Parental Emotional Neglect and Internet Addiction Among Left-Behind Children: The Parallel Mediating Roles of Deviant Peer Affiliation and Experiential Avoidance.

Abstract

Purpose: Adopting a socio-ecological perspective,This study examined the associations between parental emotional neglect and internet addiction among Chinese left-behind children (LBCs) within an approach/avoidance motivation framework. Specifically, it tested whether deviant peer affiliation (behavioral approach pathway) and experiential avoidance (emotional avoidance pathway) would parallelly mediate this association, and whether growth mindset would moderate the direct and indirect pathways.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey of 1,526 rural LBCs in Western China was conducted using validated self-report scales. Parental emotional neglect, deviant peer affiliation, experiential avoidance, growth mindset, and internet addiction were measured. Descriptive statistics, correlation analyses, parallel mediation analysis (PROCESS Model 4), and moderated mediation analysis (PROCESS Model 15) were performed, with relevant demographic and family-related variables controlled.

Results: Parental emotional neglect was positively associated with internet addiction. Both deviant peer affiliation and experiential avoidance partially mediated this association in parallel. The indirect effect through experiential avoidance (25.13% of the total effect) was substantially larger than that through deviant peer affiliation (4.24% of the total effect). Growth mindset significantly moderated the direct association between emotional neglect and internet addiction, but in a positive direction: the association was stronger among LBCs with higher growth mindset (simple slope = 0.5509, p < 0.001) than among those with lower growth mindset (simple slope = 0.4088, p < 0.001). Growth mindset did not moderate the indirect pathways through deviant peer affiliation or experiential avoidance.

Conclusion: Parental emotional neglect is associated with internet addiction among LBCs through both behavioral approach (deviant peer affiliation) and emotional avoidance (experiential avoidance) routes, with experiential avoidance serving as the stronger mediator. Growth mindset appears to play a complex and context-dependent role rather than acting as a straightforward protective factor. Given the cross-sectional design, causal inferences cannot be drawn. Integrated interventions targeting family support, peer environment, and cognitive-emotional regulation may be promising directions for future research and practice.