Examining the interaction between internet gaming engagement and psychological needs in adolescents

Implications for internet gaming disorder based on a large-scale school-based survey

Bibliographic Data

ID21620642
AuthorsRui She (0000-0002-8948-2792, Hong Kong Polytechnic University), Xin Wang (0000-0003-2833-6940, Department of Health), Wing Ming Li (Department of Health), Kwan Ching Chu (Department of Health), Xue Yang (0000-0001-9747-6467, Department of Health, corresponding author)
Year2025
Volume44
Issue18
Pages14874-14887
Publication date2025-09-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueCurrent Psychology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1046-1310 • E-ISSN: 1936-4733
PublisherSpringer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1007/s12144-025-08229-5
OpenAlexW4412662092
LanguageEN
References cited70

Internet gaming disorder (IGD) has been an increasing health concern for adolescents. While Internet gaming engagement operationalized as the time spent on Internet games is a significant predictor of IGD symptoms, the magnitude of association may depend on adolescents’ psychological characteristics. Grounded in the uses and gratification theory and the self-determination theory, we tested whether psychological needs-related factors (i.e., perceived parental psychological control, interpersonal conflicts, perceived social support, self-esteem, and perceived academic stress) moderated the association between Internet gaming engagement and IGD symptoms in female and male adolescents, respectively. Data were collected from a large and representative sample of Chinese secondary school students in Hong Kong ( n = 7,651) from November 2020 to January 2022 (49.3% males; mean age = 14.5 years old). Almost all main effects of Internet gaming engagement (B: 0.26 to 0.62; p p p > 0.05). Moderation models showed that the association between Internet gaming engagement and IGD symptoms was stronger in females who perceived higher parental psychological control (B: 0.53 vs. 0.45; p p p p p p

Developmental psychology · Internet users · The Internet · World Wide Web · Applied Psychology · Child Development and Digital Technology · Computer Science · Impact of Technology on Adolescents · Psychology · Social Psychology · Technology Adoption and User Behaviour