Longitudinal associations among relative deprivation, maladaptive cognition, and internet addiction: A four-wave study

• Hui Guo

  Collaborative Innovation Center of Assessment Toward Basic Education Quality, Beijing Normal University

• Yuetian Ma

  Department of Marxism, Shandong Normal University

• Shuchang Chen

  Department of Clinical Medicine, Jining Medical College

• Yanfang Li

  Collaborative Innovation Center of Assessment Toward Basic Education Quality, Beijing Normal University

• Yu Tian

  Department of State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University

We investigated the longitudinal associations among relative deprivation, maladaptive cognition, and internet addiction in Chinese university students. We gave 912 university students assessments at four time points (every 6 months) over the first 2 years of their enrollment at college. Cross-lagged panel analysis revealed the presence of positive correlations among relative deprivation, maladaptive cognition, and internet addiction. Moreover, these associations were dynamic and bidirectional across the four time points. Furthermore, maladaptive cognition played a bidirectional mediating role in the association between relative deprivation and internet addiction across the time points. Relative deprivation and internet addiction appeared to generate a positive feedback loop, which formed a vicious cycle. The exaggeration of the advantages of using the internet may lead to internet addiction, while an exaggeration of one’s supposedly disadvantaged circumstances may lead to increased relative deprivation.

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