Problematic Internet Use: Measurement and Structural Invariance Across Sex and Academic Year Cohorts
Mateo Pérez-Wiesner1,2,3, Kora-Mareen Bühler1, Jose Antonio López-Moreno1,4
1Department of Psychobiology and Methodology in Behavioral Sciences, Faculty of Psychology, Somosaguas Campus, Complutense University of Madrid, 28223 Madrid, Spain.
Summary
Difficulties in emotion regulation and problematic digital media use consistently lead to negative outcomes for adolescents. These links hold true across all sexes and academic levels, informing broad prevention strategies.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Adolescent Development
- Digital Media Studies
Background:
- Extensive digital media use among adolescents raises concerns regarding emotional development and mental health.
- Understanding psychological factors is crucial for preventing problematic digital media engagement.
- Previous research indicates a link between emotion regulation, compulsive use, and negative digital media outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the consistency of relationships between emotion regulation, compulsive use, cognitive preoccupation, and negative digital media outcomes.
- To determine if these relationships vary across adolescent sex and academic year.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional study involving 2357 adolescents (ages 12-16) from Compulsory Secondary Education.
- Validated self-report questionnaires assessed problematic digital media use and consequences across internet, video games, social networking, and messaging.
- Four structural equation models (SEMs) analyzed media-specific relationships and their stability across sex and academic year.
Main Results:
- All SEMs demonstrated good model fit, with minimal group differences, validating cross-group comparisons.
- Emotion regulation difficulties and problematic digital media use were consistently associated with negative outcomes.
- These associations were observed across all participants, irrespective of sex or academic level.
Conclusions:
- Difficulties in emotion regulation and problematic digital media use are robustly linked to adverse outcomes in adolescents.
- The identified relationships are consistent across different sexes and academic years.
- Preventive interventions focusing on emotion regulation and digital media behaviors can be broadly implemented to address emotional and functional problems.
Keywords:
adolescentsdigital media consequencesemotion regulationmeasurement invarianceproblematic digital media usestructural equation modelingMore Related Videos
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