1. Introduction
Internet use has proliferated dramatically over the last decades and has become an internal part of contemporary life [
1]. Excessive or maladaptive use of the Internet has been termed as “problematic Internet use (PIU)” or “Internet addiction”, which has been reported to be related to a series of psychosocial impairments and substance-use problems (e.g., depression and drug use) [
2,
3]. Recently, Internet gaming disorder has been included in the section on addictive disorders in the 11th Revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) as a pattern of behavior characterized by impaired control over gaming, indicating that PIU may develop into a severe social problem [
4]. Adolescence represents a vulnerable developmental stage between childhood to adulthood, which is characterized by increased levels of novelty seeking and exploration along with a wide range of risk-taking behaviors or mental health problems [
5]. The report of the World Health Organization (WHO) showed that adolescent PIU had been a public health concern worldwide, and China is no exception [
6]. Considering the brain undergoes rapid development during adolescence, adolescents involved in PIU may be more vulnerable to psychological disorders, such as depressive symptoms.
Depressive symptoms are one of the most common mental disorders among adolescents. Evidence suggests that adolescent depressive symptoms can not only have long-lasting influences on the development of cognitive abilities and social skills into adulthood, but also may lead to clinical depression, placing a heavy financial burden on individuals, families, and society [
7]. Previous studies in Western countries reported that approximately 20–50% of adolescents had suffered from long-term depressive symptoms [
8], and our prior study in China also showed that about 6.4% of high school students reported having depressive symptoms with suicidal ideation [
9]. Although the association between PIU and depressive symptoms has been documented in prior studies [
10,
11], the influence path of PIU on depressive symptoms is still unclear.
Over the last two decades, the rapid growth of non-medical use of prescription drugs (NMUPD) among adolescents has drawn increased attention [
12]. According to the report of the 2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) in the United States, prescription drugs were the second most popular type of drugs among adolescents [
13]. A recent study also demonstrated that 2.0% of Chinese high school students reported frequent use of opioids, and 1.8% admitted frequent use of sedatives [
14]. Previous studies demonstrated that PIU was reported to be associated with substance use, and PIU and substance use may share similar biological characteristics (e.g., similar vulnerable brain regions) [
3,
15]. Moreover, substance use may affect an individual’s brain function, as well as their ability to self-regulate, leading to the development of depressive symptoms [
16,
17]. Therefore, NMUPD may play a mediator role between PIU and depressive symptoms. First, Caplan’s theory proposed that a preference for online social interaction and the use of the Internet for mood regulation can predict deficient self-regulation of Internet use (i.e., PIU), which was a significant predictor of depressive symptoms [
18]. Besides, based on the cognitive–behavioral theory of generalized PIU introduced by Davis, depressive symptoms might predispose individuals to develop maladaptive Internet-related cognitions and behaviors that ultimately result in adverse outcomes (e.g., substance use or PIU) [
19,
20]. Then, there might be two mediation models (incorporating NMUPD as the mediators) in the association between PIU and depressive symptoms from two orders: (1) PIU—NMUPD—depressive symptoms; and (2) depressive symptoms—NMUPD—PIU.
With the modernization of society, Chinese adolescents are more easily exposed to PIU, NMUPD, and depressive symptoms. However, there is a lack of studies in China considering the effects of NMUPD on the association between PIU and depressive symptoms. Therefore, we conducted this large-scale study aimed to test, among Chinese adolescents, the association between PIU, NMUPD, and depressive symptoms, as well as the mediating effects of NMUPD on the association between PIU and depressive symptoms.
3. Results
The sample characteristics are shown in
Table 1. A total of 13.5% of students reported living with others, and 13.9% reported below average HSS. The proportion of students who reported poor family relationships, classmate relations, and relationship with teachers, were 4.1%, 1.6%, and 2.4%, respectively. The mean IAT scores among the total students were 35.8 (SD: 12.8). A total of 0.6% and 0.3% of students reported frequent use of opioids and sedatives, respectively. The mean CES-D scores were 13.6 (SD: 8.7), and 6.7% of the students reported having depressive symptoms. There were significant differences in the CES-D scores among the variables of gender, living arrangement, HSS, academic performance, family relationships, classmate relations, relationships with teachers, opioid misuse, and sedative misuse (
p < 0.001). Additionally, significant differences emerged between the students with and without depressive symptoms in the distribution of gender, living arrangement, HSS, academic performance, family relationships, classmate relations, relationships with teachers, IAT scores, opioid misuse, and sedative misuse (
p < 0.001).
Without adjusting for other variables, Model 1 demonstrated that PIU, opioid misuse, and sedative misuse were respectively associated with the increase of depressive symptoms (
p < 0.001). After adjusting for gender, living arrangement, HSS, academic performance, family relationships, classmate relations, and relationships with teachers, Model 2 showed that PIU was significantly associated with depressive symptoms (unstandardized β estimate = 0.26, 95% CI = 0.25–0.27), frequent use of opioids was positively related to depressive symptoms (unstandardized β estimate = 2.77, 95% CI = 1.90–3.63), and frequent use of sedatives was also related to the elevation of depressive symptoms (unstandardized β estimate = 4.45, 95% CI = 3.02–5.88). Additionally, Model 3 and Model 4 did not find any significant multiplicative interaction item between non-medical use of opioids/sedatives and PIU (
Table 2).
As shown in
Figure 1 and
Table 3, the model including the mediator (opioid misuse or sedative misuse) showed that after adjusting for significant covariates, opioid misuse partially mediated the positive association between PIU and depressive symptoms, and the estimate of the standardized indirect effect was 0.003 (95% CI = 0.001–0.005). The obtained indices suggested that the model fit the data well: CFI = 0.92; RMSEA = 0.042, 95% CI = 0.030–0.055; SRMR = 0.061. However, the results also demonstrated that the adjusted standardized indirect effects of PIU on depressive symptoms through sedative misuse was not significant (
p > 0.05), indicating that the relationship between PIU and depressive symptoms was not mediated by sedative misuse. The model fit indices indicated that the model fit the data satisfactorily: CFI = 0.89; RMSEA = 0.044, 95% CI = 0.032–0.047; SRMR = 0.052.
As shown in
Figure 2 and
Table 4, the alternative model incorporating the mediator (opioid misuse or sedative misuse) demonstrated that the adjusted indirect effects of depressive symptoms on PIU through opioid misuse were statistically significant (standardized β estimate = 0.002, 95% CI = 0.001–0.002), and the model fit indices were: CFI = 0.91; RMSEA = 0.042, 95% CI = 0.031–0.057; SRMR = 0.063. There were significant standardized indirect effects of depressive symptoms on PIU via sedative misuse (standardized β estimate = 0.001, 95% CI = 0.001–0.001), and the model indices suggested that the model fit the data well: CFI = 0.93; RMSEA = 0.040, 95% CI = 0.029–0.067; SRMR = 0.067. These results suggested that opioid misuse or sedative misuse partially mediated the association of depressive symptoms with PIU, respectively.
4. Discussion
To our knowledge, the present study is the first large-scale study to estimate the direct and indirect association between PIU, opioid or sedative misuse, and depressive symptoms among Chinese adolescents, and to investigate the potential mediating effects of opioid or sedative misuse on the association between PIU and depressive symptoms. This study first found that the mean CES-D scores for the adolescents were13.6 (SD: 8.7), and 6.7% reported having depressive symptoms. These results are parallel with our previous study conducted in 2014 [
9], and slightly lower than that described in a prior review revealing a pooled prevalence of depressive symptoms of 24.3% (95% CI, 21.3–27.6%) among adolescents in mainland China [
33]. The difference might be related to the variety in the definition of depressive symptoms (i.e., using different measurement scale and cutoff scores), and these results indicate that depressive symptoms among Chinese adolescents are a growing public health problem.
Consistent with previous evidence [
9,
11], the present study found that there were significant differences in the continuous and categorical variables of depressive symptoms among the groups of gender, living arrangement, HSS, academic performance, family relationships, classmate relations, relationships with teachers, opioid misuse, and sedative misuse. Compared with their corresponding groups, the mean CES-D scores were significantly higher in girls, students living in a single-parent family, students who reported below average HSS or academic performance, and those reporting poor relationships with family members, classmates, or teachers. These results are helpful to identify a profile of adolescents who are vulnerable to depressive symptoms, and particular attention should be paid to the groups with the negative characteristics mentioned above. Moreover, the covariate effects of these variables on the relationship between PIU and depressive symptoms should also be taken into consideration.
In the adjusted generalized linear mixed models without mediation, a positive relationship between depressive symptoms and PIU, opioid misuse, and sedative misuse was found, respectively. First, PIU may increase the risk of depressive symptoms due to adolescents with PIU showing poorer well-being, self-control, and self-esteem, which were reported to be positively associated with psychiatric disorders (including depressive symptoms) [
34,
35]. Similarly, Park et al. reported that PIU was positively associated with depressive symptoms in Korean adolescents [
10]; Dalbudak et al. demonstrated that Internet addiction might increase vulnerability to depressive symptoms in students of Turkey [
36]; and Tan et al. found that PIU was significantly related to an increased risk of depressive symptoms among adolescents in Shantou, China [
11]. Moreover, the found significant association between opioid or sedative misuse and depressive symptoms might be related to the finding that these drugs may cause negative emotions and urgency, poor concentration, and sleeping problems, which are reported to be associated with an elevated risk of depressive symptoms [
17,
37]. Adolescents are especially vulnerable to the adverse effects of NMUPD given their still-developing brain [
38].
Although there is evidence supporting the role of opioid or sedative misuse in the process through which PIU is related to depressive symptoms, no study before had confirmed the mediating effects of opioid or sedative misuse. Considering mediation analyses require exclusion of an interaction between the exposure and the mediator on the outcome [
39], the interaction items between opioid/sedative misuse and PIU on depressive symptoms were first tested, and the results did not find any significant interaction effects. Furthermore, the path models of this study first demonstrated that the association between PIU and depressive symptoms remained significant when opioid or sedative misuse was incorporated as a mediator, and the association above was partially mediated through opioid misuse. These findings were consistent with the theory proposed by Caplan, which showed that PIU might be a reflection of maladaptive cognitions that lead to difficulties with behavioral impulse control and ultimately resulting in adverse outcomes associated with PIU (e.g., NMUPD and depressive symptoms) [
18]. Moreover, a possible explanation for the mediating effects of opioid misuse might be that PIU and opioid use may have similarities in biological characteristics [
3,
15]. PIU may increase the risk of opioid misuse through impaired impulse control [
40] and opioid misuse is one of the known factors associated with depressive symptoms [
40]. In another aspect, Davis’s cognitive–behavioral theory proposed that depressive symptoms may also predispose individuals to develop maladaptive Internet-related cognitions and behaviors that can lead to PIU [
19,
20]. Moreover, due to the cross-sectional nature of data which may cause bias of the mediating estimates when mediation occurs over time, another path process order was also performed to test the potential the mediating effects opioid or sedative misuse on the association between depressive symptoms and PIU. The present study also demonstrated that opioid and sedative misuse significantly mediated the association of depressive symptoms with PIU, and these results may be related to the finding that adolescents with depressive symptoms may non-medically use opioid or sedatives as a coping strategy to release a negative mood [
41], and substance abuse has been reported to be able to predict a high risk of PIU [
42]. Taken together, the association between PIU, opioid or sedative misuse, and depressive symptoms might be complicated; for instance, PIU can lead to opioid or sedative misuse and depressive symptoms, which in turn may worsen the problematic Internet use problem among adolescents, and vice versa. The investigation of the mediating effects of opioid or sedative misuse can add evidence for the new understanding of the mechanism of the association between PIU and depressive symptoms.
Based on the findings of the current study, several recommendations for preventing PIU, NMUPD, and depressive symptoms among adolescents are listed below: (1) limiting adolescents’ exposure to the Internet for a long time (e.g., playing game); (2) increasing individuals’ awareness of the adverse effects of PIU, NMUPD, and depressive symptoms; (3) providing professional health services (e.g., health services provided by clinicians or social workers in the schools or communities) to students who have been involved in PIU, NMUPD, and depressive symptoms. If possible, concomitant treatment for PIU, NMUPD, and depressive symptoms should be considered; and (4) developing a long-term surveillance system to monitor the health-risky behaviors among adolescents in China.
There are several limitations related to this study. First, the use of self-report questionnaires in this study may result in the underestimate of some sensitive data among adolescents (e.g., PIU or NMUPD) for social desirability. Second, due to the cross-sectional nature of the study design, findings should be interpreted with caution, especially regarding the longitudinal indirect and direct effects. Third, because of the school-based study design, the study sample only included students at school, while PIU, NMUPD, or depressive symptoms may be more common among adolescents who were absent from schools. Fourth, PIU and depressive symptoms were measured by the IAT and CES-D scales. Although this measurement of PIU or depressive symptoms has been validated and widely used in previous studies, the answers may still be subjectively biased. Fifth, Axis I comorbidities (such as anxiety or bipolar disorder), which may have an effect on depressive symptoms, were not taken into account in the present study. Despite these limitations, the strength of this study is that it uses a large-scale sample of Chinese adolescents to extend the prior evidence about the association between PIU, opioid or sedative misuse, and depressive symptoms through investigating the mediating effects of opioid or sedative misuse.