The Association Between Internet Addiction and the Risk of Suicide Attempts in Chinese Adolescents Aged 11-17 Years: Prospective Cohort Study
BackgroundSuicide is a critical public health issue in adolescents worldwide. Internet addiction may play a role in the increased rate of suicide attempts in this population. However, few studies have explored the relationship between pathological internet use and suicide att...
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| Language: | English |
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JMIR Publications
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Journal of Medical Internet Research |
| Online Access: | https://www.jmir.org/2025/1/e52083 |
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| author | Sihong Li Xingyue Jin Lintong Song Tianqing Fan Yanmei Shen Jiansong Zhou |
| author_facet | Sihong Li Xingyue Jin Lintong Song Tianqing Fan Yanmei Shen Jiansong Zhou |
| author_sort | Sihong Li |
| collection | DOAJ |
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BackgroundSuicide is a critical public health issue in adolescents worldwide. Internet addiction may play a role in the increased rate of suicide attempts in this population. However, few studies have explored the relationship between pathological internet use and suicide attempts among adolescents.
ObjectiveThis study aimed to conduct a prospective cohort study to examine whether higher severity of pathological internet use was associated with an increased risk of suicide attempts among Chinese adolescents.
MethodsA total of 782 adolescents were recruited from a middle school from November 2020 to December 2020 and followed up for 6 months. An online self-reported questionnaire was used to collect the participants’ demographic data and assess their mental health. The Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale–21 items (DASS-21) was used to evaluate depression, anxiety, and stress. The Chen Internet Addiction Scale–Revised (CIAS-R) was used to assess the symptoms and severity of pathological internet use. χ2 test and ANOVA were used for intergroup comparison, and logistic regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between the severity of pathological internet use and suicide attempts. We also used a restricted cubic splines model to investigate the pattern of the association.
ResultsThe participants had an average age of 12.59 (SD 0.64) years, with the majority being of Han ethnicity (743/782, 95.01%) and more than half being male (426/782, 54.48%). Most participants had no previous history of depression (541/782, 69.18%), anxiety (415/782, 53.07%), or stress (618/782, 79.03%). The rate of newly reported suicide attempts was 4.6% (36/782). A significant positive association was observed between internet addiction and suicide attempts (odds ratio 3.88, 95% CI 1.70-8.82), which remained significant after adjusting for age, sex, ethnicity, anxiety, depression, and stress (odds ratio 2.65, 95% CI 1.07-6.55). In addition, this association exhibited a linear pattern in the restricted cubic spline regression model.
ConclusionsThis study suggested that internet addiction, rather than internet overuse, was associated with a higher likelihood of suicide attempts, which highlighted the importance of addressing internet addiction symptoms among Chinese adolescents for suicide prevention. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-b658a677d09a472cbe0af36548501704 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1438-8871 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | JMIR Publications |
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| series | Journal of Medical Internet Research |
| spelling | doaj-art-b658a677d09a472cbe0af365485017042025-01-03T20:30:30ZengJMIR PublicationsJournal of Medical Internet Research1438-88712025-01-0127e5208310.2196/52083The Association Between Internet Addiction and the Risk of Suicide Attempts in Chinese Adolescents Aged 11-17 Years: Prospective Cohort StudySihong Lihttps://orcid.org/0009-0004-8091-6672Xingyue Jinhttps://orcid.org/0009-0002-5120-8103Lintong Songhttps://orcid.org/0009-0002-0620-3127Tianqing Fanhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-1530-6948Yanmei Shenhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-4881-8763Jiansong Zhouhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-2135-2139 BackgroundSuicide is a critical public health issue in adolescents worldwide. Internet addiction may play a role in the increased rate of suicide attempts in this population. However, few studies have explored the relationship between pathological internet use and suicide attempts among adolescents. ObjectiveThis study aimed to conduct a prospective cohort study to examine whether higher severity of pathological internet use was associated with an increased risk of suicide attempts among Chinese adolescents. MethodsA total of 782 adolescents were recruited from a middle school from November 2020 to December 2020 and followed up for 6 months. An online self-reported questionnaire was used to collect the participants’ demographic data and assess their mental health. The Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale–21 items (DASS-21) was used to evaluate depression, anxiety, and stress. The Chen Internet Addiction Scale–Revised (CIAS-R) was used to assess the symptoms and severity of pathological internet use. χ2 test and ANOVA were used for intergroup comparison, and logistic regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between the severity of pathological internet use and suicide attempts. We also used a restricted cubic splines model to investigate the pattern of the association. ResultsThe participants had an average age of 12.59 (SD 0.64) years, with the majority being of Han ethnicity (743/782, 95.01%) and more than half being male (426/782, 54.48%). Most participants had no previous history of depression (541/782, 69.18%), anxiety (415/782, 53.07%), or stress (618/782, 79.03%). The rate of newly reported suicide attempts was 4.6% (36/782). A significant positive association was observed between internet addiction and suicide attempts (odds ratio 3.88, 95% CI 1.70-8.82), which remained significant after adjusting for age, sex, ethnicity, anxiety, depression, and stress (odds ratio 2.65, 95% CI 1.07-6.55). In addition, this association exhibited a linear pattern in the restricted cubic spline regression model. ConclusionsThis study suggested that internet addiction, rather than internet overuse, was associated with a higher likelihood of suicide attempts, which highlighted the importance of addressing internet addiction symptoms among Chinese adolescents for suicide prevention.https://www.jmir.org/2025/1/e52083 |
| spellingShingle | Sihong Li Xingyue Jin Lintong Song Tianqing Fan Yanmei Shen Jiansong Zhou The Association Between Internet Addiction and the Risk of Suicide Attempts in Chinese Adolescents Aged 11-17 Years: Prospective Cohort Study Journal of Medical Internet Research |
| title | The Association Between Internet Addiction and the Risk of Suicide Attempts in Chinese Adolescents Aged 11-17 Years: Prospective Cohort Study |
| title_full | The Association Between Internet Addiction and the Risk of Suicide Attempts in Chinese Adolescents Aged 11-17 Years: Prospective Cohort Study |
| title_fullStr | The Association Between Internet Addiction and the Risk of Suicide Attempts in Chinese Adolescents Aged 11-17 Years: Prospective Cohort Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Association Between Internet Addiction and the Risk of Suicide Attempts in Chinese Adolescents Aged 11-17 Years: Prospective Cohort Study |
| title_short | The Association Between Internet Addiction and the Risk of Suicide Attempts in Chinese Adolescents Aged 11-17 Years: Prospective Cohort Study |
| title_sort | association between internet addiction and the risk of suicide attempts in chinese adolescents aged 11 17 years prospective cohort study |
| url | https://www.jmir.org/2025/1/e52083 |
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