An Association Among Problematic Smartphone Use, Sleep Quality, Behavioral Engagement and Academic Achievements: A Multiple Mediation Model Based on Large-Scale Data

The purpose of this study is to investigate the mediating effects of sleep quality and mathematics behavioral engagement on the relationship between problematic smartphone use (PSU) and mathematics achievement while controlling for gender and socio-economic status (SES). A sample of 1645 fourth-grade students from southern China completed a math test and an online questionnaire assessing PSU, sleep quality, and mathematics behavioral engagement. Confirmatory factor analysis, descriptive statistics, Pearson’s correlation, and structural equation modeling were used in the data analysis. The findings showed that: (1) Boys exhibited higher levels of PSU than girls, and students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds were more prone to PSU. (2) PSU was negatively correlated with mathematics achievement. (3) Between PSU and mathematics achievement, mathematics behavioral engagement was a significant mediator. (4) Sleep quality and mathematics behavioral engagement played a significant sequential mediating role in the association between PSU and mathematics performance. This study focused on exploring the mechanisms at play in the relationship between PSU, sleep quality, behavioral engagement and mathematics achievement for primary school students.