Stress, loneliness, depression, anxiety and problematic smartphone use among a sample of Syrian refugee adolescents: a network approach.

Background: Previous studies have demonstrated the existence of complex associations between stress, loneliness, depression, anxiety, and smartphone addiction in adolescents. However, the paucity of studies evaluating the relevant relationships in migrant adolescents demands the elimination of uncertainty in a sample of adolescents exposed to trauma and chronic stressors.

Method: This study utilizes network analysis to identify the central factors and potential bridging paths among these variables. Identifying central symptom clusters contributing to the maintenance of the overall network provides potential targets for clinical or policy-level interventions. Network analysis also enables a more nuanced understanding of how internalizing symptoms and behavioral dysregulation co-occur and reinforce one another. Employing 836 Syrian refugee adolescents, we obtained a stable network of the above variables.

Results: Our results revealed that problematic smartphone use (PSU) was the most central node in the network. Both generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and panic disorder also emerged as central nodes, reinforcing their transdiagnostic relevance. Bridge expected influence analysis revealed that stress, GAD, and PSU were key connectors between symptom domains.

Conclusion: Our findings indicate that PSU may not simply be a byproduct of emotional problems but a key component of psychopathology in refugee adolescents. Notably, PSU exhibited strong partial correlations with GAD and social anxiety disorder, supporting prior research that links maladaptive smartphone use to emotional dysregulation and anxiety-related avoidance. Future research investigating protective factors, such as family support, peer support, and cultural integration, in the correlations between PSU and psychopathologies will lead to the development of effective interventions.