Longitudinal linkages between sensation seeking and internet gaming addiction: Three-wave moderated mediation modeling

There have been few longitudinal studies of the relationship between sensation seeking and internet gaming addiction (IGA), and the underlying mechanisms remain inadequately elucidated. Thus, we conducted a three-wave longitudinal study by applying the interaction of person–affect–cognition–execution model to examine the link between sensation seeking and IGA, concurrently considering the mediating role of self-control and the moderating role of fear of missing out. We gathered data from a cohort of Chinese college students over 12 months and conducted correlation and moderated mediation analyses. Results revealed a positive relationship between sensation seeking and IGA, with self-control partially mediating this association. Moreover, fear of missing out positively moderated the links between sensation seeking and IGA, and between self-control and IGA. These findings have implications for developing targeted measures aimed at mitigating IGA among young adults.