Anxiety sensitivity mediates relations between anxiety and problematic smartphone use severity in Chinese adolescents early in the COVID-19 pandemic

Risk factors for problematic smartphone use (PSU) have rapidly become an important area of research due to the prevalence of smartphones and functional impairment associated with PSU. Our aim was to examine anxiety sensitivity (AS) as a mediating variable between both depression and anxiety with PSU severity. Participants (N = 4,752) from junior and senior high schools in Tianjin, China completed a web-based survey with measures of depression, anxiety, AS, and PSU. Inferential analyses revealed significant differences between males and females on PSU severity (η=.02). Results of structural equation modeling indicated good model fit (CFI=.956;TLI=.954;RMSEA = .05), and that anxiety was positively associated with AS when adjusting for depression (β = .951, S.E. = .043);and AS was significantly associated with greater PSU severity, adjusting for age and sex (β = .474, S.E. = .013). Additionally, AS mediated relations between anxiety and PSU severity (β = .451, S.E. = .024). Current findings are consistent with theoretical models of problematic internet use (I-PACE) and previous research linking AS to other kinds of behavioral addictions (e.g., smoking, alcohol use).

Health-related fake news during the COVID-19 pandemic: perceived trust and information search

Purpose: Health-related online fake news (HOFN) has become a major social problem. HOFN can lead to the spread of ineffective and even harmful remedies. The study aims to understand Internet users' responses to HOFN during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic using the protective action decision model (PADM). Design/methodology/approach: The authors collected pandemic severity data (regional number of confirmed cases) from government websites of the USA and China (Studies 1 and 2), search behavior from Google and Baidu search engines (Studies 1 and 2) and data regarding trust in two online fake news stories from two national surveys (Studies 2 and 3). All data were analyzed using a multi-level linear model. Findings: The research detected negative time-lagged relationships between pandemic severity and regional HOFN search behavior by three actual fake news stories from the USA and China (Study 1). Importantly, trust in HOFN served as a mediator in the time-lagged relationship between pandemic severity and search behavior (Study 2). Additionally, the relationship between pandemic severity and trust in HOFN varied according to individuals' perceived control (Study 3). Originality/value: The authors' results underscore the important role of PADM in understanding Internet users' trust in and search for HOFN. When people trust HOFN, they may seek more information to implement further protective actions. Importantly, it appears that trust in HOFN varies with environmental cues (regional pandemic severity) and with individuals' perceived control, providing insight into developing coping strategies during a pandemic. © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited.