Anxiety, Internet Addiction and Depression in Emerging Adults: A Mediational Perspective

Abstract

The major aim of the present study was to find out the relationship among anxiety, internet addiction and depression in a sample of emerging adults. More specifically, the study was intended to find out the mediating role of internet addiction in the relationship of anxiety and depression. The study followed a correlational research design where the participants were approached using purposive sampling. Participants were recruited from a public sector university of Multan city. Their ages ranged between 18 to 25 years of age with M = 21.38 and SD = 1.90. Beck Anxiety Inventory, Internet Addiction Test and Beck Depression inventory were used to measure anxiety, internet addiction and depression respectively. The data was analyzed through SPSS and Model 4 of Process Macro by Hayes. The results confirmed that anxiety not only is a direct positive predictor of depression but is also linked through internet addiction. The study has important implications for behavioral addiction researchers and practitioners, and generally for clinical psychologists and psychiatrists. In the end, limitations and suggestions for future research have also been discussed.