Nomophobia refers to an intense anxiety and stress caused by being out of contact with mobile phones (MPs). It is known that excessive engagement with MPs decreases adolescents' psychological well-being, social and academic functioning. The aim of this study was to investigate the associations of nomophobia with alexithymia which is characterized by difficulties in describing and expressing emotions and using empathy, and with the metacognition characteristics which have the function of controlling the cognitions in an adolescent population. The study was conducted on 1817 participants (n = 972, 54% female, n = 835, 46% male). The Nomophobia Questionnaire (NMP-Q), The Twenty-Item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and The Metacognition Questionnaire for Children and Adolescents (MCQ-C) were administered to participants. A question form for socio-demographic data was also administered to participants and their families. Cathegorical variables were analyzed by chi-square test, and numerical variables were analyzed by independent sample t test. The relationships between the scales' scores were analyzed by the Pearson-product moments correlation test. The predictive effects of alexithymia, metacognition problems and gender were assessed by multiple linear regression analysis. Nomophobia, alexithymia and metacognition problem levels were significantly higher in females than males. There was a significant correlation between NMP-Q and TAS-20 scores and MCQ-C scores. TAS-20, MCQ-C scores and gender significantly predicted the nomophobia when NMP-Q score was a dependent variable. Therapeutic interventions for improving social skills like emphatic thinking and/or increasing emotional expression may be beneficial in the treatment of adolescents with alexithymic traits which experience nomophobia. Moreover, interventions that enhance metacognitive skills which can control negative thoughts triggered by the possibility of losing contact with MPs may increase treatment success.

No abstract

Objective: The Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), spread all over the world in a short time and turned into a pandemic. During COVID-19, individuals' anxiety levels have increased. For this reason, determining the factors that affect anxiety during COVID-19 is crucial for the psychological health of individuals. This study aims to investigate the mediating role of non-adaptive emotion regulation in the relationship between perceived social support and anxiety in the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: The sample of the study consisted of 327 university students with an average age of 24.27. The data were collected from the participants between May and June 2020. Demographic Information Form, Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale-Brief Form (DERS-16) were used. The independent-sample t-test, One-way ANOVA, Pearson moment product correlation test, and Mediation analysis were all used for statistical analysis. Results: During the COVID-19 pandemic, participants stated that they were mostly concerned about the health status of their families. There was a negative correlation between anxiety level, age and perceived social support. Anxiety level had a positive relationship with non-adaptive emotion regulation strategies. In addition, non-adaptive emotion regulation had a full mediating role in the relationship between anxiety and perceived social support. Conclusion: Our study found that the anxiety-reducing effect of perceived social support disappears when individuals use non-adaptive emotion regulation strategies. For this reason, the studies to develop adaptive emotion regulation strategies may be useful in reducing the COVID-19 anxiety.

No abstract

No abstract