Childhood maltreatment, basic psychological needs satisfaction, internet addiction and internalizing problems

Childhood maltreatment may play an important role in adolescents' Internet addiction and internalizing problems. This study explored the role of basic psychological needs satisfaction (BPNS) as a mediator of the associations between childhood maltreatment and two indicators of adolescent mental health: Internet addiction and internalizing problems. Participants were adolescents recruited from China (T1: N = 962, Mage = 15.23, SD = 0.63, Rangeage = 13–18; T2: N = 703, Mage = 16.07, SD = 0.68, Rangeage = 14–19). Results showed that: (1) T2 BPNS mediated the relationship between T1 childhood maltreatment and T2 Internet addiction as well as T2 internalizing problems; (2) T2 BPNS and T2 Internet addiction sequentially mediated the relationship between T1 childhood maltreatment and T2 internalizing problems. These findings suggest that targeted interventions to improve BPNS in Chinese adolescents are potentially helpful in reducing the risk of Internet addiction and internalizing problems.