Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 8, 2025
14:02
Measuring Engagement of Spectators of Social Digital Games
Published on: July 3, 2021
3.6K
The Mediating Effect of Insecure Adult Attachment on the Relationship between Smartphone Addiction and Self-Directed
Inhee Park1, Sinhyang Kim1, Yeonok Suh2
1Department of Nursing, Shinsung University, Dangjin 31801, Chungcheongnam-do, Korea.
Nursing Reports (Pavia, Italy)
|December 30, 2021
Summary
Smartphone addiction is linked to insecure adult attachment, which negatively impacts university students' self-directed learning. Interventions should address both smartphone use and attachment styles to improve learning.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Educational Psychology
- Digital Psychology
Background:
- Smartphone addiction is a growing concern among university students.
- Adult attachment styles can influence psychological well-being and academic behaviors.
- Self-directed learning is crucial for academic success in higher education.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the mediating role of insecure adult attachment in the relationship between smartphone addiction and self-directed learning.
- To understand how attachment patterns influence the impact of excessive smartphone use on learning.
Main Methods:
- A quantitative study involving 235 university students.
- Statistical analyses included Pearson correlation, multiple regression, and the Sobel test.
- Data collection focused on smartphone addiction, adult attachment, and self-directed learning.
Main Results:
- Smartphone addiction showed a positive correlation with insecure adult attachment and attachment anxiety.
- Self-directed learning was negatively correlated with insecure adult attachment and attachment anxiety.
- Insecure adult attachment significantly mediated the relationship between smartphone addiction and self-directed learning.
Conclusions:
- Elevated smartphone addiction is associated with higher insecure adult attachment and diminished self-directed learning capacity.
- Preventing smartphone addiction is vital for enhancing self-directed learning.
- Developing programs to promote secure adult attachment is recommended for university students.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
03:34Theory of Romantic Attachment in Adulthood
45.2K
Attachment is a long-standing connection or bond with others. While Attachment Theory was conceived in developmental psychology to describe infant-caregiver bonding, it's been extended into adulthood to include romantic relationships.
45.2K
01:24Attachment Styles
15
Jeffrey Simpson's attachment theory suggests that early caregiver relationships shape lasting patterns of behavior and emotional regulation, known as attachment styles. These patterns are organized along two key dimensions: self-esteem and interpersonal trust. The intersection of these dimensions produces four primary attachment styles that typically persist throughout life and significantly influence how individuals form and maintain relationships.Secure Attachment StyleIndividuals with a...
15
01:28Hazan and Shaver's Attachment Styles
36
Attachment theory, developed initially to explain infant–caregiver bonds, has been extended to illuminate patterns of intimacy in adult romantic relationships. Psychologists Cindy Hazan and Phillip Shaver proposed that the attachment styles observed in infancy form a framework for how individuals approach emotional closeness and conflict in adulthood. These attachment styles—secure, avoidant, and anxious—are linked to enduring patterns of behavior and emotional regulation in...
36
01:28Relationship with Parents: Attachment
17
Parent-child interactions lay the foundation for how we understand relationships throughout life. These interactions are not uniform across families; instead, they are shaped by a range of environmental, emotional, and behavioral factors unique to each caregiver-child dynamic. Social psychologists study these early relationships to understand how patterns formed in infancy influence social functioning and interpersonal behavior in adulthood.Attachment Theory and Early Relational ModelsJohn...
17
01:20Attachment
171
Attachment is vital for infant development, as warm social interactions support growth and well-being. In a classic 1958 study by Harry Harlow, the significance of warmth and comfort in forming attachments was examined. Harlow separated newborn monkeys from their mothers and provided two artificial "mothers": one made of cold wire and the other covered in soft cloth. Despite the wire mother offering food, the infant monkeys preferred the comfort of the cloth mother, demonstrating that...
171
02:05Self-Presentation: Self-Monitoring and Self-Handicapping
41.1K
People can go to great lengths to protect their self-image and present themselves in ways that they want others to see them. Sociologist Erving Goffman presented the idea that a person is like an actor on a stage. Calling his theory dramaturgy, Goffman believed that we use “impression management” to present ourselves to others as we hope to be perceived. Each situation is a new scene, and individuals perform different roles depending on who is present (Goffman, 1959). Think about...
41.1K