Adverse childhood experience and young adult's problematic Internet use: The role of hostility and loneliness

Jan 16, 2024Child abuse & neglect

How Childhood Trauma, Hostility, and Loneliness Are Linked to Problematic Internet Use in Young Adults

AI simplified

Circadian Biology on OpenScience ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Abstract

Among 1,885 young adults, adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) were associated with increased levels of hostility and emotional loneliness.

ACEs may influence problematic Internet use (PIU) indirectly through increased hostility and emotional loneliness.
Hostility was significantly linked to PIU, with a standardized effect of β = 0.62.
Emotional loneliness also showed a significant association with PIU, with a standardized effect of β = 0.44.
Mediating relationships were identified, such as ACEs leading to hostility which in turn affects PIU.

AI simplified

BACKGROUND: Few studies have explored the relationship between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and problematic Internet use (PIU) during young adulthood. Moreover, even fewer studies have explored the roles of loneliness (social and emotional) and hostility in this relationship.

METHODS: This study used data from the Taiwan Youth Project (2011-2017). The analytical sample included 1885 participants (mean age = 31.3 years). PIU was measured using the short form of Chen's Internet Addiction Scale (2017). ACEs were assessed at the baseline of the adolescent phase (mean age = 14.3 years); this indicator has undergone recent revision. Hostility (three items from the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised) and loneliness (six items from the De Jong Gierveld scale) were measured in 2011 and 2014, respectively.

RESULTS: ACEs were associated with hostility and loneliness (emotional and social). Additionally, hostility (β = 0.62, p < .01) and emotional loneliness (β = 0.44, p < .01) were significantly associated with PIU. Most mediating paths (e.g., ACE → hostility → PIU) were significant, based on the bootstrapping results.

CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that ACEs have a long-term shadow effect on PIU in young adults. ACEs show an indirect association with PIU through both hostility and loneliness, as well as involving the relationship between them.

Full Text

Full text is available at the source.

View full text (XML) ↗View full text ↗

Adverse childhood experience and young adult's problematic Internet use: The role of hostility and loneliness

Abstract

Full Text

You found one interesting study. We’ll send the next 7.

what lands in your inbox each week:

Recent issues from the circadian biology brief

Abstract

Full Text

Related papers

You found one interesting study. We’ll send the next 7.

what lands in your inbox each week:

Recent issues from the circadian biology brief