School Belongingness as a Mediator in the Relationship Between Self-Reported PTSD and Cyber Victimization: Sex Differences.

ABSTRACT: The incidence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. Traumatized adolescents might cope with maladaptive strategies such as increased Internet usage, which might be a risk for cyber victimization. We investigated the relationship between self-reported PTSD and cyber victimization and the mediator role of school belongingness in this relationship. The sample consisted of 292 adolescents ages 11-14 years old (M = 12.53, SD = 0.71; nfemale = 165, 56.1%; nmale = 129, 43.9%). Results show that males are more likely to be cyber victims and have lower levels of school belongingness than females. In addition, results supported the association between higher levels of PTSD and higher levels of cyber victimization. Traumatized adolescents with high levels of school belongingness are less likely to be cyber victims. These findings highlight the importance of school-related personal and relational characteristics in promoting adolescent mental health.

Is the relationship between problematic mobile phone use and mental health problems mediated by fear of missing out and escapism?

INTRODUCTION: Individuals with problematic mobile phone use often report mental health problems, however, little is known about factors which mediate this association. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the mediating role of fear of missing out (FoMO) and escapism in an attempt to explain the relationship between problematic mobile phone use and mental health problems. METHOD: A total of 235 undergraduate students in Turkey participated in this study. These participants completed a set of questionnaires to measure fear of missing out, problematic mobile phone use, escapism, depression, anxiety, stress, and worry severity. RESULTS: Participants with a high level of problematic mobile phone use also had a high level of mental health problems, FoMO, and escapism. The association between problematic mobile phone use and mental health problems was not mediated by FoMO and escapism. CONCLUSION: Personal characteristics such as emotional regulation and self-regulation need to be examined in future studies in order to determine their potential mediating role in explaining the association between problematic mobile phone use and mental health problems.

Adolescents' and parents' anxiety during COVID-19: is there a role of cyberchondriasis and emotion regulation through the internet?

COVID-19 pandemic period presents a unique context for the investigation of anxiety symptoms among adolescents and their parents. This study investigated adolescents' and their parents' anxiety symptoms, the effects of parental cyberchondriasis and adolescents' emotion regulation on anxiety symptoms. The sample consisted of 155 adolescents (x̅ = 14.63, SD = 2.04) and one of their parents (N = 155). The results showed that after controlling for adolescents' gender and emotion regulation, parental cyberchondriasis and anxiety accounted for an important variance in adolescents' anxiety. Especially higher parental anxiety and compulsion were associated with higher anxiety, whereas higher distress was associated with lower anxiety. Besides, two dimensions of cyberchondriasis, compulsion, and distress, together with adolescent anxiety, predicted parental anxiety during COVID-19. While compulsion was negatively associated with anxiety, distress, and adolescent anxiety were positively associated with it. The dimensions of cyberchondriasis affected anxiety differently among adolescents and their parents. The results were discussed in terms of the implications for intervention from the ecological viewpoint.