Harsh Fathering Longitudinally Predicts Adolescents’ Internet Gaming Addiction via Unfulfilled Psychological Need

Abstract

Using a three-wave longitudinal design with 1-year intervals, the present study examined whether adolescents suffering from harsh fathering were more likely to develop Internet gaming addiction because of their unfulfilled psychological needs. A sample of 907 adolescent students from two junior high schools participated (aged from 12 to 16 years, M = 13.14 years, SD = 0.87). Cross-lagged mediational analyses indicated that harsh fathering negatively predicted adolescents’ psychological need satisfaction, which further negatively predicted their Internet gaming addiction. Moreover, the predictive relations from harsh fathering to adolescents’ Internet gaming addiction via their psychological need satisfaction were only existent for male but not female adolescents. However, Internet gaming addiction could not longitudinally predict adolescents’ psychological need fulfillment. These findings add to current insights on the bi-directional relations among harsh parent, adolescents’ psychological need and their Internet gaming behaviors.