Psychology Research and Behavior Management (Oct 2021)
Why are Individuals with Alexithymia Symptoms More Likely to Have Mobile Phone Addiction? The Multiple Mediating Roles of Social Interaction Anxiousness and Boredom Proneness
Abstract
Weilong Xiao,1,2,* Hui Zhou,3,* Xinwei Li,1 Xue Lin4 1School of Teacher Education, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, People’s Republic of China; 2School of Education, Fujian Polytechnic Normal University, Fuzhou, People’s Republic of China; 3Jinhua Advanced Research Institute, Jinhua, People’s Republic of China; 4Psychological Counseling Center of Student Affairs Office, Zhangzhou City College, Zhangzhou, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Xinwei Li; Xue Lin Email [email protected]; [email protected]: Previous studies have investigated the relationship between alexithymia and problematic mobile phone use (PMPU). However, yet gaps in identifying the internal mechanisms of this relationship remain. Hence, based on the Interaction of Person–Affect–Cognition–Execution model, the current research examined the mediating roles of college students’ social interaction anxiousness (SIA) and boredom proneness (BPS) in the relationship between alexithymia and PMPU.Methods: A total of 1300 college students (Mage = 20.36 years, SD = 0.97) were recruited from two universities in the southeast of China to complete a series of questionnaires, including the Toronto alexithymia scale, SIA scale, BPS scale, and mobile phone addiction index questionnaire. In order to conduct conservative predictions, the demographic variables (ie, gender) were controlled as covariates.Results: The results of multiple mediation analysis showed that (1) alexithymia was positively linked with PMPU; (2) both SIA and BPS mediated the link between alexithymia and PMPU; and (3) a serial indirect pathway emerged (ie, alexithymia → SIA → BPS → PMPU).Conclusion: These findings indicated that alexithymia could influence PMPU in a simple indirect way (parallel mediation) and in a complex indirect way (serial mediation). Besides, these findings provide some insights into the prevention and intervention of PMPU.Keywords: alexithymia, social interaction anxiousness, boredom proneness, problematic mobile phone use, college students
