Abstract
A questionnaire was administered to 1269 college students to examine if self-regulatory fatigue mediates the relationship between intolerance of uncertainty and smartphone addiction, and whether feeling of the passage of time moderates this relationship. The results showed that intolerance of uncertainty had a significant positive predictive effect on college students’ smartphone addiction, and that self-regulatory fatigue partially mediated the relationship between intolerance of uncertainty and smartphone addiction. Additionally, the relationship between intolerance of uncertainty and smartphone addiction was moderated by feeling of the passage of time. More specifically, the impact of intolerance of uncertainty on smartphone addiction is stronger when emotional affect and physiological susceptibility are heightened, and weaker when behavioral response tendency is increased. The study’s findings contribute to the literature on smartphone addiction mechanisms and have important practical implications for preventing and treating smartphone addiction.
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The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
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Wang, S., Zhang, Y., Zhang, Y. et al. The effect of intolerance of uncertainty on smartphone addiction: a moderated mediation model of self-regulatory fatigue and feeling of the passage of time. Curr Psychol 43, 17118–17130 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-024-05655-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-024-05655-9