The Mediating role of Health Behaviors on the Relationship between Big Five Personality Traits and Problematic and Risky Internet Use

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Graduated from Master of Science in Psychology in Shahid Beheshti University

2 Associate Professor of Psychology, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Shahid Beheshti University

3 faculty of Shahid Beheshti university

10.48308/apsy.2022.223335.1202

Abstract

Aim: The present study examined the mediating role of health behaviors on the relationship between big five personality traits and problematic and risky internet use among university students. Method: In this correlational study, 297 students (116 male and 163 female) who were selected by available sampling method, responded to the Five Factor Personality Traits Questionnaire (McCrae & Costa, 1987), the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile-II (Walker, Sechrist & Pender, 1995) and The Problematic and Risky Internet Use Screening Scale (Jelenchick & colleagues, 2014). Results: Results indicated that the partially mediated model of health behaviors on the relationship between personality traits and problematic and risky internet use had good fit to data. All of the regression weights in hypothesized model were statistically significant and the big five personality traits and health behavior variables accounted for 42% of the variance in problematic and risky internet use. Conclusion: Overall, the results of the present study in line with the other concerns of theoretical and experimental movements showed that the big five personality factors through strengthening or weakening sources of self-regulation such as affective states, perceptions of control and goal-based orientations and then elicitation health-promoting/inhibiting lifestyle behaviors, were effective in predicting the behavior of risky and problematic use of internet technology in students.

Keywords

References

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Applied Psychology

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Available Online from 18 April 2022

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