Gender difference in the association between internet addiction, self-esteem and academic aspirations among adolescents: A structural equation modelling
Introduction
Internet addiction (IA) has emerged as a significant public health issue among adolescents. According to Ko (Ko, Yen, Chen, Chen, & Yen, 2005), IA is referred to a maladaptive pattern of Internet use, leading to clinically significant impairment or distress. The distinguishing characteristics of IA include preoccupation, loss of control, tolerance, withdrawal, craving, impairment of function, and reduced decision-making ability, which are similar to those of substance dependence and impulse control disorder (Ko et al., 2005). With the increased popularity in the use of Internet technology, adolescents are now more accessible to the Internet and are spending more time in the cyber world. While the use of the Internet for academic purposes may facilitate learning and improve academic performance, the inappropriate use of the Internet may lead to considerable disastrous consequences. In China, one study among 6468 10–18 year-old adolescents from Guangzhou reported that the overall prevalence of IA was 26.5% (Xin et al., 2018). In Taiwan, one study among 2170 senior high school students showed that the prevalence of IA was 17.4% (Lin, Wu, You, Hu, & Yen, 2018). In Hong Kong, a review from 8 papers reported that the prevalence of IA in adolescents ranged from 3.0% to 26.8%, which was higher than that in other countries (Chung, Sum, & Chan, 2019). There is extensive evidence that IA is associated with wide a range of negative outcomes among adolescents, such as interpersonal problems (Seo, Kang, & Yom, 2009) and poorer physical and psychosocial health (Cao, Sun, Wan, Hao, & Tao, 2011; Cheung & Wong, 2011; Wang et al., 2019; Wu, Li, Lau, Mo, & Lau, 2016). The high level of IA among adolescents and its strong association with health outcomes signifies the need for further research to understand the impact of IA.
Academic aspirations are defined as the ideal amount of education which a person would like to achieve (Reynolds & Pemberton, 2001). An aspiration to receive higher education is important for adolescents as it is one of the most significant predictors for educational attainment and academic success (Khattab, 2015; Ngoumandjoka, 2013). Findings from the literature support the contention that academic aspirations are influenced by a range of family, school, and personal factors. With the increasing level of IA among adolescents, it would be important to examine the potential impact of IA on academic aspirations. There is increasing evidence that Internet use is associated with negative academic outcomes. For example, one study among college students found that heavier recreational Internet use was significantly related to impaired academic performance, and those students who have reported Internet-caused problems with schoolwork also reported problems of staying up late, tiredness, and missing class (Kubey, Lavin, & Barrows, 2001). Another study also reported a negative relationship between heavy Facebook use and poorer academic achievement as measured by self-reported GPA and hours spent studying per week (Kirschner & Karpinski, 2010). One study among adults have also found that low level of leisure-time Internet use was associated with higher level of educational attainment and employment (Vandelanotte, Sugiyama, Gardiner, & Owen, 2009). Nevertheless, other studies failed to document the association between Internet use and academic performance (Hunley et al., 2005). Empirical findings also suggested that IA was associated with intrapersonal factors which can be related to poor academic aspirations, including low self-esteem, lack of social and emotional skills, shyness, ineffective time management skills, negative coping style as well as poor problem-solving skills (Armstrong, Phillips, & Saling, 2000). To our best knowledge, there is a dearth of studies exploring the impact of IA on academic aspirations. As academic aspiration is an important internal developmental asset and positive youth development construct which strongly predicts educational attainment and academic success (Khattab, 2015), we believe that it is important to examine how IA will affect it and its underlying mechanism.
It is important to highlight that most of the studies measured problematic Internet behaviors by the time participants spent on the Internet. Arguably, heavy Internet usage might also be a part of the normal study routine of many students, including those with good academic performance (Erdogdu & Erdogdu, 2015). One study among Korean high school students found that higher school performance was positively correlated with Internet use for study but negatively correlated with Internet use for general purpose (Kim, Kim, Park, Kim, & Choi, 2017). A longitudinal study among middle school students reported that the quantity of technology use did not have a direct relationship with student academic performance. Instead, technology use may do more harm than good when the quality of technology use is not monitored (Lei & Zhao, 2007). Therefore, it might be more appropriate to measure IA as a predictor of academic aspirations among adolescents. Locally, a 3-year longitudinal study among secondary school students in Hong Kong have shown that those who did not have IA scored significantly better in school and academic performance (Yu & Shek, 2013). Other studies among Greek University students (Frangos, Fragko, & Kiohos, 2010) and Chinese adolescents (Xin et al., 2018) also found that IA was associated with poorer academic performance. Based on the literature on the association between Internet use/IA and academic performance, the present study examined the association between time spent on online activities, IA and academic aspirations among secondary school students in Hong Kong.
It would be critical to identify the mediators on the relationship between IA and academic aspirations so that more tailored interventions could be designed. In the present study, we examined self-esteem as a possible mediator on the association between IA and academic aspirations (Wu et al., 2016). Self-esteem plays an important role in adolescent development. It is an important aspect of social competence that adolescents must master in order to perform adequately in various settings (van Tuijl, de Jong, Sportel, de Hullu, & Nauta, 2014). Self-esteem has been documented as a facilitator of academic achievement (Trautwein, Ludtke, Koller, & Baumert, 2006) in both cross-sectional and longitudinal studies. For example, an 8-year cross-sectional study among eight cohorts of children in UK found that in general, there were significant positive correlations between children's self-esteem and reading and mathematics attainments (Davies & Brember, 1999). Self-esteem has also been documented as a facilitator of academic aspirations (Carranza, You, Chhuon, & Hudley, 2009; Trautwein et al., 2006). A cross-sectional study among Mexican American school-aged children found that there were significant positive correlations between children's self-esteem and their educational achievement and aspirations (Carranza et al., 2009).
Furthermore, while numerous studies have suggested individuals with lower level of self-esteem are more likely to report IA or problematic Internet behaviors (Ko et al., 2005; Yen, Chou, Liu, Yang, & Hu, 2014), it is also plausible that IA might lead to lower level of self-esteem. Adolescents who are addicted to the Internet may lack the opportunities to practice the social or nonverbal cues, which put them at risk of developing poor self-esteem. Without social control over the Internet, online behaviors tended to be more disinhibited. Adolescents who are addicted to the Internet or social media might therefore be more likely to give and receive negative feedbacks on the Internet, which adversely affect their self-esteem. Studies among students have shown that pathological Internet users had lower self-esteem and were more socially disinhibited (Niemz, Griffiths, & Banyard, 2005). Another study among Dutch adolescents also found that negative feedbacks received from social networking sites decreased their social self-esteem (Valkenburg, Peter, & Schouten, 2006). A recent local study among 9518 secondary school students in Hong Kong found that IA contributed to depression indirectly through reducing self-esteem (Wu et al., 2016). It has also found that counselling program for IA were effective in reducing participant's IA and increasing their self-esteem (Kim, 2008). In the present study, it is hypothesized that the association between time spent on online activities/IA and academic aspirations would be mediated by reduced level of self-esteem.
Gender difference in the prevalence of Internet use or IA has been widely documented in the literature. There is consistent evidence that males are more likely to report higher level of problematic Internet behaviors (Ko et al., 2005) compared to their female counterparts. For example, one study reported that among 64 Chinese students with IA, 83% of them were male (Cao & Su, 2007). The motives of using the Internet also seem to differ across gender. While males are more likely to use the Internet for entertainment and leisure and to pursue feelings of achievement, females are more likely to use the Internet for interpersonal communication and educational assistance (Weiser, 2000). Despite the widely documented gender difference in prevalence of IA and motives of Internet use, there is a dearth of studies examining the differential impact of IA on self-esteem and academic aspirations across gender. As most of the characteristics of IA concerns impairments within the intrapersonal level while the development of self-esteem and academic aspirations is more influenced by goals characterized by independence, autonomy and personal achievements among males (Cross & Madson, 1997; Schoon & Parsons, 2002), it is hypothesized that the association between IA and self-esteem, and IA and academic aspirations would be stronger among male students. Investigating the gender difference in the impact of IA can provide important insights on how interventions to reduce IA and promote self-esteem could be tailored for different gender.
The present study examined the association between time spent on online activities, IA, self-esteem and academic aspirations among junior secondary school students in Hong Kong. Gender differences in the association between the variables under studied will also be examined. It was hypothesized that time spent on online activities would be positively associated with IA. Time spent on online activities and IA would be negatively associated with self-esteem which in turn, positively associated with academic aspirations. The association between time spent on online activities/IA and self-esteem, and between IA and academic aspirations would be stronger among male students.
Section snippets
Procedure
A cross-sectional study was conducted among Hong Kong secondary school students. Four secondary schools were chosen and all secondary one to two (i.e. grade seven to eight) students of the chosen schools were invited to participate in the study. An opt-out parental informed consent was used, parents were asked to sign and return the consent forms if they did not wish their children to participate in the study. No parents have declined the invitation. Students were briefed by research assistant
Descriptive characteristics
A total 906 responses were collected, after excluding the invalid responses, a total of 859 cases were included in the analysis. Slightly more than half (54.2%) of the participants were male. The mean age of the whole sample was 13.78 years old (SD = 0.79, range 11–18). About half (52.1%) of the students spent less than 10 hours on online activities per week, whereas 9% of them spent more than 50 hours on online activities per week. One-tenth (11.0%) of the participants were classified as
Discussion
Receiving higher education is an important milestone for adolescents and an important indicator for their future success. Academic aspirations are important as they serve as motivations for their academic achievement. Currently, there is a dearth of studies examining the impact of Internet use and IA on academic aspirations among young adolescents and their mediating factors. In the present study, it was found that 11.0% of the sampled participants were classified as IA, and the prevalence of
Conclusion
To sum up, the present study was the first attempt in exploring the empirical relationship between Internet use, IA, self-esteem, and academic aspirations in the Chinese context. The study has provided support to the negative impact of time spent on online activities and IA on self-esteem and academic aspirations among Chinese adolescents. Findings suggest the importance of fostering self-esteem and preventing IA among adolescents at the early stage. Findings of the present study therefore have
Funding
This work was supported by The Knowledge Transfer Fund of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (KPF142ICF13).
CRediT authorship contribution statement
Phoenix K.H. Mo: Conceptualization, Methodology, Formal analysis, Investigation, Writing - original draft, Supervision, Project administration, Funding acquisition. Virginia W.Y. Chan: Investigation, Writing - review & editing. Xin Wang: Writing - review & editing. Joseph T.F. Lau: Conceptualization, Methodology, Writing - review & editing, Supervision, Funding acquisition.
Declaration of competing interest
None.
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