Yuan Tian

School of Journalism & Communication, Southwest University of Political Science and Law, Chongqing, 401120, People’s Republic of China

Correspondence: Yuan Tian, Email work2025x@163.com

Purpose: Increased subjective well-being (SWB) during adolescence significantly predicts higher levels of SWB, greater income, and more harmonious relationships in adulthood. However, addictive behaviors (including substance addictions and behavioral addictions) may trigger mental health problems, thereby adversely affecting adolescents’ SWB. Therefore, this study aims to explore the mediating role of mental health problems in the process by which addictive behaviors affect adolescents’ SWB.
Methods: We employed a cross - sectional study design, utilizing data from the 2017/18 Health Behavior in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey. The sample includes 76,261 adolescents aged 10 to 16 from multiple countries and regions in Europe and North America. In order to explore the relationship between addictive behaviors, mental health problems and SWB, the study used Pearson correlation analysis and structural equation modeling (SEM) for statistical analysis.
Results: Based on the hypothesis, SEM results showed that mental health problems partially mediated the relationship between substance addiction and SWB (β = − 0.044, 95% CI: − 0.046–− 0.041). The mediation effect accounted for 59.46%. It also partially mediated the relationship between behavioral addiction and SWB (β = − 0.362, 95% CI: − 0.379–− 0.347). The mediation effect accounted for 89.16%.
Conclusion: This study found that mental health problems mediate the effect of addictive behavior on SWB. The results reveal the mechanism by which addictive behavior reduces SWB through mental health problems, providing a scientific basis for targeted interventions. It is recommended that multi-level coordinated interventions, including early screening, health education, family support, and policy regulation, be implemented to improve overall well-being.

Keywords: adolescence, substance addictions, behavioral addictions, mediation mechanism, cross-sectional study