The authors investigated the moderating role of father's education on the associations between perceived paternal parenting styles and locus of control among 382 Malaysian adolescents with an average age of 14.27. Data were collected by means of adolescents' self-report using standardized instruments (i.e., parental authority questionnaire and Nowicki-Strickland Internal-External Control Scale for Children). Results revealed that there were significant negative relationships between fathers' authoritative parenting style (r = -.243, p < .001) and authoritarian parenting style (r = -.130, p < .01) with adolescents' internal locus of control. Furthermore, the findings indicated that father's high level of education moderated the relationship between perceived paternal authoritarian parenting and locus of control (b = -0.147, p < .001). The findings underscore the need to include the role of parents' education when assessing the links between parenting styles and adolescents' locus of control.
Studies exploring excessive Internet use and gambling are rapidly expanding concerns regarding its impact on mental health, especially in young people due to the increased prevalence of Internet and gambling addictions. Research suggests that perceived peer support plays a significant role in adolescents' psychological well-being. However, no empirical study has dealt with the mediating effect of perceived peer support on the relationship between Internet and gambling addictions and psychological well-being. Thus, the present study aimed to examine whether perceived peer support mediates the relation between Internet and gambling addictions and psychological well-being of adolescents. A sample of 347 Iranian adolescents aged 14 to 18 (Mean age 16.14, 50.4% male) who were studying in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia participated in this study. Subjective Vitality Scale (SVS), Compulsive Internet Use Scale (CIUS), Six-item Social Support Questionnaire (SSQ6), and The South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) were used to collect data. Mediation analyses showed a significant indirect effect of compulsive Internet use and problem gambling on psychological well-being through perceived peer support. The total effects of compulsive Internet use and problem gambling on psychological well-being were negative. This study implies the significance of strengthening the knowledge about the impact of peer relationships among adolescents.
Given that social withdrawal has been consistently linked to intimacy, an examination of the mediating effect of interpersonal distrust on the relationship between social withdrawal and intimacy could offer potential insights into a possible explanatory mechanism. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate interpersonal distrust as a mediator of the relationship between social withdrawal and intimacy, and whether retrospective bullying victimization moderates this mediation. Participants included 160 university students who completed measures of social withdrawal, interpersonal distrust, intimacy, and retrospective bullying victimization. Results indicated that interpersonal distrust mediated the relationship between social withdrawal and intimacy. Retrospective bullying victimization in primary school, however, did not moderate the mediation model. In light of these findings, appropriate implications and suggestions for interventions are discussed.
This paper examined the role of loneliness in mediating the relation between social support and life satisfaction among Chinese young adults within the Malaysian context. Young adults (N = 275; Mage = 22.41; SD = 1.76; 57.5% females) completed self-administered questionnaires on the scales of perceived social support, loneliness and life satisfaction. The results of Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) showed a partial mediation effect of loneliness on the relation between social support and life satisfaction. The integration of the bottom-up theory of subjective well-being and social cognitive theory is included to explain the mediating process. The results revealed that perceived social support can relate to a lower level of loneliness, which could eventually lead to higher levels of young adults' life satisfaction. Overall, the findings highlighted the importance of social support as well as their loneliness as a mediating pathway in promoting Malaysian Chinese young adults' life satisfaction. Interventions are also suggested to optimize life satisfaction as a whole.
In Malaysia, sexual health risks such as unprotected sex, teenage pregnancies, abandoned babies, abortion, and sexually transmitted diseases are on the rise because adolescents are increasingly engaging in such sexual behaviors. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between perceived peer sexual behaviors and sexual behaviors among adolescents as well as to examine the interacting role of gender in such a relationship. This cross-sectional study recruited a sample of 338 school-going adolescents (Mage = 16.7; SDage = 1.53) using the purposive sampling method. Participants were required to complete questionnaires consisting of the modified Human Sexuality Questionnaire-Orgasmic Experience Scale and the Peer Norms Scale. Results indicated that adolescents who perceived their peers to be actively engaging in sexual behaviors were more prone to being sexually active themselves. The results also showed gender as a significant moderator in the relationship between adolescents' perceived peers' sexual behaviors and sexual behaviors. Besides, the impact of perceived peer sexual behaviors on sexual behaviors was found to be stronger in male than female adolescents. Overall, the findings from this study hinted at the importance of peers and gender differences during the planning and implementation of sexual and health education.
Excessive technology use among young children remains a public health concern with diverse serious consequences. It is important to find out how children resist the temptation to use technology. Using focus group interviews, the authors explored what factors influence children's ability to delay gratification in using technology. Four specific themes emerged from the interview data: they found (a) fear of punishment, (b) self-directed speech, (c) reinforcement, and (d) parental modeling are effective measures to train children to forgo immediate pleasures of using technology. These findings provided some support for the hypothesis that children's self-control of technology use can be modified and improved. This study suggests methods to leverage and strengthen existing initiatives to promote self-control of technology use for children.