Problematic online behaviours among university students and associations with psychological distress symptoms and emotional role limitations: a network analysis approach

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Sánchez-Fernández, M, Borda-Mas, M, Rivera, F and Griffiths, MD ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8880-6524, 2024. Problematic online behaviours among university students and associations with psychological distress symptoms and emotional role limitations: a network analysis approach. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction. ISSN 1557-1874

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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-024-01296-y

Abstract

Very little research has simultaneously explored the interactions between generalized problematic internet use (GPIU), problematic social media use (PSMU), problematic online gaming (POG), psychological distress, and emotional well-being among university students. Therefore, the present study aimed to determine (i) the associations between GPIU, PSMU, and POG symptoms, (ii) whether symptoms of these three problematic online behaviours form distinct entities, and (iii) whether there are associations between problematic online behaviours, psychological distress symptoms, and emotional role limitations using network analysis. A total of 807 Spanish university students participated (57.7% female; Mage = 21.22 years [SD = 3.68]). Two network models were computed. Network 1 showed a complex interaction of nodes, with particularly strong connections between analogous symptoms of GPIU and PSMU. Symptoms organised into distinct dimensions, featuring a unique dimension for POG symptoms, one that includes preoccupation and a conflict symptom of GPIU, and two other dimensions with symptoms of GPIU and PSMU. Network 2 showed significant connections between GPIU and depression, GPIU and emotional role limitations, PSMU and anxiety, PSMU and emotional role limitations, POG and depression, and POG and anxiety. The findings support the conceptualization of GPIU as a nonspecific disorder, the independence of PSMU and POG as distinct constructs, and aligning with perspectives that separate POG from the GPIU spectrum. The study reinforces the model of compensatory internet use and emphasizes the impact of problematic online behaviours on emotional well-being. The findings have practical implications for the assessment and intervention of problematic online behaviours.

Item Type:	Journal article
Publication Title:	International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction
Creators:	Sánchez-Fernández, M., Borda-Mas, M., Rivera, F. and Griffiths, M.D.
Publisher:	Springer
Date:	26 April 2024
ISSN:	1557-1874
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.1007/s11469-024-01296-y DOI 1889501 Other
Rights:	© the author(s) 2024. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
Divisions:	Schools > School of Social Sciences
Record created by:	Jonathan Gallacher
Date Added:	30 Apr 2024 08:36
Last Modified:	30 Apr 2024 08:36
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/51366