Specific and Common Effects of Parenting Styles and Bullying on Internet Addiction

Abstract

Background: Excessive and inappropriate use of the internet and related technologies is a severe problem in Iranian society. Extensive evidence demonstrates that parenting styles and bullying increase the risk of internet addiction in teenagers. However, more research is required to improve the existing knowledge about the impact of parenting styles and bullying on students' internet addiction. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate specific and common effects of parenting styles and bullying on female high-school students' internet addiction. Materials and Methods: This was a descriptive-correlational study. The population comprised all female high-school students in Yasouj (Iran) in the academic year 2020-21, of whom 357 were selected by convenience sampling. The data collection instruments, distributed online, included Young Internet Addiction Questionnaire, Baumrind's Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire, and the Illinois Bully Scale. The data were analyzed by the analysis of variance based on structural equation modeling. Results: The explained variance (R2) of internet addiction for the specific effect of parenting style and bullying was 0.12 and 0.20, respectively. Moreover, the explained variance (R2) of internet addiction for the common effect of bullying and parenting style was 0.25. Conclusions: The results emphasize the importance of the specific and common effects of parenting styles and bullying on internet addiction. Therefore, programs should be developed to prevent internet addiction and other familial and social harms.