Abstract

OLIVA, Alfredo; ANTOLIN-SUAREZ, Lucía  and  RODRIGUEZ-MEIRINHOS, Ana. Uncovering the link between self-control, age, and psychological maladjustment among Spanish adolescents and young adults. Psychosocial Intervention [online]. 2019, vol.28, n.1, pp.49-55. ISSN 2173-4712.  https://dx.doi.org/10.5093/pi2019a1.

This study explores the relationships of self-control with age and psychological maladjustment in adolescents and young adults. The sample consisted of 1,600 randomly selected Spanish adolescents and young adults, aged 12-34 years (M = 22.28, SD = 6.94). Measures of self-control, Internet addiction, and anxiety-depressive symptoms were administered. Control variables included age and sex. Results indicated that adolescents between 15 and 19 years old showed the lowest self-control scores, while older participants showed greater scores. Low scores in self-control were significantly associated with greater substance consumption, more anxiety-depression symptoms, and higher scores on the Internet addiction scale. Also, participants with high scores on the addiction scale scored lower on self-control. These results evidence associations between self-control and some emotional-behavioral problems, and suggest the importance of promoting self-control to prevent Internet addiction, substance consumption, and anxiety-depression in adolescents and young adults.

Keywords : Self-control; Internet addiction; Substance consumption; Anxiety-depression; Adolescence and early adulthood.

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