Spiritual Well-being as a Mediator between Internet Addiction and Alienation

Abstract

One of the negative effects of Internet addiction on individuals’ personal and social life is alienation. Spiritual well-being affects both Internet addiction and the level of alienation. The present study investigated the mediator effect of spiritual well-being in the relationship between Internet addiction and alienation. The study was conducted with 320 college students: 183 (57.2%) female and 137 (42.8%) male. The ages of participants ranged from 19 to 35, and the mean age was 20.74. Data were collected using a personal information form, an Internet addiction scale, an alienation scale, and a spiritual well-being scale. The analyses showed that Internet addiction, alienation, and spiritual well-being were significantly correlated. Internet addiction significantly predicted alienation and spiritual well-being. Spiritual well-being significantly predicted alienation. It was found that spiritual well-being partially mediated (indirect effect = .1525) the relationship between Internet addiction and alienation. The results show that when spiritual well-being increases, alienation decreases.