Perceived stress, difficulties in emotion regulation, and internet addiction among Slovak university students: The mediating roles of avoidant coping, positive metacognitions about internet use and desire thinking

Objectives. As Internet addiction (IA) has become a serious problem in recent years, identifying its contributing factors is essential for developing effective prevention programs. This study aimed to investigate whether and to what extent perceived stress and difficulties in emotion regulation are related to IA, and whether their effects are mediated by three cognitive factors (avoidant coping, positive metacognitions about Internet use and desire thinking). By testing these mediation pathways within a single model, the study aimed to simultaneously assess the relative contribution of each mediator while accounting for their potential interrelationships.Sample and settings. The sample consisted of 260 Slovak university students aged from 19 to 28 years. Data were collected online using self-selection sampling.Hypotheses. Four hypotheses were formulated: 1) Perceived stress will be positively correlated to Internet addiction; 2) Avoidant coping will mediate the relationship between perceived stress and Internet addiction; 3) Difficulties in emotion regulation will be positively correlated to Internet addiction; 4) Desire thinking and positive metacognitions about Internet use will mediate the relationship between Difficulties in emotion regulation and Internet addiction.Statistical analysis. The parametric bootstrap method was used to test the parallel mediation model.Results. It was found that perceived stress had only a direct effect on Internet addiction. The indirect effect via avoidant coping was not statistically significant. On the other hand, difficulties in emotion regulation had both a direct effect on Internet addiction, as well as an indirect effect via positive metacognitions about Internet use and desire thinking. High levels of emotion dysregulation were associated with high levels of positive metacognitions about Internet use and desire thinking, which, in turn, were linked to high levels of Internet addiction.Limitations. The lack of control for psychological disorders among the participants, the use of a generalized concept of Internet addiction, the small, non-representative sample and the cross-sectional design, which does not allow for conclusions about causality to be drawn.