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Peer attachment, specific patterns of internet use and problematic internet use in male and female adolescents

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Abstract

Problematic internet use may lead to serious psychosocial dysfunction. Recent studies have found comparable prevalence in both male and female adolescents. We pursue the neglected questions how male and female adolescents differ regarding their patterns of internet use and how gender, peer attachment and patterns of use are related to pathological internet use. In 2410 adolescents (1307 girls and 1103 boys) aged 12–18 years from different types of school we assessed peer attachment, frequency and use of eight specific applications and indicators of pathological internet use. Three patterns of internet use, ‘social’; ‘sex and games” and ‘functional’ were identified and connections between variables were modeled by ordered sequences of regression. We found that problematic internet use—sex and games as well as social usage—was more prevalent in boys. Insecure peer attachment predicted problematic internet use in both sexes. Also, excessive usage of internet games and sex mediated the influence of peer attachment insecurity on problematic internet use, but only for boys. Our study identified that adolescents with insecure peer attachment are at higher risk for problematic internet use. With regard to specific types of internet use, the consumption of online games and sex was identified as risk factor in boys with increasing age. Further studies are needed to understand and possibly subgroup problematic internet use behavior in girls. Our findings suggest that increasing the quality of peer relationships may be promising approach in the prevention and treatment of problematic internet use.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Mainz, Untere Zahlbacher Str. 8, 55131, Mainz, Germany

    Iris Reiner, Ana N. Tibubos, Jochen Hardt, Kai Müller, Klaus Wölfling & Manfred E. Beutel

Authors
  1. Iris Reiner
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  2. Ana N. Tibubos
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  3. Jochen Hardt
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  4. Kai Müller
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  5. Klaus Wölfling
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  6. Manfred E. Beutel
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Iris Reiner.

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The study has been approved by the ethics committee of the State Board of Physicians of Rhineland-Palatinate (Germany) and has been performed in accordance with the ethical standards laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Reiner, I., Tibubos, A.N., Hardt, J. et al. Peer attachment, specific patterns of internet use and problematic internet use in male and female adolescents. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 26, 1257–1268 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-017-0984-0

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