What question did this study set out to answer?

This research aims to examine how self-regulation affects mobile Internet addiction among high school students, considering the role of social support.

February 8, 2026SHILAP Revista de lepidopterología0 citationsOpen Access

The Relationship between Self-Regulation and Mobile Internet Addiction with the Mediating Role of Social Support among High School Students in Kerman: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach

LMLeila Bayat MokhtariPayame Noor University SSShahrzad Sanjari GPGholamhasan Panahi

Key Points

This research aims to examine how self-regulation affects mobile Internet addiction among high school students, considering the role of social support.
Correlational design used to analyze relationships among variables.
Employed Covariance-Based Structural Equation Modeling for analysis.
Data collected from 1,021 high school students in Kerman through multistage cluster sampling.
Standardized instruments included SSRQ, SS-A Scale, and CIAS for data collection.
Descriptive and correlational analyses performed using SPSS; structural modeling with LISREL.
Self-regulation positively affects social support (β = 0.34, p<0.001).
Higher social support is linked to lower mobile Internet addiction (β = -0.23, p<0.001).
Self-regulation shows a direct negative effect on mobile Internet addiction (β = -0.23, p<0.001).
The model demonstrates acceptable fit (χ²/df = 3.78, RMSEA = 0.052, CFI = 0.92, TLI = 0.90, GFI = 0.97).

Abstract

Background: Mobile Internet addiction in adolescents has become a growing social and educational concern, associated with substantial personal, academic, and psychological risks. This study investigated the direct and indirect effects of self-regulation on mobile Internet addiction among high school students, with perceived social support serving as a mediating factor.Methods: A correlational design was employed, using Covariance-Based Structural Equation Modeling (CB-SEM) to analyze both direct and indirect relationships among the study variables. The target population included all high school students in Kerman City, Iran, during the 2024–2025 academic year, from which 1,021 participants were selected through multistage cluster sampling. Data were collected between early May and late June 2025 using three standardized instruments: the Short Self-Regulation Questionnaire (SSRQ(, the Social Support Appraisals (SS-A) Scale, and the Chen Internet Addiction Scale (CIAS). Descriptive and correlational analyses were performed in SPSS V. 26, and structural modeling was conducted using LISREL V. 8.80.Results: Self-regulation had a significant positive effect on social support (β = 0.34, SE = 0.034, 95% CI 0.273, 0.407, p<0.001). In contrast, higher levels of social support were linked to lower levels of mobile Internet addiction (β = −0.23, SE = 0.109, 95% CI −0.444, −0.016, p<0.001). Additionally, self-regulation had a significant direct negative effect on mobile Internet addiction (β = -0.23, SE = 0.153, 95% CI -0.529, 0.069, p<0.001). Overall, the model demonstrated acceptable fit to the data (χ²/df = 3.78, RMSEA = 0.052, CFI = 0.92, TLI = 0.90, GFI = 0.97).Conclusion: The findings indicate that self-regulation mitigates mobile Internet addiction both directly and indirectly through enhanced perceived social support. Therefore, educational and counseling initiatives within schools should prioritize enhancing students’ self-regulation abilities and expanding their social support networks to effectively prevent mobile Internet addiction.

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