Problematic Use of the Internet Mediates the Association between Reduced Mentalization and Suicidal Ideation: A Cross-Sectional Study in Young Adults

Abstract

Suicide is a major public health problem, and it is urgent to investigate its underlying clinical and psychological concomitants. It has been suggested that low mentalization skills and problematic use of the internet (PUI) are factors that can play a role in suicidal behaviors. It is possible that poor mentalization skills contribute to leading to forms of PUI, which, in turn, can represent triggers for suicidal ideation (SI). We tested this hypothesis through a quantitative and cross-sectional study on a sample (n = 623) of young adults (age range: 18–34). Self-report measures investigating symptoms related to Social Media Addiction (SMA), Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD), mentalization capacity, and SI were used. A single mediation analysis with two mediators was carried out to evaluate the direct and indirect effects of mentalization on SI through the mediating role of SMA- and IGD-related symptoms, controlling for potential confounding factors (e.g., socio-demographic and addiction-related variables). The four explored variables were significantly associated with each other (all p < 0.001) across all subjects; the mediational model showed that the total effect of mentalization on SI was significant (B = −0.821, SE = 0.092 (95% CI: −1.001; −0.641)) and that both SMA- (B = −0.073, SE = 0.034 (95% CI: −0.145; −0.008)) and IGD-related symptoms (B = 0.046, SE = 0.027 (95% CI: −0.107; −0.001)) were significant mediators of such association. Our findings support the possibility that PUI severity plays a relevant role in mediating the association between low mentalization skills and levels of SI.

Insecure Minds through the Looking Glass: The Mediating Role of Mentalization in the Relationships between Adult Attachment Styles and Problematic Social Media Use

“…In fact, individuals with preoccupied or fearful attachment styles may excessively resort to social media platforms in order to alleviate anxiety in social interactions and fulfill their needs of relatedness and self-presentation [ 42 , 102 , 103 ]. In accordance with previous research [ 71 , 72 ], we also found a positive association between failures in mentalizing and PSMU. Accordingly, PSMU may represent an attempt to cope with unprocessed feelings by seeking refuge in an online environment perceived as more predictable and stable than offline interpersonal contexts [ 73 ].…”

“…Research suggests that failures in mentalizing are involved in addictive behaviors [ 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 ], including problematic online behaviors such as PSMU [ 71 , 72 , 73 ]. In fact, difficulties in identifying and regulating distressing feelings may increase the risk of resorting to substance use or engaging in dysfunctional behaviors as a means of seeking relief [ 74 , 75 , 76 ].…”

Online Behaviours during the COVID-19 Pandemic and Their Associations with Psychological Factors: An International Exploratory Study

“…Our analysis also included a standard set of factors for each online behaviour model. However, several additional factors such as motivation, escapism tendencies [ 53 ], impulsivity [ 24 , 67 , 68 ], and compulsivity measures [ 1 ] should be introduced to better contextualise excessive online behaviours. Another set of variables that was not included in this analysis is exposure to COVID-19 (direct or indirect).…”

Psychometric properties of the Quiet Ego Scale (iQES) within the Italian cultural context

“…Third, although the questionnaire was structured by inserting an attention control item similar to that in the study by Bersani et al ( 2022 ), it is necessary to consider various aspects regarding the completion of the survey: (i) it could be completed at any place, increasing the probability of making mistakes or paying little attention; (ii) it could be completed at any time, making it more likely here as well the possibility of providing responses that may have been influenced by different moods.…”

“…The following inclusion criteria were considered: (i) age over 18 years, (ii) ability to understand the Italian language (i.e., students from other countries temporarily in Italy through the ERASMUS program were excluded from the survey), (iii) be enrolled in a health profession degree program, (iv) to evaluate any random answer, based on another study (Bersani et al, 2022 ), one item of an attentional quality check (e.g., “Please score answer #5”) was proposed. The survey began with the acceptance of the informed consent.…”