How Does Psychological Distress Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic Impact on Internet Addiction and Instagram Addiction in Emerging Adults?
Int J Environ Res Public Health
; 18(21)2021 10 29.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1488575
ABSTRACT
International research has underlined a worrying increase in Internet and Instagram addiction among emerging adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the role played by alexithymia and psychological distress due to COVID-19 has been evidenced, no study has explored their complex relationship in predicting emerging adults' Internet and Instagram addiction. The present study aimed to verify whether peritraumatic distress due to the COVID-19 pandemic mediated the relationship between emerging adults' alexithymia and their Internet/Instagram addiction, in a sample composed of n = 400 Italian emerging adults. Results showed that females had higher peritraumatic distress due to COVID-19 than males, whereas males had higher externally oriented thinking and higher levels of Internet addiction than females. Emerging adults' psychological distress due to COVID-19 significantly mediated the effect of alexithymia on Internet and Instagram addiction. Our findings supported the presence of a dynamic relationship between individual vulnerabilities and the co-occurrence of other psychological difficulties in predicting emerging adults' Internet and Instagram addiction during the pandemic, with important clinical implications.
Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Psychological Distress
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Adult
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Language:
English
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Ijerph182111382
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