Developmental Trajectories Of Internet Addiction And Its Correlates In High School Students

Internet addiction(IA)is one of the common problematic behaviors.Adolescents are under the period of construction in cognitive system,who have poor self-control ability.Lured by the anonymity,convenience and escape of Internet and the influence of lots of correlates,adolescents are easy to suffer from IA.Based on the overall scale of adolescents Internet users,adolescents become the potential high risk groups of IA.IA has serious damage on adolescents' physical health and mental health.In addition to recognizing the adverse effects of IA,we should take preventive and control measures from the comparative proximal factors of Internet addiction,so as to promote the development of physical and mental health among adolescents.Objectives:The present study aims to explore the relationship between Internet addiction and negative emotion,and to identify common and unique correlates for individual and comorbid negative emotion among high school students in the cross-sectional study.Based on the ecological systems theory,we aimed to explore the path influence of various microsystem on IA and verify the causal path relationships in the longitudinal study.To explore the developmental trajectories of IA and correlates,and the influence of developmental trajectories of correlates on IA in high school students.This study will provide evidence for making preventive strategies and intervention measures for high school students from more perspective that is comprehensive.Methods:Using the stratified cluster random sampling,participants who were from grade 1,grade 2 and grade 3 of a senior high school in Changchun,were asked to complete paper-based questionnaires.Based on the first cross-sectional study,we conducted the semi-annual follow-up study on grade 1 students of high school and a total of three times follow up.Epidata 3.0 was used for data entry.All statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS version 24.0,AMOS 23.0 and Mplus 8.3 software.Descriptive analyses were used to introduce socio-demographic characteristics and calculate the prevalence of IA only,negative emotion only and their comorbidity.Chisquare was used to explore the comparison of categorical variables.The structural equation model(SEM)was used to test the mediation effect.We used the bias-corrected bootstrap procedure to examine mediation effect and moderation effect in the proposed model.The latent class growth modeling was used to analyze the developmental trajectories of IA and its correlates.Binary logistic regression was used to examine the correlates of IA and the developmental trajectories of IA.Equality tests of means /probabilities across classes were used to test the influence of different developmental trajectories on IA.Results:(1)The prevalence of IA only,negative emotion only and their comorbidity in high school students were 7.0%,27.0% and 13.6%.Compared to healthy controls,students who were current smokers,had more than 1.5 hours sleep deprivation on weekdays,more than 30 minutes Internet use on weekdays,equal and more than 240 minutes Internet use on weekends,perceived poor mother-child relationships and poor fatherchild relationships were at the increased risk of having the comorbidity of IA and negative emotion(P<0.05).(2)Depression(95% CI= [0.019,0.028])and anxiety(95% CI= [0.018,0.027])had the mediating effect on the association between parental martial conflict and IA.Peer relationship moderated the first path of mediating effect of depression(95%CI= [-0.003,-0.001])or anxiety(95%CI= [-0.002,-0.001])on the association between parental martial conflict and IA.(3)Peer relationship played partial mediating effect on the association between parent-child relationship and IA.Gender moderated the mediation model.Peer relationship played significantly moderating effect on the association between parentchild relationship and IA.(4)The longitudinal study found depression played partial mediating effect on the association between parental marital conflict and IA.Anxiety played partial mediating effect on the association between parental marital conflict and IA.Peer relationship played partial mediating effect on the association between parent-child relationship and IA.Gender moderated the association between parent-child relationship and IA.(5)The developmental trajectories of IA in high school students could be classified into two latent classes,which were named “risk groups”(accounted for 71.5% of total participants)and “normal groups”(accounted for 28.5% of total participants).Students with the average frequency of social networking sites use more than six times every day,60~150 social networking sites contacts,moderate preference to physical exercise,dislike physical exercise and having peer alienation experience were more likely to be classified into risk group.Students self-rated no study stress were less likely to be classified into risk group.(6)The probability of IA in normal group was significantly lower than those in depression relief group(P=0.020)and depression proneness group(P=0.001).The probability of IA in normal group was significantly lower than those in anxiety rapid growth group(P=0.003)and anxiety low growth group(P<0.001).The probability of IA in normal group was significantly lower than those in stress rapid growth group(P<0.001)and stress low growth group(P=0.001).The probability of IA in low parental marital conflict group was significantly lower than those in high parental marital conflict group(P=0.002).The probability of IA in poor father-child relationship group was significantly higher than those in good father-child relationship group(P<0.001).The probability of IA in poor mother-child relationship group was significantly higher than those in good mother-child relationship group(P<0.001).The probability of IA in moderate peer relationship group was significantly lower than those in good peer relationship group(P=0.015).Conclusions:(1)The more risk factors students exposed,the higher risk of having IA only,negative emotion only and their comorbidity they had.(2)Parental martial conflict,depression and anxiety could influence IA,and peer relationship could relieve the negative influence of parental martial conflict on depression and anxiety,which in turn decrease the risk of IA.(3)Parent-child relationship could influence IA and peer relationship could enhance the protective effect of parent-child relationship on IA.Cultivating good parent-child relationship and peer relationship contributes to reduce IA.(4)Parental martial conflict,depression,anxiety,parent-child relationship and peer relationship could significantly predict IA.There were causal relationships between all the above predictors and IA.(5)Pay more attention to high school students with the average frequency of social networking sites use more than six times every day,60~150 social networking sites contacts,moderate preference to physical exercise,dislike physical exercise and having peer alienation experience,so as to prevent the prevalence and degree of Internet addiction.(6)The developmental trajectories of depression,anxiety,stress,parental martial conflict,parent-child relationship and peer relationship could influence IA in high school students.