Unveiling the dark side in smartphone addiction: mediation of strain and moderation of hedonic use on well-being

PurposeThe research purpose is to investigate the mediating and moderating relationships between smartphone addiction and well-being (i.e. health-related quality of life).Design/methodology/approachA survey of 236 smartphone users was used to test the research model.FindingsThe structural equation m...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Internet research 2023-03, Vol.33 (1), p.12-38
Main Authors: Moqbel, Murad, Nevo, Saggi, Nah, Fiona Fui-Hoon
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Addictions
Addictive Behavior
Addictive behaviors
Handheld Devices
Lenses
Literature Reviews
Multivariate statistical analysis
Resource conservation
Smartphones
Social networks
Well being
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Summary:PurposeThe research purpose is to investigate the mediating and moderating relationships between smartphone addiction and well-being (i.e. health-related quality of life).Design/methodology/approachA survey of 236 smartphone users was used to test the research model.FindingsThe structural equation modeling analysis results show that smartphone addiction negatively impacts well-being by draining a key personal resource, energy, thus creating strain. The adverse effect of smartphone addiction on users' well-being is found to be more intense when smartphones are used for hedonic purposes.Research limitations/implicationsThrough the conservation of resources theory lens, this study increases our understanding of the role of strain in mediating the negative effect of smartphone addiction on well-being. This study also has practical implications. By exploring the mediating and moderating mechanisms underlying when and how smartphone addiction can be detrimental to well-being, interventions can be carried out to mitigate the adverse effects on well-being.Originality/valuePast research has focused on the antecedents and consequences of smartphone addiction while ignoring the contextual factors of smartphone addiction effects as well as the intervening mechanism through which smartphone addiction impacts well-being. Through the lens of the conservation of resources theory, we close this gap in the literature by providing a better understanding of the mechanism by which smartphone addiction reduces well-being and identifying a relevant contextual factor (i.e. hedonic use) that can worsen the impact of smartphone addiction on well-being.
ISSN:1066-2243
2054-5657
DOI:10.1108/INTR-01-2021-0003