Mobile phone addiction and emptiness among Chinese college students: the chain mediating role of attention control and self-concept clarity

• Published in: Current psychology (New Brunswick, N.J.) N.J.), 2024-08, Vol.43 (30), p.25297-25310
• Main Authors: Xiao, Qing-Lu, Ding, Ya-Qiong, Cao, Xiao-Xuan, Chen, Wan-Yi, Lian, Shuai-Lei, Zhu, Xiao-Wei
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Addictions; Behavioral Science and Psychology; Cellular telephones; College students; Psychology; Self esteem; Social Sciences
• ISSN: 1046-1310; 1936-4733
• DOI: 10.1007/s12144-024-06221-z

Although mobile phones can provide temporary sensory pleasure to satisfy people’s psychological needs, prolonged use of mobile phones may lead to unpleasant and even empty feelings. Thus, this study constructed a chain mediating model to examine the relationship between mobile phone addiction and emptiness among Chinese college students. A sample of 557 college students completed reliable self-reported questionnaires for all constructs. This study found that mobile phone addiction could positively predict emptiness and negatively predict attention control and self-concept clarity. Besides, both attention control and self-concept clarity could mediate the association between mobile phone addiction and emptiness. Meanwhile, attention control and self-concept clarity could play a chain mediating role in mobile phone addiction and emptiness. Research suggests that as university students increasingly use mobile phones, their attention resources are heavily depleted, making it hard to integrate personal information accurately. This may lead to a loss of self-concept and emptiness. Recognizing the adverse impact of excessive mobile phone use on students’ well-being, it’s crucial to emphasize attention control and wise resource utilization, encouraging positive self-development.