Academic Journal
Adverse childhood experiences and suicidality in adolescents and young adults with internet gaming disorder: a large-scale school-based study in 13,509 Chinese students.
| Τίτλος: | Adverse childhood experiences and suicidality in adolescents and young adults with internet gaming disorder: a large-scale school-based study in 13,509 Chinese students. |
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| Συγγραφείς: | Yi X; Department of Nuclear Medicine and Department of Radiology, Chongqing University Three Gorges Hospital, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 410008, PR China., Yi D; Chongqing Three Gorges Vocational College, Chongqing, PR China., Zhang X; Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, PR China., Qi W; Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, PR China., Zhao M; Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, PR China., Li M; Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, PR China., Grecucci A; Department of Psychology and Cognitive Sciences, University of Trento, Rovereo, Italy., Yuan K; School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, PR China; Engineering Research Center of Molecular and Neuro Imaging Ministry of Education, Xi'an, Shaanxi, PR China; Xi'an Key Laboratory of Intelligent Sensing and Regulation of Trans-Scale Life Information, School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, PR China., Dong H; Mental Health Center, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, PR China. Electronic address: huixi.dong@csu.edu.cn., Chen BT; Department of Diagnostic Radiology, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA, United States. |
| Πηγή: | Journal of affective disorders [J Affect Disord] 2026 Jul 15; Vol. 405, pp. 121525. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Mar 03. |
| Τύπος έκδοσης: | Journal Article; Multicenter Study |
| Γλώσσα: | English |
| Στοιχεία περιοδικού: | Publisher: Elsevier/North-Holland Biomedical Press Country of Publication: Netherlands NLM ID: 7906073 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1573-2517 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 01650327 NLM ISO Abbreviation: J Affect Disord Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: Amsterdam, Elsevier/North-Holland Biomedical Press. |
| Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): | Adverse Childhood Experiences*/statistics & numerical data , Internet Addiction Disorder*/psychology , Internet Addiction Disorder*/epidemiology , Students*/psychology , Students*/statistics & numerical data , Suicide*/psychology , Suicide*/statistics & numerical data , Suicidal Ideation*, China/epidemiology ; Depression/psychology ; Depression/epidemiology ; Humans ; Male ; Female ; Adolescent ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Young Adult ; Child ; Adult ; Risk Factors ; Internet ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; East Asian People |
| Περίληψη: | Background: Growing evidence points an association between internet gaming disorder (IGD) and suicide risk. However, the interplay with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and comorbid negative emotional states remains unclear. This knowledge gap hinders effective risk identification and targeted intervention for young people, underscoring the urgent need for comprehensive research in this area. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional, multicenter study involving 13,509 participants aged 12-25 years from six provinces in China. Participants completed the Internet Gaming Disorder Scale-Short Form (IGDS9-SF), Adverse Childhood Experiences-International Questionnaire (ACE-IQ), Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21 (DASS-21). Suicidal thoughts and suicidal behavior items were analyzed with Chi-square tests, ANOVA, logistic regression models and mediation analysis. Results: Among 2141 participants who met the criteria for IGD, 32.8% reported experiencing suicidal thoughts while 6.4% disclosed having suicidal behavior. High exposure to ACEs (≥5 events) was significantly more prevalent among those with suicidality (50.74% for thoughts; 45.23% for behaviors) compared to those without (16.36%). Key risk factors associated with increased suicide risk included male gender (OR = 1.456), depression (OR = 1.091), emotional abuse (OR = 1.727), exclusion/bullying (OR = 1.565), and parental separation or divorce (OR = 1.581). Limitations: The retrospective, cross-sectional design cannot draw causality, and biases in self-report measurements cannot be ignored. Conclusion: This large-scale study demonstrates that male gender, depression and cumulative ACEs are significantly associated with suicide risk in young individuals with IGD in China. These findings highlight the necessity of early identification of ACEs, trauma-informed support, and prompt management of depression to mitigate suicidality in this population. (Copyright © 2026. Published by Elsevier B.V.) |
| Competing Interests: | Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no conflicts of interest. |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Adverse childhood experiences; Depression; Internet gaming disorder; Suicidal behavior; Suicidal thoughts |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260305 Date Completed: 20260710 Latest Revision: 20260710 |
| Update Code: | 20260711 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.jad.2026.121525 |
| PMID: | 41785924 |
| Βάση Δεδομένων: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1573-2517 |
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| DOI: | 10.1016/j.jad.2026.121525 |