ArticleJournal of affective disorders2021
Association of Symptoms of Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity with Problematic Internet Use among University Students in Wuhan, China During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Article in Journal of affective disorders, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 26 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
26 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 48 citations in OpenAlex.
- Impact of digital addiction on youth health: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of behavioral addictions · 2025Pooled it
- Association between behavioral addiction and psychological disorders among medical students in Egypt, Sudan, and Libya: a cross-sectional study.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Association between Internet addiction and mental health problems among Chinese adolescents in the post-COVID-19 pandemic era: a propensity score matching study.BMC psychology · 2026Article
- Problematic Internet Use and Psychological Distress in High School Students.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- The Separation of Adult ADHD Inattention and Hyperactivity-Impulsivity Symptoms and Their Association with Problematic Short-Video Use: A Structural Equation Modeling Analysis.Psychology research and behavior management · 2025Article
- Internet addiction and its association with quality of life in college students: a network perspective.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Article
- Problematic social Internet use and associations with ADHD symptoms in girls: a longitudinal observational study.BMC public health · 2024Observational
- Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Diagnoses in Finland During the COVID-19 Pandemic.JAMA network open · 2024Article
- Sex differences in prevalence and clinical correlates of internet addiction among Chinese adolescents with schizophrenia.BMC psychiatry · 2024Article
- The relationship between problematic internet use and psychological distress in older Chinese teachers (40+) during different stages of the COVID-19 pandemic: three cross-sectional studies.Frontiers in public health · 2024Article
- Article
- Internet Addiction and Physical Activity among Polish and Portuguese Students in the Final Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic.Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Article
- Age-related clinical characteristics of children and adolescents with ADHD.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2023Article
- Problematic use of the Internet in low- and middle-income countries before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: a scoping review.Current opinion in behavioral sciences · 2022Article
- Problematic Internet Use among Adolescents 18 Months after the Onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Prevalence of problematic Internet use during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.Current opinion in behavioral sciences · 2022Review
- Problematic Internet use and academic engagement during the COVID-19 lockdown: The indirect effects of depression, anxiety, and insomnia in early, middle, and late adolescence.Journal of affective disorders · 2022Article
- Patterns and influencing factors of COVID-19 vaccination willingness among college students in China.Vaccine · 2022Article
- Estimation of Behavioral Addiction Prevalence During COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Current addiction reports · 2022Review
- Internet Addiction in Socio-Demographic, Academic, and Psychological Profile of College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.Frontiers in public health · 2022Article
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Authors and funding
26 authors at 5 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundCOVID-19 is still spreading worldwide and posing a threat to individuals' physical and mental health including problematic internet use (PIU). A potentially high-risk group for PIU are those with symptoms of attention deficit and hyperactivity (ADHD symptoms), because of restrictions in their physical activity levels and engagement in computer diversions requiring only short attention spans.
methodsWe used convenience sampling in a cross-sectional survey of university students from 30 universities in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. We assessed PIU using the Internet Addiction Test and ADHD symptoms using the WHO Adult ADHD Self-Report Screening Scale. Using logistic regression and linear regression analyses we adjusted for demographic, epidemic-related and psychological covariates in models of the association between ADHD symptoms and PIU.
resultsAmong 11,254 participants, we found a 28.4% (95% CI, 27.5%-29.2%) prevalence of PIU, relatively higher than before the pandemic. In our final logistic regression model, participants with ADHD symptoms had approximately two times the risk for PIU (OR: 2.31, 95% CI: 1.89-2.83). Similarly, individuals with depression, anxiety, insomnia, PTSD symptoms and feeling stress during the pandemic had a higher risk of PIU, while those exercising regularly during the pandemic had a lower risk. LIMITATIONS: The cross-sectional design and reliance on internet based self-reports for ADHD symptoms and PIU assessments, without direct structured interviews for validation, are limitations.
conclusionsThe prevalence of PIU was high during COVID-19, and those people with ADHD symptoms and other mental illness symptoms appear to be at higher risk of PIU. Regular exercise may reduce that PIU risk and hence should be recommended during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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