Bidirectionality Between Perceived Immediate and Long-Term Benefits and Losses and Internet Gaming Disorder Among Chinese Adolescent Gamers: Prospective Longitudinal Study

Abstract Background Adolescents perceive both immediate and long-term benefits and losses related to internet gaming, affecting their risk of internet gaming disorder (IGD). These perceptions could also be shaped and reinforced by IGD, indicating potential bidirectionality. Objective This study aimed to investigate the bidirectional relationships between perceived immediate and long-term benefits in 3 domains (mental health, social relationships, and personal achievement) and IGD, and between perceived immediate and long-term losses in 6 domains (mental health, sleep quality, academic performance, family relationships, social relationships, and personal achievement) and IGD. Methods A 12-month 2-wave prospective longitudinal study was conducted among junior middle school students who had played internet games in the past 12 months in Guangzhou and Chengdu, China, with a baseline survey (T1, December 2018) and the other identical follow-up survey conducted 1 year later (T2, December 2019). The participating schools were conveniently selected; all Grade 7 and 8 students were invited to self-administer the questionnaires in a classroom setting without the presence of the schoolteachers. The final sample size was 1173 students (mean age 12.5, SD 0.6 y; male: 693/1173, 59.1%). IGD was assessed by using the 9-item Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition IGD checklist. Results Cross-lagged panel analysis (adjusting for background factors) showed (1) stronger perceived immediate benefits of mental health ( β =.08, 95% CI 0.01-0.15) and personal achievement ( β =.10, 95% CI 0.01-0.20) at T1 significantly predicted more IGD symptoms at T2; (2) more IGD symptoms at T1 significantly predicted stronger perceived immediate and long-term benefits of social relationships (immediate: β =.09, 95% CI 0.03-0.15; long-term: β =.11, 95% CI:0.05-0.17) and personal achievement (immediate: β =.12, 95% CI 0.06-0.18; long-term: β =.10, 95% CI 0.04-0.16) at T2; (3) more IGD symptoms at T1 significantly predicted stronger perceived immediate and future losses in mental health (immediate: β =.09, 95% CI 0.03-0.15; long-term: β =.08, 95% CI 0.02-0.14), sleep quality (immediate: β =.10, 95% CI 0.04-0.16; long-term: β =.13, 95% CI 0.07-0.19), academic performance (immediate: β =.09, 95% CI 0.04-0.15; long-term: β =.07, 95% CI 0.01-0.13), and family relationships (immediate: β =.11, 95% CI 0.05-0.17; long-term: β =.10, 95% CI 0.04-0.16) at T2, as well as perceived long-term losses in social relationships at T2 ( β =.08, 95% CI 0.02-0.14). Conclusions This study was innovative in integrating time perspective into both perceived benefits and losses of internet gaming, a cognitive dimension previously overlooked in literature. The current findings advance the field by revealing the unidimensional predictive effects of IGD on perceived immediate and long-term , with 2 exceptions of perceived benefits of mental health and personal achievement conversely predicting IGD. These results contribute to the development of effective interventions: the cognitive components should go beyond the general pros and cons of gaming and target the potential temporal bias gamers hold.