The role of metacognitions in problematic Internet use

Research has suggested that negative emotions are associated with problematic Internet use. This study investigated the role of metacognitions as a mediator of the relationship between negative emotions and problematic Internet use. A sample of 97 university students completed the following questionnaires: Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Boredom Proneness Scale, Metacognitions Questionnaire 30, and Internet Addiction Test. All dimensions of metacognition were found to be positively and significantly correlated with problematic Internet use. Positive and significant correlations were also observed between problematic Internet use and negative emotions (anxiety, depression and boredom). Structural equation modeling was used to test a mediation model in which negative emotions predicted metacognitions which in turn predicted problematic Internet use. The results supported the hypothesis that the relationship between negative emotions and problematic Internet use is fully mediated by metacognitions, suggesting that metacognitive theory may be relevant to understanding problematic Internet use. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Keywords: Anxiety; Boredom; Depression; Metacognitions; Negative emotions, problematic Internet use

Introduction

The last decade has seen a world-wide surge in Internet use. This has been accompanied by a growing concern over what researchers have variously termed problematic, pathological or addictive Internet use (e.g. [Beard and Wolf, 2001], [Scherer, 1997], [Wallace, 1999] and [Young, 1998a]). Problematic Internet use (PIU) can be defined as "use of the Internet that creates psychological, social, school and/or work difficulties in a person's life" (Beard & Wolf, 2001, p. 378).

Anecdotal and research evidence suggests that PIU affects a significant number of people with incidence rates (determined by frequent or daily Internet usage meeting varying criteria for pathological use) ranging between 4.6% and 18.3% ([Kaltiala-Heino et al., 2004], [Morahan-Martin & Schumacher, 2000] and [Niems et al., 2005]). These figures exceed the estimated incidence rates for other impulse control disorders, the category of disorders which PIU has most often been compared to ([LaRose et al., 2003] and [Shapira et al., 2003]). Pathological gambling, for example, is estimated to affect 1–3% of the US population and other impulse control disorders have even lower incidence rates (American Psychiatric Association, 2000).

A variety of studies have investigated the relationship between PIU and psychological dysfunction, revealing that anxiety and mood problems are common among problematic Internet users ([Kim et al., 2006], [Morgan and Cotten, 2003], [Sanders et al., 2000], [Whang et al., 2003] and [Young and Rogers, 1998]). Additionally, negative emotions appear to differentiate problematic from non-problematic Internet use with a reduction of negative emotions driving problematic use, and an enhancement of positive emotions driving non-problematic use (Wan & Chiou, 2006). As such, using the Internet may represent a way of coping with real life problems that takes the form of problem solving, entertainment and challenge in non-problematic use, and of reassurance and avoidance in problematic use. If this were the case then PIU could be conceptualized as a specific form of maladaptive self-regulatory strategy (LaRose et al., 2003).