Abstract
BackgroundA number of factors have been demonstrated to be associated with Problematic Internet Use (PIU); otherwise known as Internet Addiction), which is mostly concerned with psychological problems such as loneliness. This study aimed to examine how and in what way loneliness influenced PIU.MethodsA self-report measurement on loneliness, the Internet addiction test (IAT) and instruments on interpersonal problems were administered to 318 medical students (57% females); mean age totaled 20.88 years (SD = 1.8). We performed a mediation analysis to evaluate direct effects of loneliness on IAT, as well as indirect effects mediated by interpersonal problems. In addition, motivation for internet use was added to the mediation model and tested whether it acted as the second mediator (serial mediation model) or a moderator (moderated mediation model).ResultsAfter controlling for sex and age, socially inhibited problems exhibited full mediation whereas the remainder showed partial mediation effects, with the exception that intrusive and cold interpersonal problems indicated no mediating role. Negative motivation and motivation for being accepted had mediation effects for all types of interpersonal problems. Motivation for working was found to be a significant mediator and moderator of the most interpersonal problems. Intrusive and cold styles became a mediator only when some motivation variables were added to the model, implying that not only psychological problems should be included when analyzing PIU, but also other variables such motivation for internet use. The percent of variance explained, by IAT score, increased from 13% in the mediation model to 33% by the moderated mediation model, and 43% using the serial mediation model.ConclusionThe study suggested the crucial role of loneliness and interpersonal problems on PIU, for which motivation for internet use explained how each interpersonal problem would be associated. This may provide some insight regarding the pathological characteristics of those using the internet as a coping strategy.
Highlights
A number of factors have been demonstrated to be associated with Problematic Internet Use (PIU); otherwise known as Internet Addiction), which is mostly concerned with psychological problems such as loneliness
The DO subscale did not exhibit a significant relationship with NO and overly accommodating (OA) subscales, whereas VI did not show a significant relationship with self-sacrifice and IN subscales, which overall was compatible with the interpersonal circumplex in that they are on the opposite character
This study aimed to examine how loneliness was associated with PIU using interpersonal problems and motivation for Internet use as mediators
Summary
A number of factors have been demonstrated to be associated with Problematic Internet Use (PIU); otherwise known as Internet Addiction), which is mostly concerned with psychological problems such as loneliness. Problematic Internet Use (PIU), otherwise known as Internet Addiction, refers to a generalized impulse control disorder involving the problems one experiences in regulating the desire to engage in online activities [1]. In addition to psychological vulnerability, preconditions associated with developing behavior addictions were found to predict PIU. Such conditions include personality trait of high sensation-seeking [7], insecure attachment [8], and problematic interpersonal styles [9]. Interpersonal problems were the authors’ subject of interest because they were more similar to personality traits [27] but more sensitive to change. These problems are considered possible modifiable variables [27,28,29,30]
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