The association between anxiety and internet addiction among left-behind secondary school students: the moderating effect of social support and family types.

Publisher: BioMed Central Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 100968559 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1471-244X (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 1471244X NLM ISO Abbreviation: BMC Psychiatry Subsets: MEDLINE

Original Publication: London : BioMed Central, [2001-

Social Support* ; Anxiety*/psychology ; Internet Addiction Disorder*/psychology ; Students*/psychology; Humans ; Male ; Female ; Adolescent ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Child ; China ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Family/psychology ; Schools

Background: The left-behind children (LBC), children and adolescents aged 0-18 whose parents have migrated for economic purposes for extended periods exceeding three months, present a unique social concern. These children remain in their place of household registration, often under the guardianship of relatives, while receiving compulsory education. LBC with growing Internet addiction (IA) have made it urgent to take a close look at the mechanisms and effective interventions for them. Anxiety has been proven to be correlated with IA in adolescents; however, the mechanisms of addiction in this population are less well-fully grasped. Based on the current theories and empirical results, the study examined whether and how social support (SS) and family types moderated the associations between anxiety and IA among left-behind secondary students.
Methods: Stratified cluster sampling survey. A questionnaire was administered to 5290 secondary school children (2553 classified as left-behind) to explore the relationships between anxiety, IA, left-behind types, family types, and social support. This cross-sectional study employed a stratified cluster sampling survey of students in the ethnic areas of southeast Chongqing. The study sought to appraise the relationships between anxiety and IA in different types of left-behind children and to assess the potential moderating effect of SS on the relationship among the population and its family types differences.
Results: The relationship between anxiety and IA was moderated significantly by social support and family types. Notably, the impact of social support on the moderating effect between IA and anxiety varied among students from both family types. For students from families where both parents had migrated, social support weakened the association between IA and anxiety. Conversely, for students from single-parent families where the parent had migrated, social support seemed to strengthen the relationships between these two issues.
Conclusions: The moderating effects of SS on the relationship between anxiety and IA differs based on family type among various groups of left-behind secondary students. Gaining insights into the IA mechanisms can guide the development of targeted intervention strategies aimed at minimizing IA among diverse groups of left-behind students.
(© 2024. The Author(s).)

J Behav Addict. 2017 Sep 1;6(3):321-333. (PMID: 28762279)
Adolescence. 2004 Winter;39(156):711-23. (PMID: 15727409)
Lancet. 2012 Apr 28;379(9826):1641-52. (PMID: 22538179)
J Psychiatr Res. 2021 Jun;138:393-403. (PMID: 33962126)
J Med Internet Res. 2022 Nov 10;24(11):e38984. (PMID: 36355402)
Child Dev. 2021 Jul;92(4):e416-e438. (PMID: 33410505)
Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health. 2018 May 25;12:25. (PMID: 29849754)
Addict Behav. 2022 Jun;129:107239. (PMID: 35092885)
Am J Public Health. 2010 Dec;100(12):2403-9. (PMID: 20966371)
J Affect Disord. 2023 Oct 15;339:145-152. (PMID: 37437741)
Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2016 Aug 29;12:2233-6. (PMID: 27621633)
J Clin Child Adolesc Psychol. 2016;45(2):91-113. (PMID: 26087438)
Arch Intern Med. 2006 May 22;166(10):1092-7. (PMID: 16717171)
Int J Public Health. 2021 Sep 10;66:630700. (PMID: 34744584)
J Affect Disord. 2021 May 1;286:282-295. (PMID: 33756306)
Addict Behav. 2020 Feb;101:105976. (PMID: 31101387)
J Affect Disord. 2020 Nov 1;276:84-89. (PMID: 32697720)
J Clin Psychol. 2002 Mar;58(3):307-21. (PMID: 11836712)
Front Public Health. 2022 Jun 03;10:894741. (PMID: 35719620)
Front Psychol. 2016 Oct 25;7:1611. (PMID: 27826265)
Psychol Rep. 2012 Dec;111(3):905-28. (PMID: 23402056)
Front Psychol. 2021 Jan 26;11:604397. (PMID: 33574783)
Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health. 2019 Oct 22;13:39. (PMID: 31649750)
Am J Orthopsychiatry. 2009 Oct;79(4):491-9. (PMID: 20099940)
Soc Sci Med. 2023 Oct;334:116195. (PMID: 37690153)
JAMA Netw Open. 2020 Dec 1;3(12):e2027491. (PMID: 33275154)
JAMA Netw Open. 2020 Jun 1;3(6):e206863. (PMID: 32496567)
Int J Public Health. 2019 Mar;64(2):209-217. (PMID: 30467576)
Addict Behav. 2021 Nov;122:107039. (PMID: 34256306)
Mymensingh Med J. 2022 Apr;31(2):539-546. (PMID: 35383777)
Biol Psychiatry. 2001 Jun 15;49(12):1055-61. (PMID: 11430847)
Iran J Public Health. 2017 Dec;46(12):1659-1668. (PMID: 29259941)
Psychol Trauma. 2022 May;14(4):669-679. (PMID: 33507796)
Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2021 Jan 11;118(1-2):14-22. (PMID: 33750533)
J Affect Disord. 2022 Jul 15;309:52-62. (PMID: 35469911)
Compr Psychiatry. 2019 Jul;92:22-27. (PMID: 31003724)
Eval Program Plann. 2010 Feb;33(1):18-20. (PMID: 19559481)
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Oct 15;19(20):. (PMID: 36293906)
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 May 12;18(10):. (PMID: 34066012)
Addict Behav. 2018 Jul;82:86-93. (PMID: 29501012)
Am J Public Health. 2009 Nov;99(11):2049-54. (PMID: 19762669)
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Jun 02;18(11):. (PMID: 34199554)
J Pediatr Psychol. 2013 Aug;38(7):794-807. (PMID: 23671059)
Front Public Health. 2022 Apr 11;10:819324. (PMID: 35480576)
J BUON. 2020 Jan-Feb;25(1):367-375. (PMID: 32277656)
J Health Psychol. 2016 Jun;21(6):1066-73. (PMID: 25139895)
J Adolesc. 2016 Oct;52:103-11. (PMID: 27544491)
Int J Public Health. 2023 Jun 26;68:1605609. (PMID: 37435194)
Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Netw. 2021 Aug;24(8):558-565. (PMID: 33372848)
Curr Pediatr Rep. 2021;9(1):1-10. (PMID: 33457108)
PLoS One. 2023 Dec 7;18(12):e0291041. (PMID: 38060621)
J Affect Disord. 2017 Jan 15;208:582-589. (PMID: 27802894)
Addict Behav. 2020 Jul;106:106377. (PMID: 32151891)
J Appl Psychol. 2006 Jul;91(4):917-26. (PMID: 16834514)
J Youth Adolesc. 2020 May;49(5):1005-1016. (PMID: 32206958)
Lancet. 2018 Dec 15;392(10164):2567-2582. (PMID: 30528471)
Acta Paediatr. 2014 Jun;103(6):665-70. (PMID: 24527673)
Curr Psychol. 2022;41(11):7532-7543. (PMID: 33424203)
J Abnorm Child Psychol. 2019 Mar;47(3):499-513. (PMID: 29943075)
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Dec 17;19(24):. (PMID: 36554856)
Front Psychiatry. 2021 Mar 25;12:642914. (PMID: 33841210)
J Clin Med. 2022 Feb 16;11(4):. (PMID: 35207293)
Front Psychol. 2022 Mar 11;13:836461. (PMID: 35360582)
BMC Psychiatry. 2019 Dec 5;19(1):388. (PMID: 31805882)

cstc2019jscx-msxmX0279 Chongqing Science and Technology Commission of China; 2019ZY023315 the Traditional Chinese Medicine Scientific Research Fund from Chongqing Health Committee of China

Keywords: Anxiety; Family types; Internet addiction; Left-behind secondary students; Social support

Date Created: 20240529 Date Completed: 20240530 Latest Revision: 20240601

20240601

PMC11138066

10.1186/s12888-024-05855-4

38811914