Abstract
The Internet has experienced a rapid increase in use globally. Specifically, more than 90% of Hong Kong’s citizens use the Internet, and 70% of children in the age group of 6–17 years have daily access to it. However, internet addiction could pose serious social and health issues. Therefore, conducting research to investigate its causes and risk factors is fundamental. The current study examined the relationship between worry and Internet addiction among children in Hong Kong and investigated the moderating effect of the permissive parenting style on such a relationship. The participants consisted of 227 fourth- and fifth-grade students (120 males, 52.9%) with a mean age of 9.55 (standard deviation (SD) = 0.58) in Hong Kong. Each participant was asked to complete the questionnaires, including the Internet Addiction Test for Internet addiction, the Penn State Worry Questionnaire for Children for worry, and the Parental Authority Questionnaire for the permissive parenting style. The results indicated that worry was related to greater Internet addiction among children. Furthermore, there was a moderating effect of the permissive parenting style such that the positive association between worry and Internet addiction was stronger when the permissive parenting style was higher. Our findings imply that parenting styles are influential in the prevention of Internet addiction.
Highlights
A study found that the permissive parenting style moderated the relationship between sensation seeking and problematic internet use in adolescents [55], suggesting that it is possible for the permissive parenting style to moderate the effects of child characteristics on internet addiction
In this study, explored whetherthe the permissive permissive parenting style moderates the relationship we we explored whether parenting style moderates the relationship between worry and Internet addiction among children
We found a moderating the between worry and Internet addiction among children
Summary
With growing accessibility and need, the use of the Internet has increased rapidly over the past few decades [1]. With rapid and advanced development in information technology, more than 90% of the citizens in Hong Kong use the Internet [2], and 70% of children (aged 6 to 17 years) have daily access to it [3]. These statistics imply that Internet use has become essential among the adolescent population. The recent COVID-19 pandemic and the preventive measures (e.g., suspensions of face-to-face classes, lockdown of shops and restaurants) has led to increased use of the Internet in the daily lives of children [4]. Internet addiction has become an increasingly important public health issue worldwide
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