The Link between Internet Addiction and Mental Health among High School Students: The Protective Role of Internal and External Assets.
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Rasmey Gomez, MPHc; Mikaela Rojas, MPH; Christopher Rogers, PhD, MPH; Myriam Forster, PhD, MPH
 
Background: Adolescent Internet addiction (IA), excessive use, neglecting house chores,
school, and social life, has been linked to poor mental health and impaired socioemotional
functioning. In contrast, internal assets (i.e., engaged learning, social competence, and positive identity) and external assets (i.e., support, empowerment, and constructive use of time) are robust predictors of resilience. While extensive research highlights the negative impact of IA on mental health, few studies have examined protective factors.
 
Methods: Data are baseline surveys of high school students (N=2,306) enrolled in a school-based study assessing health and developmental outcomes. GLMs tested the hypothesized association between IA and depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation (SI), and non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI). Internal and external assets were explored as moderators, adjusting for age, sex, ethnicity, state, and poverty status.
 
Results: Half of the sample was female (52%), 31% identified as White, followed by African American (29%), Hispanic (24%), Multiracial (9%), and Asian (7%). Over half of adolescents (56%) reported mild or moderate to severe IA, 51% screened positive for moderate to severe depression, 34% experienced moderate to severe anxiety, 19% acknowledged SI, and 17% engaged in NSSI. Although students with mild IA had about twice the odds of moderate to severe depression, anxiety, SI, and NSSI than their peers, students with moderate to severe IA had five times the odds of moderate to severe depression (AOR=5.22, 95% CI: [3.82, 7.14]), anxiety (AOR=4.14, 95% CI: [3.05, 5.61]), SI (AOR=2.85, 95% CI: [1.90, 4.25]), and NSSI (AOR=4.15 95% CI: [2.81, 6.12]). However, youth with moderate to severe IA who reported higher than average internal or external assets had significantly reduced odds of all four mental health indicators (PS <.05).
 
Conclusion: Findings suggest that internal and external assets may offset the mental health challenges linked to IA and the benefits of programs that bolster developmental competencies.