The Association between Parental Psychological Control, Deviant Peer Affiliation, and Internet Gaming Disorder among Chinese Adolescents: A Two-Year Longitudinal Study

Shuang Lin, Chengfu Yu, Jun Chen, Jing Sheng, Yousong Hu and Lin Zhong
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Shuang Lin: School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
Chengfu Yu: Department of Psychology and Research Center of Adolescent Psychology and Behavior, School of Education, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou 510006, China
Jun Chen: School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
Jing Sheng: School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
Yousong Hu: School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
Lin Zhong: School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 21, 1-13

Abstract: Abundant empirical research indicates a relationship between parental psychological control and adolescent Internet gaming disorder (IGD), but the direction and underlying mechanism of this association remain unclear. Using a two-year longitudinal design across three time points, the present study examined the reciprocal processes between parental psychological control and IGD and explored whether deviant peer affiliation explains this bidirectional association. The sample consisted of 908 participants (480 boys and 428 girls) who participated in three measurements and completed questionnaires assessing parental psychological control, deviant peer affiliation, and IGD. Autoregressive cross-lagged models indicated a direct reciprocal relationship between parental psychological control and IGD. Furthermore, the results showed that parental psychological control exerts an indirect effect on adolescent IGD via deviant peer affiliation, but the inverse indirect effect via deviant peer affiliation was non-significant. Knowledge regarding the direct and underlying mechanisms of the reciprocal relationship between parental psychological control and IGD has important implications for prevention and intervention of adolescent IGD.

Keywords: Internet gaming disorder; parental psychological control; deviant peer affiliation; longitudinal research; adolescent (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (11)

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