Untangling the digital connection: The longitudinal relationships between social well-being and internet gaming problems in adolescents.

BACKGROUND

Internet gaming disorder (IGD) and binge gaming (BG) have evolved into an emerging concern among global children and adolescents. However, studies on the interpersonal/social factors of these internet gaming problems are lacking.

OBJECTIVES

This 1-year two-wave longitudinal study aims to explore the bidirectional causal relationships between social (loneliness and social anxiety) and internet gaming problems (IGD and BG) utilizing cross-lagged models.

METHODS

A cohort of first-year high school students in central China underwent a baseline evaluation in 2018 and a follow-up survey in 2019. IGD, BG, loneliness, and social anxiety were measured by self-reported psychological scales.

RESULTS

Of all the participants, 12.3% (148/1,200) and 11.7% (140/1,200) were classified as having IGD at baseline (T1) and follow-up (T2), respectively. Additionally, 13.4% (161/1,200) at T1 and 13.8% (165/1,200) at T2 of the participants were classified to have BG. Social anxiety at T1 was positively associated with IGD (β = .19, p < .001) and BG (β = .18, p < .001) at T2. The reciprocal effects between BG and IGD were significant and positive; BG at T1 was positively associated with IGD at T2 (β = .12, p < .05), and IGD at T1 showed a positive association with BG at T2 (β = .11, p < .05).

CONCLUSIONS

This study illustrates that social anxiety and binge gaming are significant factors of IGD. Monitoring the interpersonal and behavioral indicators to timely identify those adolescents at high risk of developing IGD is of great value.