Internet Addiction and Depression in Chinese Adolescents: A Moderated Mediation Model

Abstract

Research has revealed that Internet addiction is a risk factor for adolescents’ development of depressive symptoms, although the underlying mechanisms are largely unknown. The present study examines the mediating role of positive youth development and the moderating role of mindfulness to determine the association between Internet addiction and depression. A sample of 522 Chinese adolescents completed measures related to Internet addiction, positive youth development, mindfulness, depression, and their background information, for which the results reveal that positive youth development mediates the relation between Internet addiction and depression. Moreover, the associations between both Internet addiction and depression as well as positive youth development and depression are moderated by mindfulness. These two effects were stronger for adolescents with low mindfulness than for those with high mindfulness. The present study contributes to a more thorough understanding of how and when Internet addiction increases the risk of depression in adolescents, suggesting that Internet addiction may affect adolescent depression through positive youth development and that mindfulness can alleviate the negative effect of Internet addiction or a low level of psychological resources on depression. The implications for research and practice are finally discussed.

Internet Addiction and Related Psychological Factors Among Children and Adolescents in China During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Epidemic

“…Participants with an IAT score of 39 or below were classified as normal Internet users (NIU), who only had some or no problems controlling Internet use. Adequate reliability of IAT in Chinese languages compared with English (Cronbach alpha≥0.82) ( 14 , 15 ).…”

The Mediating Roles of Emotional Regulation on Negative Emotion and Internet Addiction Among Chinese Adolescents From a Development Perspective

“…Emotion problems, such as depression (35) and anxiety (36) have been associated with internet addiction, so emotion problems may be risk factors for internet addiction. Expressive suppression may be a risk mediating factor between emotion problems and internet addiction.…”

Perceived stress of the COVID-19 pandemic and adolescents' depression symptoms: The moderating role of character strengths

“…In the context of the key resource theory ( Hobfoll, 2002 ; Thoits, 1994 ) and the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions ( Fredrickson, 2001 ), individuals with positive psychological resources are prone to being more capable of selecting, altering, and implementing their other resources to decrease mental distress, enabling them to flourish. Numerous studies have demonstrated that adolescents' psychological resources, including emotional intelligence, mindfulness, and resilience, can alleviate their depression symptoms ( Anyan & Hjemdal, 2016 ; Chi et al, 2019 ; Davis & Humphrey, 2012 ). Therefore, character strengths, as an important psychological resource, might be negatively related to adolescents' depression symptoms.…”