Loneliness and Mobile Phone Addiction Among Chinese College Students: The Mediating Roles of Boredom Proneness and Self-Control

Abstract

Introduction Mobile phones bring convenience to people’s lives, but also affect their physical and mental health (especially in college students). Previous studies have revealed that mobile phone addiction is positively related to loneliness. This study further explored the mediating effects of boredom proneness and self-control on the relationship between loneliness and mobile phone addiction. Methods A cross-sectional design was conducted in the present study. The investigation employed the Chinese version of the UCLA Loneliness Self-report Scale, Boredom Proneness Scale-Short Form, the Chinese version of the Self-control scale, and the Mobile Phone Addiction Index. Out of 1122 college students, 1078 completed the questionnaire survey and became our final subjects. PROCESS macro of SPSS 21 was used to conduct explore the mediating roles of boredom proneness and self-control in the relationship between loneliness and mobile phone addiction. Results Loneliness, boredom proneness, and mobile phone addiction were significantly and positively correlated with each other, as well as significantly negatively correlated with self-control. Boredom proneness and self-control, when operating in parallel, partially mediated the relationship between loneliness and mobile phone addiction. By contrast, when occurring sequentially, they fully mediated the relationship between loneliness and mobile phone addiction. Conclusion Mobile phone addiction among lonely college students can be eliminated by exercising self-control and alleviating boredom proneness.

Core self-evaluation, mental health and mobile phone dependence in Chinese high school students: why should we care

“…On the one hand, the anxiety score of the mobile phone dependent group is higher than that of the non-mobile phone dependent group. Because the mobile phone dependent students invest in mobile phone dating, entertainment, online shopping and other activities, they lack face-to-face communication [ 20 , 21 ]. However, human beings are a kind of social animals.…”

Problematic Mobile Phone Use Increases with the Fear of Missing Out Among College Students: The Effects of Self-Control, Perceived Social Support and Future Orientation

“…This result was similar to that of previous studies. 39 , 40 For example, Li et al 39 found that self-control mediates the relationship between loneliness and problematic phone use among Chinese college students. Like loneliness, FoMO is also a predisposing factor that could lead to problematic mobile phone use.…”

Nomophobia and Stress among Vietnamese High School Students in Covid-19 Pandemic: A Mediation Model of Loneliness

“…Loneliness is a feeling of exclusion, disconnection from others, and unhappiness with relationships (Snape & Manclossi, 2018). Previous studies have shown that there is a positive correlation between nomophobia and loneliness, with higher levels of loneliness increasing the risk of developing nomophobia (Li et al, 2021). Ozdemir et al (2018) research on university students has also shown a positive correlation between nomophobia and self-esteem and loneliness, whereas subjective happiness and nomophobia are negatively correlated.…”

“…In recent years, studies have investigated the relationship between agoraphobia and loneliness, stress, anxiety, depression, and other mental health problems (Augner & Hacker, 2012;Bano et al, 2021;Farchakh et al, 2021;Li et al, 2021). However, research on loneliness factors of high school students in the relationship between nomophobia and stress has not been carried out.…”