The Mediating Effects of Depressive Symptoms on the Associations Among Social Support, Alcohol Drinking and Smartphone Overdependence

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of social support(family and friends) on alcohol drinking and smartphone overdependence and to investigate the mediating effects of depressive symptoms on the associations among social support, alcohol drinking and smartphone overdependence among middle-aged adults in their 40s and 50s. This study used an online survey conducted in 2021 and structural equation modeling was used for data analyses. The key results are as follows: first, family support reduced alcohol drinking levels, while friend support increased alcohol drinking levels. Second, both family and friends support decreased depressive symptoms but depressive symptoms had negative impacts on alcohol drinking and smartphone overdependence. Third, depressive symptoms demonstrated the partial mediation effects on the association between social support and alcohol drinking and the full mediation effects on the association between social support and smartphone overdependence. Based on the study findings, we discussed social work practice measures for dealing with the issues of problem drinking and smartphone overuse among middle-aged adults.