Citation

Dou K, Wang LX, Li JB, Wang GD, Li YY, Huang YT. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020; 17(15): e5472.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, MDPI: Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute)

DOI

10.3390/ijerph17155472

PMID

32751334

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: The mobile phone (MP) is an indispensable digital device in adolescents' daily lives in the contemporary era, but being addicted to MP can lead to more risk-taking behavior. However, little is known about the mediating and moderating mechanisms underlying this relation. To address the gaps in the literature, the present study examined the idea that MP addiction is associated with reduced self-control, which further associates with increased risk-taking behavior. In addition, this study also investigated the moderation effect of adolescent sex in the association between MP addiction and self-control.

METHODS: A three-wave longitudinal study, each wave spanning six months apart, was conducted in a sample of Chinese adolescents (final N = 333, 57.4% girls).

RESULTS: Results of the moderated mediation model suggest that after controlling for demographic variables and baseline levels of self-control and risk-taking behavior, MP addiction at T1 positively predicted increased risk-taking behavior at T3 through reduced self-control at T2 for girls but not for boys.

CONCLUSIONS: Theoretically, these findings contribute to the understanding about the working processes in the association between MP addiction and risk-taking behavior in adolescents. Practically, the results implied that boosting self-control appeared as a promising way to reduce girls' risk-taking behavior, particularly for those who are addicted to MPs.

Language: en

Keywords

adolescents; self-control; sex; mobile phone addiction; risk-taking behavior