Department of Health Policy and Management, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
School of Resource and Environmental Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China.
Front Public Health. 2023 Jan 18;10:1096660. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.1096660. eCollection 2022.
The COVID-19 pandemic and related prevention policies, such as home quarantine or online courses, could increase the risks of experiencing internet addiction and mental health problems among Chinese adolescents. There is a lack of longitudinal evidence to show the association between internet addiction symptoms and psychological consequences (e.g., depressive and anxiety symptoms).
This study aimed to explore the association between internet addiction and depressive and anxiety symptoms before and during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
An effective sample of 7,958 Chinese adolescents was recruited for this two-wave longitudinal survey conducted over a six-month interval. All participants completed two-wave surveys before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. A longitudinal cross-lagged path model was used to analyze the associations between internet addiction and depressive and anxiety symptoms after controlling for four covariates (i.e., age, sex, minority, and COVID-19 influence).
Higher depressive and anxiety symptoms before COVID-19 significantly predicted severe internet addiction during COVID-19. Results showed a significant bidirectional relationship between internet addiction and depressive symptoms. Furthermore, the prevalence of internet addiction displayed an increasing trend over the two waves. Conversely, a reduced prevalence of anxiety and depressive symptoms was observed over the two waves.
This current study provided valuable evidence that psychological problems and internet addiction significantly influenced each other before and during the COVID-19 outbreak. Consequently, the presence of psychological problems before and during the COVID-19 outbreak could indicate internet addiction. Thus, depression- and anxiety-related psychotherapies should be developed to prevent internet addiction among Chinese adolescents.
COVID-19 大流行及相关防控政策（如居家隔离或在线课程）可能会增加中国青少年出现网络成瘾和心理健康问题的风险。目前缺乏纵向证据表明网络成瘾症状与心理后果（如抑郁和焦虑症状）之间存在关联。
本研究旨在探讨 COVID-19 大流行前后网络成瘾与抑郁和焦虑症状之间的关系。
本研究采用两波纵向调查，在 COVID-19 大流行期间对 7958 名中国青少年进行了有效样本招募。所有参与者均在 COVID-19 大流行前后完成了两波调查。在控制了四个协变量（年龄、性别、少数民族和 COVID-19 影响）后，采用纵向交叉滞后路径模型分析了网络成瘾与抑郁和焦虑症状之间的关系。
COVID-19 前较高的抑郁和焦虑症状显著预测了 COVID-19 期间严重的网络成瘾。结果显示网络成瘾与抑郁症状之间存在显著的双向关系。此外，网络成瘾的患病率在两波调查中呈上升趋势。相反，焦虑和抑郁症状的患病率在两波调查中呈下降趋势。
本研究提供了有价值的证据，表明心理问题和网络成瘾在 COVID-19 爆发前后相互影响。因此，COVID-19 爆发前后存在心理问题可能预示着网络成瘾。因此，应开发针对抑郁和焦虑的心理疗法，以预防中国青少年的网络成瘾。
