Associations between internet addiction and psychological problems among adolescents: description and possible explanations

Introduction

Internet addiction (IA) is becoming a significant public health issue that requires urgent attention, especially for adolescents. Previous studies mainly focused on the risk factors of Internet addiction and drawn some conclusions. The purpose of this study is to investigate the Internet addiction status and concurrent psychological problems in adolescent groups, and explore the differences in the relationship between IA and psychological problems in adolescents from gender and grade.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted among students of junior and senior high school in 21 prefecture-level cities of Guangdong Province. The Young Diagnostic Questionnaire (YDQ) and the validated Chinese version of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) were used to assess participants' Internet addiction and psychological status. Two-way ANOVA was used to verify the interaction between gender and Internet addiction, grade and Internet addiction on psychological problems. When the interaction was statistically significant, simple effect analysis was further carried out.

Results

The prevalence of problematic Internet use (PIU), depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms among adolescents were 16.32%, 30.16%, 35.97% and 18.80% respectively. Although the prevalence of PIU among boys (17.89%) was higher than that of girls (14.86%), girls in PIU group had the highest scores of depression, anxiety and stress. Similarly, the interaction between grade and Internet addiction was also significant (p < 0.05). Although the prevalence of PIU was the highest in grade 9 (17.29%), the adverse effects of Internet addiction on psychological problems were different in different grades.

Discussion

Internet addiction was prevalent among adolescents in Guangdong province, and psychological problems also cannot be ignored. Thus, this study suggests that long-term follow-ups should be included in mental health programs of adolescents to monitor the development of Internet addiction and psychological problems.

Adaptation and validity of the Trait Meta-Mood scale for Brazilian adolescents

The current study aimed to present the process of adaption and validity evidence of the Trait Meta-Mood Scale (TMMS-24) for the population of Brazilian school adolescents. The study included 4,681 students aged 10 to 19 years old, attending public schools in 12 cities in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. According to the original scale, the exploratory and confirmatory factorial analyses indicated adequate fit indexes and satisfactory reliability for the model composed of 24 items and three factors (attention, clarity, and repair). The scale showed a significant positive correlation with life satisfaction and psychological well-being. The results reveal that the TMMS-24 is adequate for the assessment of emotional intelligence among Brazilian adolescents and may contribute to research and interventions regarding emotional competencies among this population.

Analyzing protective factors for adolescents' mental health during COVID-19 pandemic in Spain: A longitudinal study

OBJECTIVE

This study examined the protective role of self-esteem and perceived emotional intelligence on mental health problems in Spanish adolescents during COVID-19 pandemic.

DESIGN

Participants (N = 139; Mage = 13.83 years, SD = 0.96; 63.8% female) completed measures before the outbreak of COVID-19 (T1) and during the first wave of the pandemic in Spain (T2).

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Participants self-reported emotional intelligence, self-esteem, mental health problems and suicidal behavior.

RESULTS

Adolescent mental health problems were equally affected by COVID-19 pandemic according to gender, age and lockdown conditions. Adolescents with low levels of emotional intelligence and self-esteem at T1 showed a significant decrease in self-reported anxiety, depression, stress and suicidal behavior at T2. However, adolescents with average or high levels of emotional intelligence and self-esteem at T1 showed no significant changes in mental health problems at T2. Self-esteem at T1 meditated the relationships between emotional intelligence at T1 (clarity and repair) and emotional symptoms at T2 (depression, anxiety and stress). Furthermore, the relationship between self-esteem and anxiety symptoms was moderated by the number of people living together during COVID-19 lockdown.

CONCLUSION

Our findings highlight the protective role of pre-pandemic development of self-esteem and emotional intelligence in mitigating the impact of COVID-19 outbreak on adolescent mental health during the pandemic.

'Feeling' or 'sensing' the future? Testing for anomalous cognitions in clinical versus healthy populations

In the study and treatment of psychosis, emotional intelligence (EI) and thinking styles are important patient characteristics for successful outcomes in clinical intervention. Anticipation of unpredictable stimuli (AUS) may be understood as an anomalous perception and anomalous cognition in which an individual supposedly senses and recognizes future stimuli in an unexpected way, also referred to as “hunches or premonitions.” This examined the roles of EI and thinking styles in AUSs in convenience samples of healthy participants (n = 237) versus patients diagnosed with psychosis (n = 118). We adjusted several quadratic and exponential regression models according to the obtained functions. Group means were also compared to examine differences in EI scores for participants with psychosis compared to healthy participants. In the healthy group, EI predicted AUSs with a weight between 42% and 58%. Thinking styles were not correlated with AUSs. However, EI was not correlated with AUSs in the clinical group. Patients with psychosis tended to score higher on AUSs and lower on EI and thinking styles compared to participants in the healthy group. We discuss EI as a variable that can contextualize some anomalous perceptions which are otherwise difficult to classify or measure within the classic psychosis continuum model.

Serious game to promote socioemotional learning and mental health (emoTIC): a study protocol for randomised controlled trial

INTRODUCTION

The development of emotional competences may be a protective factor for mental health problems, promoting well-being at such a complex age as adolescence. Technologies may be used to carry out this empowerment because adolescents are attracted to them. The purpose of the study is to design a serious game based on the Mayer et al's emotional intelligence ability model and analyse the effectiveness of the emoTIC programme to develop emotional competences, well-being, mental health, and personal strengths immediately after completion and at 12 months.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

The new version of emoTIC will be designed following the suggestions of the adolescents who participated in the pilot study and the results obtained from the statistical analysis. The participants will be 385 adolescents aged 11-16 years who will be randomly assigned to the control group and the experimental group. The experimental group will complete the emoTIC programme. The primary outcomes include emotional competences and subjective well-being. The secondary outcomes are self-esteem; general self-efficacy; personality; social and personal responsibility; school social climate; somatic complaints; depression, anxiety and stress symptoms; emotional and behavioural difficulties; suicidal behaviour; and subjective happiness. Data will be collected at three moments: baseline (T1), immediately post-intervention (T2) and 12-month follow-up (T3). The effectiveness of the programme will be analysed using different statistical packages.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

The study has been approved by the Ethics Commission of the University of Valencia (H152865096049), and the standards of the Declaration of Helsinki to collect the data will be followed. Results will be disseminated across the scientific community.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

ClinicalTrials.gov Registry (NCT04414449).

TRIAL SPONSOR

University of Valencia. Principal investigator: Inmaculada Montoya-Castilla.

Application of S-1 Bifactor Model to Evaluate the Structural Validity of TMMS-24

(1) Background: Recent studies have shown that the internal structure of TMMS-24 can be conceptualized as a bifactor. However, these studies, based exclusively on the evaluation of the fit of the model, fail to show the existence of a general factor of strong emotional intelligence and have neglected the evaluation of the specific factors of attention, clarity and repair. The main goal of this work is to evaluate the degree of determination and reliability of the specific factors of TMMS-24 using a bifactor S-1 model. (2) Methods: We administered TMMS-24 to a sample of 384 students from middle and high schools (58.1% girls; mean age = 15.5; SD = 1.8). (3) Results: The specific TMMS-24 factors are better determined and present a higher internal consistency than the general factor. Furthermore, the bifactor S-1 model shows the existence of a hierarchical relationship between the attention factor and the clarity and repair factors. The S-1 bifactor model is the only one that was shown to be invariant as a function of the sex of the participants. (4) Conclusions: The S-1 bifactor model has proven to be a promising tool for capturing the structural complexity of TMMS-24. Its application indicates that it is not advisable to use the sum score of the items, since it would be contaminated by the attention factor. In addition, this score would not be invariant either, that is, comparisons by sex would be invalid.

EmoTIC: Impact of a game-based social-emotional programme on adolescents

INTRODUCTION

Technologies provide a brilliant opportunity to promote social-emotional competences, well-being and adjustment in adolescence. Game-based programmes and serious games are digital tools that pursue an educational goal in an attractive environment for adolescents. The purpose of this study was therefore to determine the effectiveness of emoTIC, a game-based social-emotional programme designed according to Mayer, Caruso, and Salovey's model of emotional intelligence.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The participants were 119 adolescents between 11 and 15 years, randomly assigned to the experimental group and the control group. The adolescents completed questionnaires to assess their emotional intelligence, self-esteem, affect balance, difficulties, prosocial behaviour, depression, anxiety and stress.

RESULTS

The MANCOVA results showed that adolescents who completed the game-based programme had improved self-esteem, affect balance, emotional symptoms, behavioural problems, and hyperactivity (Wilks' λ = .77; F = 2.10; p = .035). Hierarchical multiple regression indicated that adolescents in the experimental group had a greater change in self-esteem and affect balance (positive β), while their emotional problems and hyperactivity decreased (negative β). Anxiety moderated the influence of the intervention on self-esteem (b = .04; t = -2.55; p ≤ .05; LLCI = -0.43, ULCI = -0.05). Adolescents with low or medium anxiety improved their self-esteem with the intervention, while those with high anxiety did not develop it.

CONCLUSIONS

The use of technology in social-emotional programmes could be the first step in increasing adolescents' interest in emotions and emoTIC could be considered a useful programme which influences their personal, emotional and social factors.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Clinical Trial identifier: NCT04414449.

Psychological symptoms are associated with screen and exercise time: a cross-sectional study of Chinese adolescents

Background

Mental disorders among adolescents have become a worldwide public health problem. This study aimed to estimate the best combination of exercise time and screen time to promote the mental health of Chinese adolescents.

Methods

Participants included 7200 Chinese adolescents aged 13–18 years from six regions of China. Screen and exercise time data were collected via a self-rated questionnaire. Psychological symptoms (e.g., often feeling depressed, school-weary) were evaluated with the “Multidimensional Sub-health Questionnaire of Adolescents”. Chi-squared tests and logistic regression analysis were conducted to investigate the differences in and correlations among screen time, exercise time, and psychological symptoms.

Results

The overall detection rate of psychological symptoms among Chinese adolescents was 21.4% (22.1% for boys and 20.6% for girls). Psychological symptom detection rates were lowest among adolescents with 1–2 h/d of screen time (19.5%) and those with 30–60 min/d of exercise time (17.3%). Screen time > 2 h/d (OR = 1.38, P < 0.001) and exercise time < 30 min/d (OR = 1.62, P < 0.001) were positively correlated with psychological symptoms.

Conclusion

Screen and exercise time are associated with psychological symptoms in Chinese adolescents. A combination of 1–2 h/d of screen time and 30–60 min/d of exercise time is provided as a reference for better mental health.

To know or not to know? Mentalization as protection from somatic complaints

Somatization processes are usually associated with a lack of insight or with emotional unawareness, especially in adolescents where the ability for self-reflection is beginning to mature. However, the extent to which different levels of insight explain variations in somatization remains understudied. This study aimed to evaluate whether high-level emotional awareness (comprehension) but not low-level awareness (only attention) is needed to psychologically cope with suffering, thus leading to lower somatization. Specific predictions were: 1) High attention along with High comprehension will be associated with significantly lower frequency of somatic complaints than other combinations (Low attention and Low comprehension, or High attention but Low comprehension); 2) In absence of comprehension, no attention will be more optimal than attention only, because only-attention might work as an amplificatory of suffering without the possibility of processing it. Self-reports of meta-cognitive processes, somatization, and control variables were obtained from 264 adolescents from a non-clinical population (54.5% female; aged 12-18, M = 14.7, SD = 1.7). In line with expectations, results revealed significant differences in the effects of insight positions on somatization: Attention+Comprehension (M = 4.9, SE = 0.9) < Nothing (M = 7.1, SE = 0.3) < Only attention (M = 8.9, SE = 0.7). Compared to Nothing, Attention+comprehension was associated with significantly reduced somatic complaints (B = -2.2, p = 0.03, 95% CI -4,1 to 0.2). However, Only attention was associated with increased somatic complaints compared to the other two conditions (B = 1.8, p = 0.03, 95% CI 0.2 to 3.4; B = 4, CI 95% 1.6-6.3, p = 0.001, respectively). This highlights the role of higher-order awareness (i.e., comprehension or clarity) in the processing of suffering and stresses its value in the adaptive coping of emotional distress.

A Cluster Randomized-Controlled Trial of the MindOut Social and Emotional Learning Program for Disadvantaged Post-Primary School Students

School-based social and emotional learning programs aim to provide students with the skills they need to deal with life challenges, thereby enhancing their social and emotional wellbeing, academic outcomes, and reducing their risk of mental health difficulties. While there is a robust evidence base on the effectiveness of these programs originating from the US, there is a relative paucity of research on how these programs impact young people in other county contexts, especially for older adolescents and those at higher risk. This study sets out to address this research gap by evaluating the effectiveness of a social emotional learning program designed for older adolescents in Ireland, the MindOut program. MindOut is a universal school-based social and emotional learning program designed for older adolescents in Ireland which was developed based on a common elements approach underpinned by CASEL's framework. Employing a cluster randomized-controlled trial, data on social and emotional skills, academic performance and mental health outcomes were collected from students (n = 497; 51.1% female) ages 15-18 years in 32 disadvantaged schools. There were significant improvements in intervention students' social and emotional skills including, reduced suppression of emotions (p = 0.035), use of more positive coping strategies [reduced avoidance coping p = < 0.001) and increased social support coping p = 0.044)]. Improvements in mental health and wellbeing were also found with significantly reduced levels of stress (p = 0.017) and depressive symptoms (p = 0.030) as well as reduced anxiety scores for females students (p = 0.044). These short-term evaluation findings support the positive impact of school-based social and emotional learning programs, such as MindOut, when designed to be both age and culturally appropriate and delivered to older adolescents in disadvantaged schools.

Factor Invariance of the Trait Meta-Mood Scale-24 in a Sample of Chilean Adolescents

The purpose of this study is to adapt the Trait Meta-Mood Scale-24 (TMMS-24; Fernández-Berrocal, Extremera, & Ramos, 2004, Spanish short version of the TMMS, Salovey, Mayer, Goldman, Turvey, & Palfai, 1995) to the Chilean adolescent population (13-17 years), analyzing the psychometric properties of the instrument through confirmatory factor analyses, factor invariance analysis, and latent mean differences. For this purpose, a sample of 3,255 secondary and high school students, between 12 and 18 years old (M = 15.28, SD = 1.24), were recruited. The results confirm the measurement invariance and structure of TMMS-24 scores by sex and age. The results of the latent mean analysis show the existence of significant differences associated with sex and age in the TMMS-24 attention to feelings factor. The adequate psychometric properties of the TMMS-24 show that it is valid for the Chilean adolescent population, thus covering the existing gap in this context.

Bullying: The impact of teacher management and trait emotional intelligence

BACKGROUND

The bullying phenomenon has serious consequences for those that are involved. In order to find more effective ways to eradicate it from the schools, more research is needed. In this context, teacher management and emotional intelligence (EI) are shown to be relevant keys to consider.

AIM

The aim of this study was to analyse the ways in which teacher management and trait EI affect involvement in bullying aggression and victimization.

SAMPLE

A total of 2,806 Spanish schoolchildren (51.8% girls; Age M = 15.44; SD = 1.79) participated in this transversal study.

METHODS

Self-report questionnaires were administrated; four of the dimensions of the Schoolwide Climate Scale: Bullying victimization; bullying aggression; positive teacher management; and negative teacher management. They also completed the Spanish version of the TMMS-24 EI questionnaire. After encoding the data, six structural equation models were created to study the direct and joint effects of teacher management and trait EI on bullying aggression and victimization. The models were run for both the whole sample and split samples based on the education cycles and sex.

RESULTS

Results showed that both positive and negative teacher management were closely linked to involvement in bullying aggression and victimization. EI was also found to be directly related to bullying involvement. Furthermore, results revealed that teacher management was directly related to trait EI. Education cycle differences were found, but no sex-specific differences were apparent in the sample.

CONCLUSIONS

Conclusions of the study highlight the important role that teacher management plays with regard to bullying involvement and trait EI, and include a discussion of the need to include teacher management in bullying prevention programmes at schools.