Explaining the Relationship Between Mobile Phone Addiction and Feelings of Loneliness, Self-efficacy Perception, and Parental Relationship Among Male Adolescents in the First Secondary School

Radmard, Mohammadreza; Kakavand , Alireza; Ahmadi , Mehdi; Mohamadi Benmar , Ali

Volume 15 - Articles-1404 MEJDS (2025) 15: 36 | Back to browse issues page

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Radmard M, Kakavand A, Ahmadi M, Mohamadi Benmar A. Explaining the Relationship Between Mobile Phone Addiction and Feelings of Loneliness, Self-efficacy Perception, and Parental Relationship Among Male Adolescents in the First Secondary School. MEJDS 2025; 15 (0) :36-36
URL: http://jdisabilstud.org/article-1-3348-en.html

Explaining the Relationship Between Mobile Phone Addiction and Feelings of Loneliness, Self-efficacy Perception, and Parental Relationship Among Male Adolescents in the First Secondary School

Mohammadreza Radmard¹

, Alireza Kakavand ^*²

, Mehdi Ahmadi¹

, Ali Mohamadi Benmar¹

1- MA Student in General Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Imam Khomeini International University (IKIU), Qazvin, Iran
2- Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Imam Khomeini International University (IKIU), Qazvin, Iran

Abstract: (904 Views)

Abstract
Background & Objectives: Adolescence is a period of great emotional and social changes as well as changes in relationships. Changes during adolescence are a factor in exposure to risks that affect mental health and cause harmful risks in the process of development. From a developmental perspective, adolescents' early relationships with their parents can lead to several problems, one of which is loneliness. Among different age groups, adolescents and young adults use mobile phones more frequently. The significant amount of time that adolescents spend using mobile phones affects their interpersonal problems. Conversely, a positive parental relationship can improve social skills and reduce problematic behaviors. In today's age, teenagers often show a strong desire to use mobile phones to compensate for loneliness and emptiness caused by poor relationships, which constitute a significant part of their lives. Therefore, the present study was conducted to explain the relationship between mobile phone addiction, loneliness, self–efficacy perception, and parental relationship among male teenagers in the first secondary school.
Methods: The current research employed an analytical and correlational model. The statistical population of the study consisted of all teenage male students from the first secondary schools in the 19th district of Tehran Province, Iran, during the 2021–2022 academic year. Of whom, 200 were selected by voluntary sampling. According to Jolly Plant's formula, the sample size is N > 50 + 8 m, where m represents the number of predictor variables and N represents the minimum sample size. Considering the three predictor variables in this research, the minimum suitable sample size was calculated to be 74. To increase the validity of the test and control for possible subject dropout, the sample size consisted of 200 male adolescents studying in four secondary boys' schools. The first period was determined in District 19 of Tehran, which was selected using a voluntary non–random sampling method. The questionnaires were then completed in the winter of 2021. The inclusion criteria were being within the specified age range, knowingly and willingly completing the questionnaires, and not suffering from any specific physical or mental health issues (as reported personally). Failure to fully respond to the research questionnaires was also considered the criterion for leaving the research. All ethical considerations were observed in this research: No personal information was received from the participants, they were assured about maintaining their confidential information, the necessary coordination was made with school administrators to send online questionnaires in class groups, the questionnaires were collected with informed consent, and people with full consent to conduct the research. The participants completed the Standard Mobile Phone Addiction Questionnaire (Sevari, 2014), the UCLA Loneliness Scale (Russell et al., 1980), the Parent–Child Relationship Survey (Fine et al., 1985), and the General Self–Efficacy Scale (Sherer & Maddux, 1982). Data analysis was performed using the multiple linear regression method and the Pearson correlation coefficient at a significance level of 0.05 in SPSS software version 26.
Results: The findings showed that loss of creativity (β=0.402, p<0.001), desire orientation (β=0.194, p=0.002), and loneliness (p<0.001, β=0.288) predicted the feeling of loneliness in adolescent boys; Also, loss of creativity (β=–0.454, p<0.001), desire orientation (β=–0.204, p<0.001), and loneliness (β=–0.241, p<0.001) predicted self–efficacy perception in adolescent boys. Additionally, loss of creativity (β =–0.309, p<0.001), desire orientation (β=–0.244, p<0.001), and loneliness (β=–0.301, p<0.001) predicted the parental relationship in male teenagers. Additionally, 56% of the variance in loneliness, 58% of the variance in self–efficacy perception, and 51% of the variance in parental relationship were explained by the components of mobile phone addiction (loss of creativity, desirability, and loneliness).
Conclusion: The results of the present study determined that mobile phone addiction and its components (loss of creativity, desirability, and loneliness) are predictors of loneliness, perception of self–efficacy, and parental relationship in adolescent boys. This research has also provided parents, educational organizations, and other policymakers in the education sector with preventive suggestions for cell phone addiction and recommendations for future research.

Keywords: Mobile phone addiction, Self–efficacy perception, Loneliness, Parental relationship, Teenagers

Full-Text [PDF 328 kb] (188 Downloads)

Type of Study: Original Research Article | Subject: Psychology

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