Affiliation:
1. School of Education, Soochow University, P.R. China
2. School of Psychology, Key Laboratory of Behavioral and Mental Health of Gansu Province, Northwest Normal University, P.R. China
Abstract
Although Internet addiction has become a mental health problem worldwide, little is known about the relationship between Internet addiction and subjective well-being. To fill this gap, we recruited 681 Chinese college students using the online convenience sampling method, who were asked to answer the questions about Internet addiction, subjective well-being, social support, and meaning in life. The results showed that Internet addiction could significantly predict subjective well-being and, importantly, that social support and meaning in life mediated the relationship between Internet addiction and subjective well-being. These findings support the cognitive-behavioral model and shed light on the adverse effect of Internet addiction on subjective well-being.