Linking mental health and digital addiction in general population: an overview of thematic evolution and trends from a science mapping perspective

Introduction Digital addiction, the problematic or addictive use of digital devices and platforms such as the internet, smartphone, or social media, harms people, including their mental health. Rapid developments in digital technologies have increased research interest in this relationship in diverse fields of study, accumulating a sound knowledge base. Methods This study investigates this rapidly growing, multidisciplinary research field through bibliometric science mapping analysis and aims to offer an integrative framework for understanding how knowledge on digital addiction-mental health was built across these diverse fields. The metadata of 863 articles retrieved from Web of Science and Scopus were submitted to period-based, comparative analyses using SciMAT software. Results Strategic themes, thematic network structures, and thematic evolution map showed that research investigating the digital addiction-mental health relationship focused on addictive behaviors (mostly with reference to the internet, social media, and smartphone addiction) and primarily investigated their relation to anxiety disorder, sleep quality, and depression. Discussion By providing a systematic mapping of key concepts, their interconnections, and their evolution over time, the study identified emerging research fronts, underexplored populations, and neglected mental health outcomes and suggested significant implications for future research trajectories in the field.