Abstract
Internet gaming disorder (IGD) is multifaceted and can have significant negative consequences. The present study examined the contribution of cognitive, metacognitive, motivational, and emotional factors as predictors for IGD severity. In a cross-sectional study, 703 Iranian adolescents (36.8% females, mean age = 16.98years [SD = 1.23]) completed an online survey. Hierarchical regression analysis showed that the cognitive, metacognitive, motivational, and emotional factors predicted 7.8%, 17.4%, 1.4%, and 1.9% of the variance in IGD symptoms, respectively. The findings indicated that the cognitive factors including some maladaptive cognitions, such as cognitive salience, regret, and perfectionism, and metacognitive factors including some maladaptive metacognitions (negative metacognitions regarding the uncontrollability of online gaming and negative metacognitions regarding the dangers of online gaming) were significant predictors of IGD severity, highlighting their importance in understanding and predicting problematic gaming behaviors. Although contributing to the variance in IGD, motivational factors (escape, coping, and skill development) and emotional factors including emotion regulation (especially reappraisal) played relatively smaller roles compared to cognitive and metacognitive factors. Of the examined predictive factors, metacognitions were the most important predictor of IGD severity. Exploratory moderator analyses showed significant interactions between three predictors of IGD (reappraisal, negative metacognitions, and cognitive salience) with loneliness, stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. Reappraisal was the most frequent predictor and had a significant interaction with these variables. Other predictors independently impacted IGD irrespective of the level of loneliness, stress, anxiety, or depressive symptoms. Based on these findings, special attention to metacognitive, cognitive, emotional, and motivational factors is suggested in the treatment of IGD.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
