Reciprocal relationships between trajectories of loneliness and screen media use during adolescence

David Lawrence, Simon C. Hunter, Rebecca Cunneen, Stephen J. Houghton*, Corinne Zadow, Michael Rosenberg, Lisa Wood, Trevor Shilton

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

13 Citations (Scopus)
246 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Adolescence is the peak period for loneliness. Now a ubiquitous part of the adolescent landscape, electronic screens may provide avenues for ameliorating feelings of loneliness. Conversely, they may act as risk factors for the development of such feelings. Although cross-sectional studies to date have investigated the relationship between screen use and loneliness, longitudinal studies are needed if causal and directional associations are to be investigated. Utilising an accelerated longitudinal design and online survey we collected four waves of data from 1,919 secondary school adolescents aged 10-15 years over two years. Random intercept cross-lagged panel models tested whether changes in five types of screen use (i.e., total screen time, social media use, gaming, passive screen use, and web use) are associated with changes in loneliness in the subsequent time-point, or changes in loneliness are associated with changes in screen use in the subsequent time-point. We found significant reciprocal associations between screen use and loneliness, with the strongest associations between social networking and electronic gaming and quality of friendships. These findings highlight that any significant increase in an adolescent’s screen use may be a potential indicator of changes in quality of friendships or feelings of isolation.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1306-1317
Number of pages12
JournalJournal of Child and Family Studies
Volume31
Issue number5
Early online date12 Aug 2021
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - May 2022

Keywords

  • adolescents
  • loneliness
  • screen use
  • longitudinal

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Developmental and Educational Psychology
  • Life-span and Life-course Studies

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