Acta Psychologica 248 (2024) 104427

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Acta Psychologica
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/actpsy

Internet addiction and suicidal ideation in Chinese children with migrant

parents: Mediating role of anxiety and moderating role of social support
Siwei Miao a,1 , Lu Xu b,1 , Sihong Gao c , Cuiping Bai d , Yan Huang e,*, Bin Peng f,*
a
Centre for Medical Big Data and Artificial Intelligence, Southwest Hospital of Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
b
School of Pharmacy, Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing, 401331, China
c
Chongqing Fuling District Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Chongqing 408000, China
d
Xiushan Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Chongqing 409900, China
e
Chongqing Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Chongqing 400021, China
f
Department of Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400016, China

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Introduction: The prevalence of internet addiction among Chinese left-behind children, coupled with its potential
Left-behind children to exacerbate anxiety and suicidal ideation, has become a critical issue. This study seeks to address the dearth of
Internet addiction research on the psychological underpinnings of this phenomenon, particularly the mediating role of anxiety and
Suicidal ideation
the moderating effect of social support across different parental migration statuses. Understanding these re-
Anxiety
lationships is crucial for developing targeted interventions and informing policy decisions.
Social support
Methods: In a cross-sectional study, we administered Young's Internet Addiction Test, alongside scales for anxiety,
social support, and suicidal ideation, to 2882 middle school students in China with diverse parental migration
backgrounds. Utilizing an online survey approach, we ensured broad participation and participant anonymity.
Advanced statistical analyses, including regression models for mediation and moderation effects, were employed
to rigorously test our hypotheses.
Results: Among all participants, a significant positive correlation was observed between Internet addiction and
suicidal ideation. Anxiety mediated the relationship between Internet addiction and suicidal ideation across all
groups, including those with mother-only migration (Effect = 0.383, 95%CI: 0.107,0.943), father-only migration
(Effect = 0.806, 95%CI: 0.487–1.230), both-parent migration(Effect = 0.289, 95%CI: 0.105–0.521), and non-
left-behind children (Effect = 0.469, 95%CI: 0.342–0.630). Particularly in families where only the mother was
absent, the moderating role of social support was especially prominent (B = 1.174, t = 6.446, p < 0.001 for low
social support), underscoring the importance of family structure in the context of Internet addiction.
Conclusion: Internet addiction has both direct and indirect effects on suicidal ideation, with anxiety playing a
mediating role in the indirect effects. Social support moderates and alleviates the relationship between Internet
addiction and anxiety specifically in the mother-only migration group. Therefore, clarifying these relationships
helps in developing and implementing effective interventions to specifically improve the mental health and
living conditions of left-behind children.

1. Introduction that the timeframe for adolescents transitioning from suicidal ideation
to planning, attempting, and ultimately completing suicide generally
Suicidal behavior presents a critical global public health challenge, lasts for approximately one year (Nock et al., 2013). Significantly, study
demanding particular attention be paid to children and adolescents in China indicates a progressive decline in the prevalence of suicidal
(Glenn et al., 2020). Suicide frequently progresses through four ideation, planning, and attempts among children and adolescents under
sequential stages: suicidal ideation, suicide planning, attempted suicide, 18, suggesting a similarly gradual development of suicidal behavior in
and completed suicide (Sveticic & De Leo, 2012). Research indicates this demographic (Chang et al., 2024). Suicidal ideation, as an early

* Corresponding authors.
E-mail addresses: [email protected] (Y. Huang), [email protected] (B. Peng).
1
The authors contributed equally to this work.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2024.104427
Received 6 January 2024; Received in revised form 22 July 2024; Accepted 23 July 2024
Available online 24 July 2024
0001-6918/© 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-
nc-nd/4.0/).
S. Miao et al. Acta Psychologica 248 (2024) 104427

stage of suicidal behavior, is defined as an individual's subjective state of et al., 2021a; Ziqiu, 2022). Meanwhile, studies have found that left-
mind related to the idea or act of suicide (Harmer & Lee, 2024). The behind children with anxiety are more likely to have suicidal ten-
suicidal ideation is an important problem because it is one of the major dencies (Hou et al., 2021). Therefore, the purpose of this study is to
risk factors for suicidal plans, attempts and behaviors; it predicts future explore the mediating role of anxiety in the relationship between
suicidal plans, attempts, and even actual suicide (Guo et al., 2021; Zhou internet addiction and suicidal ideation among left-behind children.
et al., 2022). Therefore, prioritizing interventions aimed at suicidal Social support may play a crucial moderating role between internet
ideation among youth is crucial for preventing more severe instances of addiction and anxiety. Cohen and Will's social support buffering model
suicidal behavior. suggests that social support protects individuals' physical and mental
From the late 1970s onwards, China's economic reforms have been health by alleviating the negative impact of adverse events (Cohen &
accompanied by massive waves of rural-urban migration as rural la- Wills, 1985). Empirical studies have shown that internet addiction
borers flocked to the cities seeking better jobs and incomes (Wang et al., significantly increases anxiety levels, while social support can effec-
2015). Many of these migrants have given rise to another demographic tively mitigate this negative impact (Moge & Romano, 2020) and reduce
group: left-behind children (LBC), defined as children under 18 who the risk of suicidal ideation. Further research based on the ecological
have been left in their local homes for at least 6 months by one or both model of the development of left-behind rural children emphasizes that
parents who have migrated (Duan & Yang, 2008). By 2015, there were developmental outcomes result from the dynamic interaction of multi-
an estimated 40.51 million LBC and adolescents in China (Population, ple influencing factors (Zhao, 2010). In conclusion, we hypothesize that
2015). Left-behind children aged 10–18 are in a key period of devel- social support significantly buffers the effect of internet addiction on
opment that involves rapid physiological and psychological changes, anxiety.
which might make them more susceptible to external factors and thus The role of parental migration status in the relationship between
intensifies their psychological vulnerability. LBCs in this age group Internet addiction and suicidal ideation among left-behind children is
rarely have parental oversight. They are in danger of developing a also noteworthy. Previous studies have revealed significant variations
spectrum of unhealthy mental health issues (Wang & Mesman, 2015). It between groups of left-behind children with different parental migration
is a serious problem that separation from parents over a long period of statuses as regards the prevalence of suicidal ideation (such as children
time increases the risk of psychological problems, including the risk of from mother-only migrant families might have a higher risk of suicidal
suicidal ideation. And recent studies revealed that LBC had a statistically ideation), suggesting that parental migration status might be a potential
higher risk of suicidal ideation than the non-left-behind children (NLBC) boundary condition (Lu et al., 2020; Ma et al., 2021; Qu et al., 2021).
(Chen et al., 2013; Wu et al., 2023). On the other hand, adolescents Given the aforementioned evidence, the present study examines the
demonstrate a significant vulnerability to suicidal behavior, thus there is predictive association between Internet addiction and suicidal ideation,
urgent need for investigation and intervention regarding a mental con- the mediating role of anxiety, and the moderating role of social support,
dition related to suicidal ideation in youth (Fellmeth et al., 2018). based on different parental migration statuses of the left-behind chil-
Studies of internet addiction and suicidal ideation among adoles- dren. Our hypotheses are as follows: (1) Internet addiction will predict
cents are more relevant today because internet addiction is an emerging suicidal ideation among left-behind children across all migration
global health problem (Cheng et al., 2018). According to the China groups; (2) Anxiety will mediate this relationship; and (3) The moder-
Internet Network Information Center (CINIC), the number of infant ating effect of social support will be more obvious in Chinese children
netizens (under the age of 19) was 20.9 % of the 854 million Chinese from mother-only migrant families. The present study aims to offer
netizens as of June 2019 (The 44th Statistical Report, n.d.). The prev- theoretical insights for the prevention or intervention of suicidal idea-
alence of internet addiction ranged from 10.4 % to 26.5 % among Chi- tion in development among left-behind children who are more and more
nese children and adolescents (Wu et al., 2016; Xin et al., 2018; Xu et al., at risk in contemporary China due to its specific sociological settings.
2020). Some studies revealed that individuals with internet addiction Fig. 1 presents a moderated mediation model illustrating the asso-
had a higher risk of suicidal ideation (Kuang et al., 2020; Park et al., ciations between Internet addiction, anxiety, social support and suicidal
2013). This is especially evident in LBC, and the existence of a rela- ideation.
tionship between internet addiction and suicidal ideation has been
verified by numerous studies (Peng et al., 2021a; Yang et al., 2023; 2. Materials and methods
Ziqiu, 2022). According to the stress-sensitization model of suicide,
suicide is caused by the interaction between a person's vulnerability and 2.1. Participants and recruitment
external stressors (Kv, 2001). For adolescents, their derivative brain
constitution and mental developmental characteristics make them more The study was supported by the participating schools, facilitating the
likely to produce suicidal ideation during the brain stimulation pro- centralized distribution of the questionnaires. This research used a
duced by internet addiction. In addition, study shows that relative to stratified cluster random sampling method and conducted a question-
NLBC, LBC are more likely to develop suicidal ideation after turning to naire survey in a county town junior high school in the southeastern
internet addiction (Peng et al., 2021b). region of Chongqing from September to December 2019. The selection
Anxiety is a common negative emotion among children and adoles- of research subjects was as follows: First, three distance circles were
cents. According to the theory of displacement, excessive use of the formed based on the distance from the school to the county town (10 km,
internet by adolescents leads to internet addiction, reducing the time 20 km, 30 km). Within each distance circle, 2–3 township junior high
spent on other positive activities and increasing negative emotions
(Kraut et al., 1998). Studies have shown that the psychological and
emotional harm caused by internet addiction is directly related to anx-
iety (Ho et al., 2014; Liu et al., 2023). Specifically, the higher the degree
of internet addiction, the more likely adolescents are to develop anxiety
symptoms (Chang et al., 2022; Seyrek et al., 2017). Shang et al. found
that internet addiction can predict anxiety among left-behind adoles-
cents (Shang et al., 2024). The interpersonal theory of suicide suggests
that feelings of burdensomeness and failed belongingness, often exac-
erbated by anxiety, can lead to suicidal ideation (Van Orden et al.,
2010). Research has confirmed that anxiety can predict suicidal ideation
and is a key risk factor for suicidal thoughts (Park et al., 2013; Peng Fig. 1. The proposed moderated mediation model.

2
S. Miao et al. Acta Psychologica 248 (2024) 104427

schools were randomly selected as the surveyed schools, resulting in a 2.3.4. Suicidal ideation
total of eight schools. Within each school, classes were selected as units Suicidal ideation refers to thoughts of wanting to die. In this study, it
according to the ratio of 3:2:1 for grades one, two, and three, respec- was assessed through the following questions: “Have you ever had sui-
tively, ultimately selecting a total of 2882 students for this on-site cidal thoughts but never acted on them?”, “Have you ever made a sui-
questionnaire survey. The response rate was 85 %, indicating a high cide plan?”, and “Have you ever attempted suicide?”. If any of these
level of participation. Informed consent was obtained from all partici- questions are answered affirmatively, the individual is considered to
pants and their guardians, and the purpose, procedures, and confiden- have suicidal ideation (Bertolote et al., 2005; Shen et al., 2020). Affir-
tiality measures of the study were clearly explained. The Institutional mative responses were considered indicative of suicidal ideation.
Review Board of Chongqing Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital
approved this study (NO. 2019-ky-ks-HY-1). 2.3.5. Demographic variables
The inclusion criteria for this study were: (1) aged between 12 and Participants provided demographic information, including age,
18 years; (2) not previously diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder; (3) gender, grade, only-child status, self-rated family income level, parental
willing to participate in the survey and complete it. Subjects who did not migrant status, and parental current conditions. The inclusion of these
complete the survey or failed the lie detection test were excluded. The variables was to control for potential confounding factors and to explore
purpose of the lie detection measures was to identify and exclude those their relationships with the study's primary constructs.
who did not provide sincere responses. Surveys with obvious logical
errors were further eliminated. 2.4. Data analysis

Statistical analyses were conducted using SPSS version 25.0 for

2.2. Survey administration Windows. Chi-square tests and ANOVA were used to examine de-
mographic differences and group comparisons, with post-hoc tests
Students and their guardians voluntarily consented to participate (Scheffe or Bonferroni) for further clarification. Pearson's correlations
and could withdraw at any time. Before the survey, researchers gave were performed to evaluate relationships between study variables. The
detailed explanations of the questionnaire instructions and were avail- moderated mediation model was tested using SPSS PROCESS 4.0 (with a
able for further clarification during its completion. The questionnaires logit link), controlling for age, gender, grade, only child status, and self-
and scales were administered in internet classrooms during school rated family income level as covariates (Cha et al., 2018; Cluver et al.,
hours, providing a controlled environment for participants, with a 2015; Xiao et al., 2019). Grand mean centering was applied to the main
completion time of 20 to 30 min. Conducting the survey in internet continuous variables to address multicollinearity concerns.
classrooms not only ensured a controlled environment but also
enhanced convenience and accessibility. This approach aimed to reduce 3. Results
environmental interference and social desirability bias through real-
time guidance, thereby improving data validity and reliability. Addi- 3.1. Demographic characteristics
tionally, verification measures, such as control questions and consis-
tency checks, were implemented to minimize response biases and Participants were excluded if their parents were divorced, remarried,
reliance on self-report measures. or deceased to ensure a homogeneous sample, focusing on the direct
effects of parental migration status on children's mental health. A total of
2882 participants, aged 12 to 17 (mean = 13.13, SD = 0.89), were
2.3. Measures included in the study. Among these participants, 701 (24.3 %) were
children from both-parent migrant families, 660 (22.9 %) were children
2.3.1. Internet addiction from father-only migrant families, 209 (7.3 %) were children from
Internet addiction was evaluated using the Diagnostic Scale of mother-only migrant families, and 1312 (45.5 %) were children from
Internet Addiction for Middle School Students by Zan, which has been nonparent migrant families. The demographic characteristics of the
culturally adapted for the Chinese context (Zan, 2008). The 13-item self- participants with different parental migrant status are shown in Table 1.
report scale, which total score ranked 0 to 13, indicated internet There were no significant differences between the four groups in gender,
addiction by scores exceeding 5. The scale's reliability, with a Cronbach's age, grade, only child status and self-rated family income level (p >
α of 0.90, was confirmed in the current study. 0.05).

2.3.2. Anxiety
The Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale-7 item (GAD-7) (Spitzer 3.2. Comparison analysis
et al., 2006) was applied to assess anxiety symptoms over the past two
weeks. The GAD-7 consisted of 7 self-report items, a strong reliability Table 2 presents significant group differences in Internet addiction,
and validity in Chinese population (Zhang et al., 2022), rated each item social support, anxiety, and suicidal ideation across different parental
on 3-point scale with higher probability of anxiety. Participants were migration statuses (p < 0.05). Post-hoc analyses with effect sizes
regarded to have anxiety when the scored >4 on GAD-7. The scale's (Cohen's d) revealed that children from mother-only migrant families
Cronbach's α of 0.92 in this study indicates good reliability and construct exhibited higher levels of Internet addiction compared to those from
validity. both-parent and non-parent migrant families, and children from father-
only families had a higher prevalence of suicidal ideation than those
2.3.3. Social support from non-parent migrant families.
Social support was measured using the 17-item Scale of Adolescent
Social Support designed by Ye and Dai (2006), which includes di- 3.3. Correlation analysis
mensions of objective support, subjective support, and support utiliza-
tion. The scale design based on 5-point Likert scale suggested positive Table 3 displays the correlation coefficients between the main study
ranks of social support with higher scores. Its reliability and validity variables conducted by Pearson correlations. Notably, Internet addiction
have been tested and confirmed in the Chinese context (Fu-lan, 2024; was positively correlated with anxiety and suicidal ideation, and nega-
Wen-hao, 2023). The scale's Cronbach's α of 0.96 demonstrates high tively with social support across all groups. These correlations highlight
reliability. the complex interplay between these variables.

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Table 1
Demographic characteristics of the participants by parental migration status.
Variables Both-parent migration Father-only Mother-only migration Nonparent F/χ2 p-value
(n = 701) Migration (n = 209) Migration
(n = 660) (n = 1312)

Age, mean (SD) 13.14 (0.89) 13.09 (0.89) 13.24 (0.92) 13.12 (0.89) 1.492 0.215
Gender, n (%) 2.288 0.515
Male 343 (48.9) 325 (49.2) 101 (48.3) 606 (46.2)
Female 358 (51.1) 335 (50.8) 108 (51.7) 706 (53.8)
Grade, n (%) 9.330 0.156
Grade 7 414 (59.1) 382 (57.9) 128 (61.2) 771 (58.8)
Grade 8 203 (29.0) 223 (33.8) 56 (26.8) 394 (30.0)
Grade 9 84 (12.0) 55 (8.3) 25 (12.0) 147 (11.2)
Only child, n (%) 0.342 0.952
Yes 95 (13.6) 94 (14.2) 29 (13.9) 190 (14.5)
No 606 (86.4) 566 (85.8) 180 (86.1) 1122 (85.5)
Self-rated family income level, n (%) 10.832 0.094
Much better/better 40 (5.7) 40 (6.1) 13 (6.2) 69 (5.3)
Average 413 (58.9) 340 (51.5) 125 (59.8) 757 (57.7)
Much poorer/poorer 248(35.4) 280 (42.4) 71 (34.0) 486 (37.0)

Table 2
Comparison of main study variables among parental migration groups.
Variables Both-parent Father-only Mother-only Nonparent migration F/χ2 p-value Post hoc
migration migration (2) migration (4)
(1) (3)

Internet addiction, mean (SD) 0.18 (0.24) 0.20 (0.27) 0.24 (0.30) 0.15 (0.21) 13.922 <0.001 3>1>4
Social support, mean (SD) 3.99 (0.92) 4.01 (0.91) 3.86 (1.04) 4.06 (0.91) 3.047 0.028 4>3
Anxiety, mean (SD) 0.62 (0.69) 0.61 (0.69) 0.69 (0.72) 0.59 (0.68) 1.431 0.232
Suicidal ideation, n (%) 10.303 0.016 2>4
Yes 234 (33.4) 247 (37.4) 80 (38.3) 407(31.0)
No 467 (66.6) 413 (62.6) 129 (61.7) 905 (69.0)

Post hoc suggests the significance of pairwise comparisons in the post-hoc analysis.

between Internet addiction and suicidal ideation across all groups. The
Table 3
interaction between Internet addiction and social support was signifi-
Correlations between main study variables among parental migration groups.
cant only for children from mother-only migrant families, indicating a
Variables 1 2 3 4 unique moderating effect of social support in this group.
Both-parent migration group
1.Internet addiction 1
2.Social support − 0.187*** 1 3.5. Model explanation
3.Anxiety 0.277*** − 0.453*** 1
4.Suicidal ideation 0.207*** − 0.253*** 0.302*** 1 Fig. 2 visually represents the moderating effect of social support on
the relationship between Internet addiction and anxiety in children from
Father-only migration group mother-only migrant families. High social support was found to mitigate
1.Internet addiction 1
the association between Internet addiction and anxiety, as evidenced by
2.Social support − 0.190*** 1
3.Anxiety 0.307*** − 0.367*** 1
a simple slope test (B = 1.174, t = 6.446, p < 0.001 for low social
4.Suicidal ideation 0.295*** − 0.278*** 0.405*** 1 support; B = 0.177, t = 0.829, p > 0.05 for high social support).

Mother-only migration group 4. Discussion

1.Internet addiction 1
2.Social support − 0.228*** 1 Adopting a moderated mediation model that factored in the differ-
3.Anxiety 0.395*** − 0.400*** 1
ence of children whose parents had migrated with one parent (father-
4.Suicidal ideation 0.291*** − 0.358*** 0.340*** 1
only or mother-only migration), both parents (both-parent migration),
or non-parent (nonparent migration), this study can identify the po-
Nonparent migration group
1.Internet addiction 1
tential mechanism by which internet addiction shapes the association
2.Social support − 0.186*** 1 between internet addiction and suicidal ideation among the LBC popu-
3.Anxiety 0.311*** − 0.387*** 1 lation, and examine the moderating role of social support on the rela-
4.Suicidal ideation 0.187*** 0.206*** 0.292*** 1 tionship between internet addiction and anxiety, while taking into
Suicide ideation was coded as 1 = yes, 0 = no. account the effect of the LBC status. Our analysis results revealed that
***
p < 0.001. internet addiction increases the risk of suicidal ideation among LBC by
increasing anxiety, and the role of social support buffers the mediation
3.4. Moderated mediation analysis effect. The analysis identified the specific LBC status under which this
buffering effect occurred. By putting our findings in the context of a
The moderated mediation analysis, detailed in Table 4, revealed that larger literature and highlighting the practical implications, this paper
after controlling for covariates, Internet addiction and anxiety signifi- aims to offer a new promising direction for mental health intervention.
cantly predicted suicidal ideation. Anxiety mediated the relationship The study also obtained data with a great degree of variance among
the LBC and differences in internet addiction. The results demonstrated

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S. Miao et al. Acta Psychologica 248 (2024) 104427

Table 4
Regression results of moderated mediation effects among parental migration groups.
Independent variable Outcome variable: anxiety Outcome variable: suicidal ideation

B SE p-value B SE p-value

Both-parent migration group

Internet addiction 0.569 0.099 <0.001 1.241 0.358 <0.001
Social support − 0.314 0.026 <0.001
Internet addiction × Social support − 0.105 0.098 0.284
Anxiety 0.834 0.129 <0.001
R2 0.247 0.144
F 28.395*** 65.654***

Father-only migration group

Internet addiction 0.626 0.093 <0.001 1.717 0.345 <0.001
Social support − 0.244 0.028 <0.001
Internet addiction × Social support − 0.107 0.092 0.245
Anxiety 1.254 0.154 <0.001
R2 0.200 0.276
F 20.354*** 106.745***

Mother-only migration group

Internet addiction 0.676 0.148 <0.001 1.337 0.571 0.019
Social support − 0.220 0.042 <0.001
Internet addiction × Social support − 0.479 0.127 <0.001
Anxiety 0.926 0.254 <0.001
R2 0.341 0.211
F 12.946*** 27.463***

Nonparent migration group

Internet addiction 0.788 0.081 <0.001 1.110 0.291 <0.001
Social support − 0.256 0.019 <0.001
Internet addiction × Social support − 0.055 0.080 0.492
Anxiety 0.800 0.095 <0.001
R2 0.212 0.128
F 43.749*** 110.812***

Controlling for gender, age, grade, only child status, and self-rated family income level in each group.
***
p < 0.001.

that the level of internet addiction in the LBC, whose parents migrated with those unmet needs (Ge et al., 2015; Xu et al., 2019). Importantly,
and lived far away from each other was especially higher compared with post-hoc multiple testing also found that children with mother-only
the NLBC. This lies with the previous study results (Wang et al., 2019) migration had a higher level of risk of developing internet addiction
which might occur because the LBC compared with the NLBC, tend to (as had previous studies (Wen, 2023)), and a longitudinal study by van
have significantly more unmet emotional demands and the affection den Eijnden and others proved that mother absence is a risk factor for
from their parents. Accordingly, they choose online activities to cope internet addiction in children (van den Eijnden et al., 2008). Child-
rearing is still an activity primarily associated with mothers in China
(Lujia, 2015). In addition to the above findings, the high level of internet
addiction of mother-only migration children is closely related to the
weakening of the mother–child relationship, and further to the absence
of the primary childcares (Wen & Lin, 2012; Xu et al., 2014). Research
has also indicated that their mental health is much more seriously
impaired by negative experiences (Akezhuoli et al., 2022). Attachment
theory suggests that disruption of attachment resulting from prolonged
maternal separation can impair the child's affective development more
severely, especially in MLBC (Chen et al., 2021; Qu et al., 2020).
Emotional care and support provided by the mother is absent for MLBC,
which increases the susceptibility of MLBC to internet addiction
(Akezhuoli et al., 2022). However, fathers and mothers exert different
influences on their children's behaviors and emotions. Specifically, our
finding indicates that groups in which fathers only migrated reported
substantially higher levels of suicidal ideation than non-left-behind
groups (Jinliang, 2023). Our observations were consistent with some
previous studies (Deng & Li, 2014). However, it appeared to be incon-
sistent with others (Hongsheng, 2023). It can be explained at the level of
the individual for two reasons. First, his father's absence might lead to an
undermining of his sense of security and general psychological well-
being and make him more prone to suicidal thinking. Second, because of
his father's absence, the mother's parenting style might differ from fa-
Fig. 2. Moderating effect of social support on the relationship between Internet ther's in certain manners (namely, mother might be more emotionally
addiction and anxiety among children from mother-only migrant families.

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S. Miao et al. Acta Psychologica 248 (2024) 104427

accommodating and be less likely to refuse child's needs), such that her groups, as they have different sources of emotional support, the miti-
parenting style might motivate at least some children to use threats of gating effect of social support had not been significant.
suicide to achieve their ends.
4.3. Limitations and implications
4.1. The mediation role of anxiety
While our study provides valuable insights, it is not without limita-
Our data indicated that there exists a significantly positive correla- tions. The reliance on self-reported data may introduce response bias,
tion between internet addiction and suicidal ideation under all parental and the cross-sectional design limits our ability to infer causality. Future
migration status conditions (mother-only migration, father-only research should incorporate multiple data sources and longitudinal de-
migration, both-parent migration, and non-LBC), consistent with pre- signs to address these issues. Additionally, this study sampled specific
vious findings that regardless of parental migration status, internet children from a certain area in Chongqing, which may limit its gener-
addiction is related to an elevated risk of suicide ideation (Peng et al., alizability. Future research needs to be conducted in different settings to
2021a) This is probably because the excessively built Internet depen- provide more comprehensive insights. Despite these limitations, our
dence undermines the individuals' ability to manage social and aca- findings have practical implications for mental health interventions,
demic pressure and resort to maladaptive coping strategies (Cheng et al., particularly for children from mother-only migrant families, where so-
2015) or facilitate suicidal ideation (Okechukwu et al., 2022). On the cial support and anxiety management are key.
other hand, due to the deindividuation effect of internet addiction (Lin
et al., 2014; Liu et al., 2017), this may lower an individual's inhibitions
5. Conclusion
and increase the impulsivity of their actions. The Internet's function in
suicide-related information also worsens this risk (Tam et al., 2007;
In conclusion, our study contributes to the understanding of the
Wong et al., 2013).
complex interplay between Internet addiction, anxiety, and suicidal
Meanwhile, our findings show that anxiety mediates between
ideation among children with different parental migration statuses. The
Internet addiction and suicidal ideation, thus supporting Hypothesis 2,
mediation of anxiety and the moderation of social support offer valuable
which states that Internet addiction-induced negative emotions such as
insights for targeted interventions.
anxiety would cause suicidal ideation. Internet addiction is positively
related to anxiety. Anxiety plays a driving role in increasing the risk of
Funding
suicidal ideation, thus demonstrating consistent with previous findings
(Teng et al., 2022). The mediating role of anxiety here indicates that
This work was supported by the Chongqing Science and Technology
Internet addicts are vulnerable as they excessively spend time in the
Commission of China (No. cstc2019jscx-msxmX0279) and the Chongq-
virtual world, which increases the likelihood of social withdrawal in the
ing Health Committee of China (2019ZY023315).
real world from others, leading them to be more likely to experience
social anxiety disorder. While strongly predicts suicidal ideations
(Bentley et al., 2016), and these associations are consistent with CRediT authorship contribution statement
interpersonal-psychological theory of suicide (Buckner et al., 2017).
Second, people who are addicted to the Internet are generally more Siwei Miao: Writing – review & editing, Methodology. Lu Xu:
Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Methodology,
likely to suffer from anxiety (Restrepo et al., 2020; Wan Ismail et al.,
2020), hence they might consider finding a place of belonging virtually Formal analysis. Sihong Gao: Writing – review & editing, Writing –
original draft, Methodology, Formal analysis. Cuiping Bai: Writing –
for anxiety relief at confrontations with academic and interpersonal
pressures. However, the problems remain unresolved in face-to-face review & editing, Investigation. Yan Huang: Writing – review & editing,
Investigation, Conceptualization. Bin Peng: Writing – review & editing,
settings, producing a vicious cycle that will further enhance anxiety
and facilitate suicidal ideation. Especially for the LBC, without super- Writing – original draft, Formal analysis, Conceptualization.
vision from parents, they would be more likely to escape the pressure
through the Internet, leading to increments of anxiety and thus facili- Declaration of competing interest
tation of suicidal ideation. Due to the reason that one or both parents are
absent, LBC do not learn how to cope with negative emotions through None.
interaction with parents and are more sensitive to the negative emotions
(Canale et al., 2019; Lu et al., 2021). A poor psychological state in- Data availability
creases the likelihood of such people exhibiting avoidance behavior
when faced with difficult or unhelpful circumstances, precipitating or The datasets analyzed during the current study are available from the
exacerbating suicidal ideation. corresponding author on reasonable request.

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