A chain mediation model reveals the association between parental mediation and smartphone addiction of Chinese adolescents

May 6, 2025Scientific reports

How Parental Guidance Relates to Smartphone Addiction in Chinese Teens Through Linked Factors

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Abstract

A study of 5,841 adolescents found that active negatively predicts smartphone addiction.

Restrictive parental mediation is associated with increased smartphone addiction in adolescents.
Parental monitoring is also linked to higher levels of smartphone addiction.
have a separate mediating effect on the relationship between parental mediation and smartphone addiction.
A chained mediating effect exists between basic psychological needs and (FoMO) regarding parental mediation and smartphone addiction.
FoMO does not mediate the relationship between parental mediation and smartphone addiction.

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The family plays an immensely crucial role in the development of adolescents, significantly influencing their behavioral patterns. To explore the impact mechanism of the (active mediation, restrictive mediation, and parental monitoring) on adolescents' smartphone addiction, and analyze the chain-mediating role of and (FoMO). Parental Mediation Scale, Smartphone Addiction Scale, Basic Psychological Needs Scale and Fear of Missing Out Scale were administered to 5,841 adolescents. The sample comprised 2,772 boys (47.46%) and 3,069 girls (52.54%) with an age range of 11.5 to 15.3 years (M = 13.35, SD = 1.29). The results indicated that active mediation could negatively predict adolescents' smartphone addiction, whereas restrictive mediation and parental monitoring could positively predict adolescents' smartphone addiction; and after controlling for sex and age, basic psychological needs had a separate mediating effect on parental mediation and smartphone addiction. Moreover, this study observed a chained mediating effect between basic psychological needs and FoMO on the relationship between parental mediation and smartphone addiction. Meanwhile, FoMO did not have a mediating effect on the relationship between parental mediation and smartphone addiction. Based on social cognitive theory and self-determination theory, this study innovatively integrates parental mediation, adolescents' basic psychological needs, fear of missing out, and smartphone addiction into a coherent model. More importantly, it separately examines the effects of active mediation, restrictive mediation, and parental monitoring within the same group of participants, allowing for a cross-comparison of the three types of parental mediation in the study. This provides a theoretical reference for reducing adolescents' smartphone addiction.

Key numbers

−0.12

Active mediation effect on smartphone addiction

Direct effect of active mediation on smartphone addiction

0.10

Restrictive mediation effect on smartphone addiction

Direct effect of restrictive mediation on smartphone addiction

0.29

Parental monitoring effect on smartphone addiction

Direct effect of parental monitoring on smartphone addiction

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A chain mediation model reveals the association between parental mediation and smartphone addiction of Chinese adolescents

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