The association between parent-child relationship and problematic internet use among English- and Chinese-language studies: A meta-analysis

Abstract

As past studies of the association between parent-child relationship and problematic internet use show mixed results and are influenced by many factors, this meta-analysis of 75 primary Chinese and English language studies from 1990 to 2021 with 110,601 participants (aged 6−25 years) explored (a) the overall association between parent-child relationship and problematic internet use, and (b) whether the association is affected by their types, country, measures, objects of the parent-child relationship, gender, age, year and publication types. We used funnel plots, Classic fail-safe N and Egger's test to test for publication bias and for moderation with the homogeneity tests. The results showed a negative association between quality of parent-child relationship and problematic internet use (r = −0.18, 95% CI = [−0.20, −0.15]). The moderation analysis found that compared with internet addiction tendency, the association between social media addiction and parent-child relationship was stronger. Moreover, the association between the parent-child relationship and problematic internet use of emerging adults (18–25 years old) was stronger than that of adolescents (12−18 years old). Furthermore, the negative association between parent-child relationship and problematic internet use was weaker (a) in Italy than those in Turkey and China, (b) when using CPS (Closeness to Parents Scale), IPPA (Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment), or PARQ (Parent-Child Relationship Questionnaire) measuring parent-child relationship than using PCCS (Parent-Child Communication Scale), (c) when using IAT measuring problematic internet use rather than using IGDS or APIUS. Hence, these results indicate a negative association between parent-child relationships and problematic internet use, and the association is moderated by types of problematic internet use, age, country, scales of both parent-child relationship and problematic internet use.

Internet use and perceived parental involvement among adolescents from lower socioeconomic groups in Europe: An exploration

“…Van Duin et al (2021) identified parental support as an important protective factor for problematic social media use. This was also reported for social media addiction by Zhu et al (2022), with association varying in strength by country (Italy, Turkey, and China). The potential protective role of parental mediation and monitoring has been reported in many studies, for example in countries as diverse as Portugal (Campos et al, 2021), Saudi Arabia (Aljazir & Alsebaei, 2022) and South Korea (Park et al, 2014).…”

Associations of excessive internet use, sleep duration and physical activity with school absences: a cross-sectional, population-based study of adolescents in years 8 and 9

“…Nearly half of the study participants reported that they often talk with their parents about their concerns. Trusting, open relationships between parents and their adolescent children also protect them against EIU 32. Furthermore, adolescents also need their parents’ support to maintain a regular sleep schedule, because longer sleep during weekends is insufficient to protect against school absences.…”

Problematic internet use and attachment styles among adolescents in Japan

“…Adolescents may feel the need to use devices connected to the Internet to relieve stress and escape from reality during the period of puberty that may be filled with problems 32 . In addition, as adolescents become older, they require “more autonomy and independence to be psychologically separated from their parents.” 40 This mental development may be related to PIU with age, against the will of their parents. Accordingly, students in the private school who did not show PIU with age may not have had increasing stress with age as they are exempt from high school entrance examinations or because, despite becoming older, they remain obedient to their parents.…”