Social-Emotional Learning Competencies and Problematic Internet Use among Chinese Adolescents: A Structural Equation Modeling Analysis.

Chun Chen,Qian Nie,Chunyan Yang

doi:10.3390/ijerph18063091

Abstract

To advance the understanding about social-cognitive factors related to Chinese adolescents’ experience with problematic Internet use (PIU), we examined the associations between social-emotional learning (SEL) competencies (i.e., responsible decision-making, social awareness, self-management, self-awareness, and social relationship) and problematic Internet use (PIU) among 1141 11th grade high school students from Southwest China. Through comparing the latent means of PIU across students with different demographic background (i.e., gender, social-economic status, left-behind status), the study found that male students endorsed higher levels of overall PIU and more problematic time management with Internet use than female students. No latent PIU mean differences were observed across family income and students’ left-behind status. Using structural equation modeling (SEM) while controlling for demographic factors, overall SEL competencies were found to have a significantly negative association with PIU. Meanwhile, all five SEL domains were also negatively associated with students’ PIU. The findings imply the importance of fostering SEL competencies in preventing PIU among Chinese adolescents. The study provides important practical implications for informing school-based SEL competencies programs for PIU prevention among Chinese youths.

Highlights

When comparing across students’ family income level and across students’ left-behind status, no differences were observed on the latent means of problematic Internet use (PIU)
The findings revealed that male students reported more frequent PIU than female students, but no differences were observed among the family income level and students’ left-behind status
The present study examined the broader construct of social awareness, there is a lack of study on perspective-taking and PIU

Summary

Introduction

To advance the understanding about social-cognitive factors related to Chinese adolescents’ experience with problematic Internet use (PIU), we examined the associations between social-emotional learning (SEL) competencies (i.e., responsible decision-making, social awareness, self-management, self-awareness, and social relationship) and problematic Internet use (PIU) among. Through comparing the latent means of PIU across students with different demographic background (i.e., gender, social-economic status, left-behind status), the study found that male students endorsed higher levels of overall PIU and more problematic time management with Internet use than female students. Using structural equation modeling (SEM) while controlling for demographic factors, overall SEL competencies were found to have a significantly negative association with PIU. The findings imply the importance of fostering SEL competencies in preventing PIU among Chinese adolescents. The study provides important practical implications for informing school-based SEL competencies programs for PIU prevention among.

Objectives

Results

Discussion

Conclusion