A Dual Regulatory Model Linking Alexithymia to Internet Addiction: Affective and Cognitive Pathways

Internet addiction is increasingly conceptualised as a disturbance in affective and cognitive self-regulation rather than excessive use. Alexithymia, characterised by impaired emotional awareness, may heighten vulnerability by reducing the ability to identify and regulate emotions, thereby increasing the chances of indulging in maladaptive coping behaviours such as internet addiction.

The study aimed to examine the mechanism underlying alexithymia and internet addiction by investigating the mediating roles of psychological distress (affective dysregulation) and mindfulness (cognitive-regulatory capacity) in college students.

A cross-sectional, quantitative research study was carried out among college students (n = 316) recruited from universities in the Gandhinagar district, Gujarat. Ethical clearance was obtained from the Institutional Ethics Committee for the study. Convenience sampling was employed to select the participants. College students between 18 and 25 years of age were included in the study. Data were collected using the Internet Addiction Test (IAT), Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) and Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS). SPSS, Version 22, and Hayes' PROCESS macro (Model 4) were used to carry out descriptive statistics, correlation and mediation analyses.

Alexithymia was positively associated with internet addiction (r = 0.35, p < .05), and negatively associated with mindfulness (r = -0.63, p < .01). Psychological distress was positively associated with internet addiction (r = 0.64, p < .05). The indirect effects of alexithymia on internet addiction were significant via psychological distress (B = 0.130, 95% CI [0.059, 0.204]) and mindfulness (B = 0.108, 95% CI [0.027, 0.186]). The mediation model accounted for 50% of the variance in internet addiction. The direct effect remained significant, indicating partial mediation.

The findings supported parallel dual-regulatory pathways in which alexithymia was linked to internet addiction, with psychological distress and mindfulness serving as significant statistical pathways. These results indicated the relevance of integrated self-regulation frameworks in understanding behavioural addictions.