Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Mar 29;18(7):3542.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph18073542.

Parent-Adolescent Communication, School Engagement, and Internet Addiction among Chinese Adolescents: The Moderating Effect of Rejection Sensitivity

Jingjing Li  1 , Chengfu Yu  2 , Shuangju Zhen  1 , Wei Zhang  1
Affiliations

Parent-Adolescent Communication, School Engagement, and Internet Addiction among Chinese Adolescents: The Moderating Effect of Rejection Sensitivity

Jingjing Li et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Although a large body of research has indicated that parent-adolescent communication is a crucial protective factor for adolescent Internet addiction, the mediating and moderating mechanisms underlying this relationship remain unclear. To address this research gap, this study, based on social control theory and the organism-environment interaction model, was designed to test whether school engagement mediated the relationship between parent-adolescent communication and adolescent Internet addiction and whether this mediating effect was moderated by rejection sensitivity. A sample of 1006 adolescents (Meanage = 13.16 years, SD = 0.67) anonymously completed the questionnaires. The results showed that the positive association between parent-adolescent communication and adolescent Internet addiction was mediated by school engagement. Moreover, this indirect link was stronger among adolescents with high rejection sensitivity than those with low rejection sensitivity. These findings highlighted school engagement as a potential mechanism linking parent-adolescent communication to adolescent Internet addiction, with high rejection sensitivity being an important risk factor amplifying this indirect effect. Intervention programs aimed at reducing Internet addiction among adolescents might benefit from the current research.

Keywords: Internet addiction; parent-adolescent communication; rejection sensitivity; school engagement.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The proposed mediated moderation model. Note: PAC = parent-adolescent communication.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Model of the mediating role of school engagement between parent-adolescent communication and Internet addiction. Note: PAC = parent-adolescent communication. Values are standardized coefficients. Paths between gender, age, sensation-seeking, and each of the variables in the model are not displayed. Of those paths, the following were significant: effect of sensation-seeking on school engagement (β = −0.13, t = −4.29, p < 0.001, 95% CI [−0.19, −0.07]) and Internet addiction (β = 0.10, t = 2.97, p < 0.01, 95% CI [0.03, 0.16]). * p < 0.05, *** p < 0.001.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Model of the moderating role of rejection sensitivity in the indirect relationship between parent-adolescent communication and Internet addiction. Note: PAC = parent-adolescent communication. Values are standardized coefficients. Paths between gender, age, sensation-seeking, and each of the variables in the model are not displayed. Of those paths, the following were significant: the effects of sensation-seeking on school engagement (β = −0.12, t = −4.04, p < 0.001, 95% CI [−0.18, −0.06]) and Internet addiction (β = 0.08, t = 2.53, p < 0.05, 95% CI [0.02, 0.14]); gender on Internet addiction (β = 0.12, t = 4.17, p < 0.001, 95% CI [0.07, 0.18]). * p < 0.05, *** p < 0.001.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Internet addiction among adolescents as a function of school engagement and rejection sensitivity.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Young K.S. Internet addiction: The emergence of a new clinical disorder. Cyberpsychol. Behav. 1998;1:237–244. doi: 10.1089/cpb.1998.1.237. - DOI
    1. Wang Y., Zhao Y., Liu L., Chen Y., Jin Y. The current situation of internet addiction and its impact on sleep quality and self-injury behavior in Chinese medical students. Psychiatr. Investig. 2020;17:385. doi: 10.30773/pi.2019.0131e. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Song J., Ma C., Gu C., Zuo B. What Matters Most to the Left-Behind Children’s Life Satisfaction and School Engagement: Parent or Grandparent? J. Child Family Stud. 2018;27:2481–2490. doi: 10.1007/s10826-018-1086-4. - DOI
    1. Spada M.M. An overview of problematic internet use. Addic. Behav. 2014;39:3–6. doi: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2013.09.007. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Park S., Kang M., Kim E. Social relationship on problematic Internet use (PIU) among adolescents in South Korea: A moderated mediation model of self-esteem and self-control. Comput. Hum. Behav. 2014;38:349–357. doi: 10.1016/j.chb.2014.06.005. - DOI

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources

  NODES
Association 2
INTERN 31
Note 4
twitter 2