Explicit self-esteem, loneliness, and pathological Internet use among Chinese adolescents

We explored the mediating role of loneliness in the relationship between explicit self-esteem and pathological Internet use in a sample of 624 Chinese adolescents. The participants were administered a series of measures, including the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, UCLA Loneliness Scale (Version 3), and Young Internet Addiction Test. The results suggested that greater pathological Internet use was associated with lower explicit self-esteem and greater loneliness, but loneliness was positively correlated with pathological Internet use. The mediation analysis indicated that loneliness completely mediated the association between explicit self-esteem and pathological Internet use among adolescents, implying that lower explicit self-esteem was correlated with greater loneliness, which was then associated with greater pathological Internet use. Accordingly, enhancing adolescents’ self-esteem and decreasing their feelings of loneliness may function as a preventive measure to help teenagers relieve their levels of pathological Internet use.