Harmonious and obsessive Internet passion, competence, and self-worth: A study of high school students in the United States and Russia

This study uses a dualistic model of passion to examine the relationships between Internet passion and perceptions of competence and general self-worth among high school students in the United States and Russia. Indirect relationships between harmonious and obsessive Internet passion and general self-worth, and the mediating roles of cognitive and social competence were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The majority of the findings were identical in both the U.S. and Russian samples. Harmonious Internet passion was found to be positively related to cognitive and social competence, and general self-worth, while obsessive Internet passion was negatively related to the three constructs. Culture-specific findings include the mediating role of social competence on the relationship between harmonious and obsessive Internet passion and general self-worth in the United States, but not in Russia. This research contributes to the ongoing debate about whether excessive Internet use is good or bad by demonstrating that it can be both depending on the type of passion involved. This study provides direction for high school administrators and parents about how to effectively capitalize on the benefits of Internet use by encouraging harmonious passion and discouraging obsessive passion. Harmonious Internet passion positively links to cognitive, social competence, and self-worth.Obsessive Internet passion negatively links to the three constructs.The above relationships are found in both the U.S. and Russia.Social competence mediates the passionself-worth relationships in the U.S., but not in Russia.

[1]  Hatice Odaci,et al.  Problematic Internet use, loneliness and dating anxiety among young adult university students , 2010, Comput. Educ..

[2]  R. Vandenberg,et al.  A Review and Synthesis of the Measurement Invariance Literature: Suggestions, Practices, and Recommendations for Organizational Research , 2000 .

[3]  L. Rose-Krasnor,et al.  The Nature of Social Competence: A Theoretical Review , 1997 .

[4]  Herbert W. Marsh,et al.  Global self-esteem: Its relation to specific facets of self-concept and their importance. , 1986 .

[5]  C. Knee,et al.  The integrating self and conscious experience , 2002 .

[6]  T. Little,et al.  To Parcel or Not to Parcel: Exploring the Question, Weighing the Merits , 2002 .

[7]  S. Coopersmith,et al.  The antecedents of self-esteem. , 1969 .

[8]  Chin-Chung Tsai,et al.  Sensation seeking and internet dependence of Taiwanese high school adolescents , 2000, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[9]  Geneviève A. Mageau,et al.  Les passions de l'ame: on obsessive and harmonious passion. , 2003, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[10]  Chih-Chien Wang,et al.  HARMONIOUS PASSION AND OBSESSIVE PASSION IN PLAYING ONLINE GAMES , 2007 .

[11]  Robert J. Vallerand,et al.  Harmonious and Obsessive Passion for the Internet: Their Associations With the Couple's Relationship1 , 2003 .

[12]  G. Porter,et al.  Understanding the work passion–performance relationship: The mediating role of organizational identification and moderating role of fit at work , 2015 .

[13]  Joël Billieux,et al.  Which psychological factors influence Internet addiction? Evidence through an integrative model , 2015, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[14]  Leman Pinar Tosun,et al.  Does Internet use reflect your personality? Relationship between Eysenck's personality dimensions and Internet use , 2010, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[15]  R. Burke,et al.  Erratum to: Work Passion Through the Lens of Culture: Harmonious Work Passion, Obsessive Work Passion, and Work Outcomes in Russia and China , 2015 .

[16]  Robert J. Vallerand,et al.  On The Costs and Benefits of Gaming: The Role of Passion , 2009, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[17]  G. Hofstede.  Culture′s Consequences: Comparing Values, Behaviors, Institutions and Organizations Across Nations , 2001 .

[18]  Frederik Anseel,et al.  The influence of mastery‐avoidance goals on performance improvement , 2009 .

[19]  Geneviève A. Mageau,et al.  Passion and performance attainment in sport , 2008 .

[20]  D. A. Kenny,et al.  The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. , 1986, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[21]  Richard M. Ryan,et al.  Having to versus Wanting to Play: Background and Consequences of Harmonious versus Obsessive Engagement in Video Games , 2009, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[22]  Akira Sakamoto,et al.  The Effects of Internet Use on Junior High School Students' Loneliness and Social Support , 2008 .

[23]  S. Harter.  Effectance Motivation Reconsidered. Toward a Developmental Model , 1978 .

[24]  A. Masten,et al.  The development of competence in favorable and unfavorable environments. Lessons from research on successful children. , 1998, The American psychologist.

[25]  Chin-Chung Tsai,et al.  Junior high school students' Internet usage and self-efficacy: A re-examination of the gender gap , 2010, Comput. Educ..

[26]  Scott B. MacKenzie,et al.  Common method biases in behavioral research: a critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. , 2003, The Journal of applied psychology.

[27]  Hui Wang,et al.  Problematic Internet Use in High School Students in Guangdong Province, China , 2011, PloS one.

[28]  Jessie Ee,et al.  A self-determination approach to understanding students' motivation in project work , 2009 .

[29]  S. Harter.  The Perceived Competence Scale for Children. , 1982 .

[30]  R. Burke,et al.  Work Passion Through the Lens of Culture: Harmonious Work Passion, Obsessive Work Passion, and Work Outcomes in Russia and China , 2014 .

[31]  E. Deci,et al.  The "What" and "Why" of Goal Pursuits: Human Needs and the Self-Determination of Behavior , 2000 .

[32]  R. Brislin.  Cross-cultural research methods , 1973 .

[33]  Woon Chia Liu,et al.  Understanding motivation in internet gaming among Singaporean youth: The role of passion , 2011, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[34]  Susan Harter,et al.  Causes and Consequences of Low Self-Esteem in Children and Adolescents , 1993 .

[35]  Shu Ching Yang,et al.  Comparison of Internet addicts and non-addicts in Taiwanese high school , 2005, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[36]  Chih-Hung Ko,et al.  The associations between aggressive behaviors and internet addiction and online activities in adolescents. , 2009, The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine.