Relationship between different levels of internet use and depressive tendencies in Chinese college students: the chain mediating effect based on physical activity and social adaptability

To investigate the relationship between internet use, physical activity, social adaptability, and depressive tendencies of college students, and to reveal the “advantages” and “disadvantages” of internet use around the “dose-effect”.

The Revised Chinese Internet Addiction Scale (CIAS-R), Physical Activity Rating Scale (PARS-3), Chinese College Student Social Adjustment Scale (CCSAS), and Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS) were used to conduct a random sampling survey among 3008 college students in China.

(1) Internet use could directly and positively predict the depressive tendencies of college students. (2) Physical activity and social adaptability have a significant chain mediating effect between internet use and depressive tendencies. (3) There was a “U-shaped” dose-effect relationship between internet use and depression tendencies, indicating that normal internet use could directly and negatively predict depressive tendencies, and through the chain mediating effect of physical activity and social adaptability negatively predict depressive tendencies. In contrast, internet use dependence and addiction could directly predict depressive tendencies, and through the chain mediating effect of physical activity and social adaptability positively predict it.

Therefore, normal or moderate internet use has potential protective benefits on the physical and mental health of college students and can promote the positive development of physical activity and social adaptability to a certain extent, and prevent or reduce depressive tendencies, otherwise, it is not conducive to the healthy development of related behaviors and psychology.