… the aim of this study was to closely examine the relationships between [problematic smartphone use] (PSU) and anxiety and depression to identify the pathological mechanisms underpinning those relationships. A second aim was to identify important bridge nodes to identify potential targets for intervention. …
… Five strongest edges appeared within the communities in both the PSU-anxiety and PSU-depression networks. The “Withdrawal” component had more connections with symptoms of anxiety or depression than any other PSU node. In particular, the edges between “Withdrawal” and “Restlessness” and between “Withdrawal” and “Concentration difficulties” were the strongest cross-community edges in the PSU-anxiety network and PSU-depression network, respectively. Furthermore, “Withdrawal” had the highest BEI in the PSU community in both networks. …
