Volume 4, Issue 2 (June 2025)
IJER 2025, 4(2): 1-11 |
Back to browse issues page
Download citation:
BibTeX | RIS | EndNote | Medlars | ProCite | Reference Manager | RefWorks
Send citation to:
BibTeX | RIS | EndNote | Medlars | ProCite | Reference Manager | RefWorks
Send citation to:
Mansobi M, Parandin S. (2025). Problematic Smartphone Use and Adolescent Depression Symptoms: The Mediating Role of Emotional Dysregulation (A Correlational Study). IJER. 4(2), 1-11.
URL: http://ijer.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-458-en.html
URL: http://ijer.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-458-en.html
1- Department of psychology, IsG.C., Islamic Azad University, Islamabad Gharb, Iran.
2- Department of psychology, IsG.C., Islamic Azad University, Islamabad Gharb, Iran. ,shima.parandin@iau.ac.ir
2- Department of psychology, IsG.C., Islamic Azad University, Islamabad Gharb, Iran. ,
Abstract: (1135 Views)
Objective: This study aimed to investigate the association between problematic smartphone use (PSU) and depressive symptoms in adolescents, with a focus on the mediating role of emotional dysregulation.
Methods: A cross-sectional correlational design was employed. The statistical population consisted of middle and high school students aged 12–18 years in one Iranian province. Using multistage cluster sampling, 320 students (M_age = 15.4, SD = 1.7) were selected. Instruments included the Smartphone Addiction Scale–Short Version (SAS-SV), the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale–16 (DERS-16), and the Patient Health Questionnaire–9 (PHQ-9). Validated Persian versions of all instruments were used. Data analysis involved descriptive statistics, the Shapiro–Wilk test for normality, Pearson’s correlation, hierarchical regression (controlling for age and gender), and mediation analysis using PROCESS (Model 4) with 5000 bootstrap samples.
Results: Significant positive correlations were observed among variables: PSU–depression (r = .41), PSU–emotional dysregulation (r = .48), and emotional dysregulation–depression (r = .55), all p < .001. Hierarchical regression showed R² increased from .05 (age, gender) to .17 with PSU and to .39 with emotional dysregulation (ΔR² = .12 and .22; both p < .001). Mediation analysis revealed a significant indirect effect of PSU on depression via emotional dysregulation (ab = .12; 95% CI [.09, .16]). Since the direct effect remained significant (c′ = .12), partial mediation was supported (VAF ≈ 50%).
Conclusions: The findings highlight emotional dysregulation as a key mechanism linking problematic smartphone use to depressive symptoms in adolescents. While part of the effect of PSU on depression is direct, enhancing emotion regulation skills may serve as an effective school-based intervention strategy to mitigate the adverse psychological consequences of problematic smartphone use.
Methods: A cross-sectional correlational design was employed. The statistical population consisted of middle and high school students aged 12–18 years in one Iranian province. Using multistage cluster sampling, 320 students (M_age = 15.4, SD = 1.7) were selected. Instruments included the Smartphone Addiction Scale–Short Version (SAS-SV), the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale–16 (DERS-16), and the Patient Health Questionnaire–9 (PHQ-9). Validated Persian versions of all instruments were used. Data analysis involved descriptive statistics, the Shapiro–Wilk test for normality, Pearson’s correlation, hierarchical regression (controlling for age and gender), and mediation analysis using PROCESS (Model 4) with 5000 bootstrap samples.
Results: Significant positive correlations were observed among variables: PSU–depression (r = .41), PSU–emotional dysregulation (r = .48), and emotional dysregulation–depression (r = .55), all p < .001. Hierarchical regression showed R² increased from .05 (age, gender) to .17 with PSU and to .39 with emotional dysregulation (ΔR² = .12 and .22; both p < .001). Mediation analysis revealed a significant indirect effect of PSU on depression via emotional dysregulation (ab = .12; 95% CI [.09, .16]). Since the direct effect remained significant (c′ = .12), partial mediation was supported (VAF ≈ 50%).
Conclusions: The findings highlight emotional dysregulation as a key mechanism linking problematic smartphone use to depressive symptoms in adolescents. While part of the effect of PSU on depression is direct, enhancing emotion regulation skills may serve as an effective school-based intervention strategy to mitigate the adverse psychological consequences of problematic smartphone use.
Type of Study: Original |
Subject:
Educational Studies
Received: 2025/01/10 | Accepted: 2025/03/21 | Published: 2025/06/1
Received: 2025/01/10 | Accepted: 2025/03/21 | Published: 2025/06/1
References
1. Arrivillaga, C., Elhai, J. D., Rey, L., & Extremera, N. (2023). Depressive symptomatology is associated with problematic smartphone use severity in adolescents: The mediating role of cognitive emotion regulation strategies. Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, 17(3), Article 2. [DOI:10.5817/CP2023-3-2]
2. Azizi, A., Emamian, M. H., Hashemi, H., & Fotouhi, A. (2024). Smartphone addiction in Iranian schoolchildren: A population-based study. Scientific Reports, 14, 21647. [DOI:10.1038/s41598-024-73816-8]
3. Brand, M., Müller, A., Wegmann, E., Potenza, M. N., Stark, R., & Montag, C. (2025). Current interpretations of the I-PACE model of behavioral addictions. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 14(1), 1-17. [DOI:10.1556/2006.2025.00020]
4. Elhai, J. D., Gallinari, E. F., Rozgonjuk, D., & Yang, H. (2020). Depression, anxiety and fear of missing out as correlates of social, non-social and problematic smartphone use. Addictive Behaviors, 105, 106335. [DOI:10.1016/j.addbeh.2020.106335]
5. Fallahi, V., Narimani, M., & Atadokht, A. (2021). Psychometric properties of the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale-Brief form (DERS-16) in a group of Iranian adolescents. Journal of Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, 29(5), 3721-3735. [DOI:10.18502/ssu.v29i5.6772]
6. Fonseca-Pedrero, E., Díez-Gómez, A., Pérez-Albéniz, A., Al-Halabí, S., Inchausti, F., & Lucas-Molina, B. (2023). Validation of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) in adolescents. Psychiatry Research, 328, 115486. [DOI:10.1016/j.psychres.2023.115486]
7. Fu, L., Wang, P., Zhao, M., Xie, X., Chen, Y., Nie, J., & Lei, L. (2020). Can emotion regulation difficulty lead to adolescent problematic smartphone use? A moderated mediation model of depression and perceived social support. Children and Youth Services Review, 108, 104660. [DOI:10.1016/j.childyouth.2019.104660]
8. Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., Sarstedt, M., Danks, N. P., & Ray, S. (2022). Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) using R: A workbook. Springer. [DOI:10.1007/978-3-030-80519-7]
9. Hayes, A. F. (2022). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis (3rd ed.). Guilford Press.
10. Kang, H. (2021). Sample size determination and power analysis using the G*Power software. Journal of Educational Evaluation for Health Professions, 18, 17. [DOI:10.3352/jeehp.2021.18.17]
11. Kline, R. B. (2023). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling (5th ed.). Guilford Press.
12. Mayerhofer, D., Haider, K., Amon, M., Gächter, A., O'Rourke, T., Dale, R., & Riese, H. (2024). The association between problematic smartphone use and mental health in adolescents and young adults. Healthcare, 12(6), 600. [DOI:10.3390/healthcare12060600]
13. Mohamadian, R., Khazaie, H., Khazaie, S., Yousefian, S., Ghazalban, M., & Moulavi Asl, M. (2022). The psychometric properties of the Persian versions of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and -2 among university students. International Journal of Preventive Medicine, 13, 139. [DOI:10.4103/ijpvm.IJPVM_333_21 https://doi.org/10.4103/ijpvm.ijpvm_333_21]
14. Mokhtarinia, H. R., Rafinia, M., Shahbazi, A., Khodaie Ardakani, M. R., Ghaedamini Harouni, G. R., & Gabel, C. P. (2024). Smartphone addiction prevalence, patterns of use, and associated factors in the Iranian population during COVID-19. BMC Public Health, 24, 17654. [DOI:10.1186/s12889-024-17654-3]
15. Seong, S. J., Lee, J., Kim, J., & Kim, S. (2025). Problematic smartphone use is associated with current suicidal ideation and depression among adolescents. Psychiatry Investigation, 22(2), 150-159. [DOI:10.30773/pi.2025.0012]
16. Shahabi, M., & Hasani, J. (2020). Psychometric properties of the brief Persian version of the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS-16). Assessment for Effective Intervention, 45(2), 135-143. [DOI:10.1177/1534508418800210]
17. Yang, J., Fu, X., Liao, X., & Li, Y. (2020). Association of problematic smartphone use with poor sleep quality, depression, and anxiety: A meta-analysis. Psychiatry Research, 284, 112686. [DOI:10.1016/j.psychres.2019.112686]
Send email to the article author
| Rights and permissions | |
 |
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons - Attribution 4.0 International. |
