Stress perception and the developmental trajectory of smart phone addiction among college students:Based on Parallel Latent Variable Growth Modeling

Abstract Purpose In recent years, the problem of smart phone addiction among college students has become increasingly serious, which has aroused the attention of colleges and universities at home and abroad. Based on the general stress theory, this study explores the development of stress perception and smart phone addiction among college students over a semester, while further exploring the causal relationship between the two. Methods A longitudinal study was conducted utilizing a physical education classroom to administer questionnaires on students' stress perception and smart phone addiction levels. The test was administered three times at the beginning, middle, and end of the semester, resulting in 517 valid participants. Data were processed using SPSS and Mplus to explore trends in their stress perception and smart phone addiction using potential growth modeling, as well as causal relationships between the aforementioned variables using cross-lagged modeling. Results (1) The levels of college students' stress perception and smart phone addiction showed a linear trend of weakening over time; (2)There is a significant positive effect of the intercept of college student stress on the intercept of smart phone addiction and a significant negative effect on the slope of smart phone addiction;(3)The intercept of smart phone addiction among college students has a significant negative impact on the slope of stress perception;(4)The slope of smart phone addiction among college students has a significant positive impact on the slope of stress perception;(5) college students' stress perception and smart phone addiction were causally related to each other. Conclusion This study reveals the developmental trajectories of stress perception and smart phone addiction among college students over the course of a semester, and explores the causal relationship between the two. These findings may provide insight into how stress perception affects smart phone addictive behaviors, and provide a scientific basis for the development of effective preventive and intervention measures.