Open AccessAssociation of Excessive WeChat Use with Mental Disorders: A Representative Nationwide Study in China
Author(s) -
Weifang Zhang,
Xiaozhao Yousef Yang,
Tingzhong Yang,
Joan L. Bottorff,
Sihui Peng,
Lie Yu,
Randall R. Cottrell
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
american journal of health behavior
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.591
H-Index - 68
eISSN - 1945-7359
pISSN - 1087-3244
DOI - 10.5993/ajhb.45.6.5
Subject(s) - mental health , logistic regression , china , structural equation modeling , psychology , association (psychology) , multilevel model , screen time , environmental health , psychiatry , clinical psychology , medicine , geography , statistics , mathematics , machine learning , computer science , psychotherapist , archaeology , obesity
Objectives: We examined associations between excessive WeChat use and mental disorders at the individual and contextual level. Methods: We conducted a representative nationwide survey sampling process of 11,283 medical students from 30 universities in China. Mental health status was measured by the Chinese Health Questionnaire. Both unadjusted and adjusted methods were considered in the analyses. Results: High frequency and long-time use prevalence was 19.1% and 31.2% respectively among WeChat users. The multilevel logistic regression model found that individual-level high frequency (OR = 1.26) and long-time use (OR = 1.24) were significantly associated with mental health disorders. University-level excessive WeChat use also was associated with the mental disorders (OR = 1.33 [high frequency use]; OR = 1.17 [long-time use]). Structural equation analysis showed that individual- and university-level high frequency and individual-level and university-level long-time WeChat use have a direct influence on poor mental health. The above variables, except individual-level long-time use, have an indirect influence on poor mental health through mental stress. Conclusions: This study provides new evidence that excessive WeChat use is associated with mental disorders. These findings underscore the importance of alerting people to the possible health risks of excessive social media use.