Chen Chun, Wang Hanbin, Chen Yuran, Li Jingwen, Zhang Yulu, Kalantzis Maria A, Xiao Yueyang, He Jinbo
Division of Applied Psychology, School of Humanities and Social Science, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China.
Division of Applied Psychology, School of Humanities and Social Science, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China; Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United States of America.
Appetite. 2025 Jul 1;211:107987. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2025.107987. Epub 2025 Apr 1.
Problematic Internet use (PIU) is an increasingly prevalent public health concern among Chinese rural adolescents, yet little is known about its underlying socioeconomic determinants. Food insecurity (FI), another ongoing pressing issue in rural Chinese areas, refers to the uncertainty or inability to access nutritionally adequate food in socially acceptable ways, including emotional distress and physical discomfort. However, research examining the intersection of FI and PIU remains scarce. FI is likely to contribute to adolescents' PIU by exacerbating emotional distress. According to the compensatory Internet use theory, adolescents may turn to the Internet as a maladaptive coping strategy to escape FI-related stress. Moreover, empirical research is needed to explore the potential mechanisms within their association among rural Chinese adolescents, where structural and cultural factors may shape this relationship in unique ways. The present study investigated how FI was associated with PIU in rural Chinese adolescents, focusing on social support as a moderator and self-esteem as a mediator among 1654 students (55.44 % girls; M = 16.54 years) from under-resourced rural areas in China. To ensure robustness, we controlled for age, sex, socioeconomic status (SES), and body mass index (BMI). Correlation analyses showed that FI was positively associated with PIU, and social support was negatively associated with PIU. Moderation analyses showed that the association between FI and PIU was heightened in adolescents who reported receiving higher school support (β = 0.09, p = 0.025), family support (β = 0.10, p = 0.005), or peer support (β = 0.08, p = 0.020). Mediation analyses showed that the strengthened associations between FI and PIU due to more school support (B = 0.15) and more peer support (B = 0.07) might lower adolescents' self-esteem, which, in turn, predicted higher PIU, but not family support. The findings illuminate the multifaceted roles of social support and self-esteem in the association between FI and PIU, offering implications for future practice interventions. From a policy perspective, our study can guide resource allocation and intervention efforts in rural communities.
问题性互联网使用（PIU）在中国农村青少年中是一个日益普遍的公共卫生问题，但对其潜在的社会经济决定因素知之甚少。粮食不安全（FI）是中国农村地区另一个持续存在的紧迫问题，指的是以社会可接受的方式获取营养充足食物的不确定性或能力不足，包括情绪困扰和身体不适。然而，研究FI与PIU交叉点的研究仍然很少。FI可能通过加剧情绪困扰导致青少年的PIU。根据补偿性互联网使用理论，青少年可能会将互联网作为一种适应不良的应对策略来逃避与FI相关的压力。此外，需要实证研究来探索中国农村青少年中它们之间关联的潜在机制，在这些地区，结构和文化因素可能以独特的方式塑造这种关系。本研究调查了中国农村青少年中FI与PIU之间的关联，重点关注社会支持作为调节变量以及自尊作为中介变量，研究对象为来自中国资源匮乏农村地区的1654名学生（女生占55.44%；平均年龄M = 16.54岁）。为确保稳健性，我们控制了年龄、性别、社会经济地位（SES）和体重指数（BMI）。相关分析表明，FI与PIU呈正相关，社会支持与PIU呈负相关。调节分析表明，在报告获得较高学校支持（β = 0.09，p = 0.025）、家庭支持（β = 0.10，p = 0.005）或同伴支持（β = 0.08，p = 0.020）的青少年中，FI与PIU之间的关联更强。中介分析表明，由于更多的学校支持（B = 0.15）和更多的同伴支持（B = 0.07）导致的FI与PIU之间更强的关联可能会降低青少年的自尊，而自尊反过来又预示着更高的PIU，但家庭支持并非如此。研究结果揭示了社会支持和自尊在FI与PIU关联中的多方面作用，为未来的实践干预提供了启示。从政策角度来看，我们的研究可以指导农村社区的资源分配和干预工作。
