61 reference statements)

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“…There is evidence on the relationship between goal setting and the promotion of autonomy support in physical education lessons, producing positive effects on leisure-time physical activity-related cognition [ 10 ]. According to Pichardo et al [ 11 ], emotional control is one the variables with the most direct effects on PTU . Some studies found that low levels of emotional regulation or impulsive behaviors were related to PTU [ 12 ], or to intensive mobile phone use [ 13 , 14 ].…”

Section: Executive Functions: Goal Setting and Inhibitory Controlmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Leisure time activities in adolescents predict problematic technology use

Ibabe

Albertos

Burgo

2023

Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry

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The problematic use of technology of children and adolescents is becoming a growing problem. Research has shown that excessive technology use predicts a variety of psychological and physical health problems. The aim of this study was to analyze the role of leisure time activities (structured and unstructured) in adolescents as a predictor of problematic technology use. Participants were 7723 adolescents, of which 55% were girls, from four Spanish-speaking countries (Chile, Spain, Mexico, and Peru) between the ages of 13 and 18 years. The evaluation instrument applied was the YOURLIFE project self-report questionnaire. Two executive functions were measured: goal setting and inhibitory control. Using structural equation modeling, findings indicated that structured leisure time activities predicted less PTU, whereas unstructured activities predicted more PTU, MLχ2 (69, N = 7723) = 806.60; CFI = 0.929, RMSEA = 0.042, and the model had good predictive capacity for PTU (R2 = 0.46). Structured and unstructured activities also showed indirect effects on PTU through executive functions. As adolescents spent more time in unstructured leisure activities, poorer goal setting, inhibitory control skills, and more PTU were found. The opposite was true for structured leisure time activities. Implications of structured leisure activities to develop executive functioning and to prevent PTU for adolescents are discussed.

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Section: Executive Functions: Goal Setting and Inhibitory Controlmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…(c) Inhibitory control would be associated with a lower level of PTU. Deficits in emotional control have been linked to PTU [ 11 , 12 ] as well as to intensive mobile phone use [ 13 , 14 ]. Moreover, it is known that self-regulation has been found to be a predictor of adaptive development across many domains [ 18 ].…”

Section: Objectives and Hypothesesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Leisure time activities in adolescents predict problematic technology use

Ibabe

Albertos

Burgo

2023

Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry

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“…According to Pichardo et al (2021) exibility and emotional control are the variables with the most direct effects on PTU. A recent study based on 3,831 school-going adolescents aged 13 to 18 years showed that goal setting as well as inhibitory control inversely predicted PTU (Albertos & Ibabe, 2021).…”

Section: Executive Functions: Goal Setting and Inhibitory Controlmentioning

confidence: 99%

Leisure time activities in adolescents predicts problematic technology use

Ibabe

Albertos

Burgo

2022

Preprint

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Introduction. The problematic use of technology of children and adolescents is becoming a growing problem. Research has shown that excessive technology use predict a variety of psychological and physical health problems. The aim of this study was to analyze the role of leisure time activities (structured and unstructured) in adolescents as a predictor of problematic technology use. Method. Participants were 7,723 adolescents of which 55% were girls from four Spanish-speaking countries (Chile, Spain, Mexico, and Peru) between the ages of 13 and 18 years. The evaluation instrument applied was the YOURLIFE project self-report questionnaire. Two executive functions were measured: goal setting and inhibitory control. Results. Using structural equation modeling, findings indicated that structured leisure time activities predicted less PTU, whereas unstructured activities predicted more PTU, MLχ2 (69, N = 7,723) = 806.60; CFI= .929, RMSEA= .042, and the model had good predictive capacity for PTU (R2 = .46). Structured and unstructured activities also showed indirect effects on PTU through executive functions. Conclusions. As adolescents spent more time in unstructured leisure activities, poorer goal setting, inhibitory control skills, and more PTU were found. The opposite was right for structured leisure time activities. Implications of structured leisure activities to develop executive functioning and to prevent PTU for adolescents are discussed.

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“…In addition, current research has not found any study directly exploring the mediating role of self-esteem between physical activity and Internet addiction. Instead, most studies investigate the role of self-esteem in Internet addiction from other psychological perspectives, such as the family atmosphere [ 22 ], the need to belong [ 23 ], and the executive function [ 24 ]. However, all of the above studies may imply, either positively or negatively, that physical activity can increase individual’s level of self-esteem, and that the level of self-esteem is negatively related to Internet addiction.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The influence of physical activity on internet addiction among Chinese college students: the mediating role of self-esteem and the moderating role of gender

Zhihao,

Tao,

Yingjie

et al. 2024

BMC Public Health

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Objectives The significance of self-esteem in the relationship between physical activity and Internet addiction among college students cannot be over, as it lays a solid foundation for the prevention and control of Internet addiction. Methods A total of 950 college students were surveyed using the Physical Activity Rating Scale (PARS-3), Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (SES), and Chinese Internet Addiction Scale (CIAS-R) through a cluster random sampling method. Descriptive statistics, independent sample t-test, partial correlation analysis, mediation effect, moderation effect, and Bootstrap testing were conducted on the collected data to analyze and interpret the results. Results (1) Significant gender differences were found in the amount of physical activity and the degree of Internet addiction among college students(P&& lt;0.001); (2) Physical activity was significantly and positively correlated with self-esteem (r = 0.26, P < 0.001), but significantly and negatively correlated with Internet addiction (r=-0.23, P < 0.001); Meanwhile, self-esteem and Internet addiction were significantly and negatively related to self-esteem (r=-0.22, P < 0.001). (3) Mediating effect analyses showed that self-esteem played a partial mediating role in physical activity and Internet addiction among college students, accounting for a portion of 78.95%. (4) A moderating effect of gender on the relationship between physical activity and Internet addiction was discovered. Conclusion The physical activity level of male students is significantly higher than that of female students, while the degree of internet addiction among female students is notably higher than that of male students. Physical activity can not only directly improve the issue of internet addiction among college students, but also indirectly improve it through self-esteem, with gender playing a moderating role in this process. This conclusion has practical reference significance for preventing and controlling internet addiction among college students, and provides evidence support for using physical activity as a reference solution in clinical applications. Additionally, it suggests that gender should be taken into account when preventing and intervening in internet addiction among college students, and different strategies and methods should be adopted for male and female students. Male students should be encouraged to participate more in physical activities, gradually increasing the frequency, duration, and intensity of their participation, in order to divert their attention and enhance their sense of achievement in sports, thereby reducing their use of mobile phones. For female students, on the other hand, it is important to strengthen real-life communication, change the form of sports participation, engage in group, collaborative, and different situational sports activities, and enhance their focus and attention in sports, in order to reduce their internet dependency, better guide them to use the internet reasonably, and enable them to achieve emotional release through sports.

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Executive Functions and Problematic Internet Use among University Students: The Mediator Role of Self-Esteem

Cited by 10 publications

References 45 publications

Leisure time activities in adolescents predict problematic technology use

Leisure time activities in adolescents predict problematic technology use

Leisure time activities in adolescents predicts problematic technology use

The influence of physical activity on internet addiction among Chinese college students: the mediating role of self-esteem and the moderating role of gender

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