Structural Relations of Rumination and Catastrophizing and the Symptoms of Internet Addiction: the Mediating Role of Anxiety

Background: Internet Addiction is one of the commonest problems in human communities. Studying this problem is of paramount importance.The aim of this study was to investigate the structural relations of rumination and catastrophizing and the symptoms of Internet addiction by the mediation of anxiety. Methods: In this study, the sample included 246 4th-grade male students from state high schools in Tabriz, selected through random cluster sampling. For the collection of data, Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ), Young’s Internet Addiction Test (YIAT20), and Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) were used. Then, the gathered data were analyzed through structural equation modeling. Results: The analysis of data showed that rumination and catastrophizing by the mediation of anxiety could explain Internet addiction symptoms. Rumination, catastrophyzing and anxiety could explain Internet addiction symptoms directly. The indirect effect of rumination on Internet addiction by the mediation of anxiety was positive and significant; however, the indirect effect of catastrophizing on Internet addiction by the mediation of anxiety was not significant. The goodness of fit indices showed that the measured model fits with the theoretical model. Coclusion: The findings have practical implications for clinical psychologists and can be useful in diagnosis and therapy of Internet addition disorder.