Graduate Studies

 

First Advisor

Yan Ruth Xia

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Committee Members

James Bovaird, Katelyn Coburn, Maria de Guzman, Paul Springer

Department

Child, Youth, and Family Studies

Date of this Version

8-2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Citation

A dissertation presented to the Graduate College of the University of Nebraska in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy

Major: Human Sciences (Global Family Health and Wellbeing)

Under the supervision of Professor Yan Ruth Xia

Lincoln, Nebraska, August 2025

Comments

Copyright 2025, Yunqi Wang. Used by permission

Abstract

The rapid advancement of the internet and digital technology has provided opportunities for adolescents to conduct leisure activities online on a daily basis. However, research on adolescent technology use and mental health often highlights negative effects without carefully examining the specific mechanisms, which overlooks the complexity of effects of online behaviors on adolescent well-being and the importance of developing adolescents’ media literacy skills. Moreover, despite the crucial role of family dynamics in adolescent development, research on how parental support and involvement might affect adolescent technology use and well-being is still limited. The current study retrieved data from Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), examined 295,843 adolescents across 50 countries/economies in Model 1 and further investigated 27,532 adolescents from 6 countries/economies in Model 2, explored the direct and indirect effects among adolescent online leisure (e.g. gaming, browsing social media), media literacy, emotional distress from online victimization, and multifaceted well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic, identified parental support profiles, and examined different profiles’ moderating effects.

The results enriched the socioecological framework, and partially supported cultivation theory, general strain theory, and social support theory, indicating that adolescents’ exposure to unwanted online content when conducting online leisure activities could contribute to emotional distress and further impact their well-being. Notably, online leisure can have a positive direct effect on adolescent well-being due to its leisurely nature, while media literacy can have a negative effect on well-being through exposure to online victimization, despite its protective nature. Latent profile analysis results revealed four profiles based on parental involvement and adolescent perceived parental support: Supportive group, Moderate group, Controlling group, and Neglectful group. Moderated mediation analysis results showed that excessive parental involvement without emotional support cannot benefit adolescent well-being nor be protective of negative online experiences. The present study calls for more attention from researchers on making unbiased assumptions and detailed investigations regarding adolescent online leisure, and focusing more on developing media literacy and digital skills. Future interventions should consider how parental involvement and support shape adolescents’ ability to navigate the online environment and mitigate online stressors, ensuring that promoting media literacy efforts are adapted to different family contexts.

Advisor: Yan Ruth Xia

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