Stressful life events and problematic smartphone usage among Chinese boarding-school adolescents: a moderated mediation model of peer support and depressive symptoms

Longitudinal Effects of Stressful Life Events on Problematic Smartphone Use and the Mediating Roles of Mental Health Problems in Chinese Undergraduate Students

“…Smartphone addiction is not established in the study, but given the frequency of PSU amongst young people and its significant association with symptoms of common mental The direct association between stressful life events at T1 and PSU at T3 was not significant when the mediator depressive symptoms were inserted into the linkage, revealing that depressive symptoms fully mediated this relationship. The result is consistent with the Diathesis Stress Model of Depression (33) and the I-PACE model (52), and corroborates the prior research (13,77,78). This finding suggests that stressful life events might exacerbate the level of depressive symptoms (34), and in turn increase PSU levels (14,79).…”

“…Problematic smartphone use (PSU) refers to the excessive use of the smartphone or smartphone addiction in daily life, accompanied by dysfunction and symptoms similar to substance use disorder ( 11 ). PSU severity is associated with a wide variety of indicators, such as stress ( 10 , 12 , 13 ), symptoms of depression ( 12 , 14 , 15 ), poor sleep quality ( 15 , 16 ), and suicidal ideation ( 17 ). However, most of this research is based on cross-sectional studies, with only a few longitudinal studies examining risk or protective factors predicting PSU symptoms over time.…”

“…Stressful life events refer to the things that compel people to make changes in their ongoing life patterns ( 18 ), such as study pressure, and interpersonal tension ( 19 ). Stress has been well-documented as a risk element in the development of addiction and the vulnerability to relapse ( 10 , 12 , 20 ), and stressful life events have also been considered important factors potentially contributing to the development of PSU ( 13 ). Some authors conceptualize PSU as dysfunctional coping with everyday life ( 10 , 13 ).…”

The relationships between negative emotions and latent classes of smartphone addiction

“…Depression is conceptualized as a common mental disorder which not only impacts the way people feel, think and behave, but also impairs individuals’ social or occupational functions [ 11 ]. Researchers have suggested that depression is a positive predictor of smartphone addiction, and individuals who suffer from depression symptoms tend to use smartphone excessively to eliminate their psychological distress [ 12 , 13 ]. Empirical researches have found longitudinal and bidirectional relationships between smartphone addiction and depressive symptoms [ 14 , 15 ].…”

Internet Addiction in the Web of Science Database: A Review of the Literature with Scientific Mapping

“…There is a great deal of scientific evidence showing how there is a serious risk associated with excessive use of the Internet and everything that derives from it [9], where, in addition, personal characteristics, gender, socio-cultural differences [10], and biological factors could play an important role in the appearance of an addiction to these media. The literature reveals an association between the Internet and social networks and an increase in so-called techno-stress [11][12][13].…”