Peer relationship and internet addiction among Chinese children: The roles of peer victimization and resilience

Unsatisfactory peer relationships are crucial predictors of internet addiction (IA) among children. However, the manner in which they bidirectional influence one another remains unclear. This study explored the mediating and moderating mechanisms of peer relationship that affect IA. Data were obtained from 65,868 fourth-grade students using four questionnaires. Results of the moderated mediation model demonstrated that peer victimization partially mediated the negative association between peer relationship and IA. The protective effect of resilience was universal across all three mediation pathways, offering particularly strong protective benefits for children in the high-resilience group. Hence, resilience can offer adequate protection for children to buffer the effects of adversities, indicating that addressing intrinsic factors may be crucial in overcoming the detrimental effects of external peer environments on their addictive behaviors.