Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42299685›Full record

ArticleJournal of adolescence2026

A Vicious Cycle of Psychological Distress and Problematic Mobile Phone Use in Adolescence: A Longitudinal Test of a Dual Metacognitive Pathway.

Xuan Xu, Haide Chen, Xiaoru Zhu, Shuming Tong, Lingfeng Gao, Zongkui Zhou

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of adolescence, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Xuan XuKey Laboratory of Adolescent Cyberpsychology and Behavior (CCNU), Ministry of Education, Wuhan, Hubei, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9972-5188
Haide ChenIntelligent Laboratory of Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Crisis Intervention of Zhejiang Province, School of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, Zhejiang, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8214-3352
Xiaoru ZhuIntelligent Laboratory of Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Crisis Intervention of Zhejiang Province, School of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, Zhejiang, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0005-6567-0579
Shuming TongIntelligent Laboratory of Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Crisis Intervention of Zhejiang Province, School of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, Zhejiang, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0006-5717-1363
Lingfeng GaoIntelligent Laboratory of Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Crisis Intervention of Zhejiang Province, School of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, Zhejiang, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6249-3072
Zongkui ZhouKey Laboratory of Adolescent Cyberpsychology and Behavior (CCNU), Ministry of Education, Wuhan, Hubei, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0958-6568

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China 32400907
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionThe relationship between psychological distress and problematic mobile phone use (PMPU) is a significant concern for adolescent mental health. However, the longitudinal dynamics of this relationship and the specific cognitive mechanisms driving it remain insufficiently understood. This study aimed to examine the bidirectional relationship between psychological distress and PMPU, and to test the parallel mediating roles of positive and negative metacognitive beliefs.

methodsA two-wave longitudinal study was conducted over a 6-month interval in 2023 with 830 Chinese adolescents (48.6% boys; M

resultsThe L-CLPM confirmed a significant bidirectional relationship between psychological distress and PMPU. The mediation analysis revealed that the pathway from T1 psychological distress to T2 PMPU was significantly and simultaneously mediated by both T2 positive and negative metacognitive beliefs. The direct effect was nonsignificant in the presence of the mediators, and the strengths of the two mediation pathways did not statistically differ.

conclusionPsychological distress and PMPU showed reciprocal prospective associations in adolescents. The pathway from distress to PMPU was accounted for by parallel positive and negative metacognitive beliefs, which may promote engagement and hinder disengagement. Interventions may therefore need to address both emotional distress and these metacognitive beliefs to disrupt this cycle.

Indexed as

Adolescent BehaviorCell Phone UseMetacognitionPsychological DistressStress, PsychologicalAdolescentCell PhoneChinaFemaleHumansLongitudinal StudiesMalemetacognitionnegative metacognitive beliefspositive metacognitive beliefsproblematic mobile phone usepsychological distress

Identifiers

PMID42299685
PMCPMC13440716

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.