Investigating the Relationship between Loneliness, Physical Activity, and Internet Addiction: The Mediating Role of Academic Burnout and Self-Control

Zahra Heidari; Amir Sam Kianimoghadam; Abbas Masjedi Arani; Maryam Bakhtiari

doi:10.18502/ijps.v20i3.19040

Zahra Heidari Department of Clinical Psychology, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Amir Sam Kianimoghadam Department of Clinical Psychology, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Abbas Masjedi Arani Department of Clinical Psychology, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Maryam Bakhtiari Department of Clinical Psychology, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/ijps.v20i3.19040

Keywords: Burnout; Exercise; Internet Addiction; Loneliness; Psychological; Self-Control; Students

Abstract

Objective: Internet addiction (IA) poses significant challenges for university students. Although loneliness, physical activity (PA), self-control (SC), and academic burnout (AB) have been implicated in IA, their distinct contributions and mechanisms require further investigation.

This study aimed to investigate whether loneliness positively predicts IA, while PA and SC serve as protective factors. It further examined the mediating roles of SC and AB in the relationships between loneliness, PA, and IA among university students in Iran.

Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 490 university students who were recruited using convenience sampling, as this approach was the most practical and feasible given the ease of online survey distribution and limitations in time and resources. All participants were students from universities located in Tehran, Iran. Validated Persian versions of standardized instruments were used to assess A, loneliness, PA, SC, and AB. Structural equation modeling (SEM) using AMOS was employed to evaluate both direct and indirect associations among the study variables.

Results: Structural equation modeling revealed that loneliness had a moderate positive effect on IA (β = 0.217, P = 0.001), while both PA and SC showed small but significant negative effects (PA: β = − 0.207, P < 0.001; SC: β = − 0.178, P = 0.037). In contrast, AB did not significantly predict IA (β = 0.055, P = 0.425). Mediation analysis indicated that SC partially mediated the relationship between loneliness and IA (indirect effect: b = 0.054, P < 0.05), while AB showed no significant mediating role in the model.

Conclusion: These findings support cognitive-behavioral models of IA and suggest that improving self-regulation and promoting social connectedness may help mitigate IA risk. Future studies should employ longitudinal designs to examine causal pathways and explore the moderating role of specific coping styles (e.g., emotion-focused vs. problem-focused).