ArticleFrontiers in psychology2026
Is loneliness a bridge to digital escape? A path analysis on psychological symptoms and internet addiction.
Article in Frontiers in psychology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Introduction: Internet addiction has become a significant public health concern that threatens individuals' psychological well-being. This study aimed to examine the effects of psychological symptoms (somatization, hostility, negative self-concept, depression, and anxiety) on internet addiction and to explore the mediating role of loneliness. Methods: Using a correlational survey design, data were collected from 1,404 university students across different academic disciplines. Psychological symptoms, internet addiction, and loneliness were measured using the Brief Symptom Inventory, the Internet Addiction Scale, and the ULS-8 Loneliness Scale. Structural equation modeling with bootstrapping procedures was employed. Results: The results indicated that participants reported moderate levels of internet addiction and low levels of loneliness. The effects of somatization, hostility, negative self-concept, and depression on internet addiction were fully mediated by loneliness. Negative self-concept showed the strongest effect on loneliness. In contrast, anxiety did not have a significant effect on loneliness but exerted a strong direct effect on internet addiction. Discussion: These findings suggest that loneliness may function as a key intermediary variable linking psychological symptoms to internet addiction, whereas anxiety may exert a more direct influence. The results highlight the importance of tailored interventions addressing both loneliness and anxiety in preventing internet addiction.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.