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Mobile phone dependence has become a worldwide problem due to its high occurrence rate, fast growth rate, and serious undesirable consequences. Previous studies have found that attachment anxiety is a key antecedent of mobile phone dependence. However, little is known about the underlying psychological mechanisms. The present study tested the mediating role of loneliness and the moderating role of rumination in the link between attachment anxiety and mobile phone dependence. A sample of 908 Chinese university students aged 17 to 27 years old was recruited from four universities in Central China. They completed the Chinese version of Experiences in Close Relationships Inventory, Mobile Phone Addiction Index, UCLA Loneliness Scale, and Ruminative Response Scale. After controlling for gender and age, loneliness mediated the association between attachment anxiety and mobile phone dependence. Both the direct association between attachment anxiety and mobile phone dependence and the indirect association through loneliness were moderated by rumination. These two associations were stronger for individuals with high rumination than for those with low rumination. Limitations and implications are discussed.

The present study tested the mediating role of self-control and moderating role of mindfulness in the link between perceived stress and mobile phone addiction. A sample of 899 Chinese adolescents completed measures of perceived stress, mobile phone addiction, self-control and mindfulness. Results showed that self-control partially mediated the association between perceived stress and mobile phone addiction. In addition, both the direct association between perceived stress and mobile phone addiction and the indirect effect of self-control were moderated by mindfulness, in that these effects were stronger for individuals with low mindfulness than for those with high mindfulness. These findings advance our understanding of how and when perceived stress is linked to mobile phone addiction. Limitations and implications of this study are discussed.

Based on a sample of 955 elementary school children in central China, the present study examined family socio-economic status and parent-child relationships in relation to children’s social creativity, as well as the mediating role of personality traits in these associations. Family environment (socio-economic status and parent-child relationships) and personality traits were significantly correlated with social creativity; children openness, conscientiousness, agreeableness and extraversion partly mediated the relationship between family environment and social creativity when controlling for age and sex. These results are important for explaining the roles of the family environment and individual factors in shaping children’s social creativity.

Research has demonstrated the important roles of dispositional optimism played in individuals' life quality. But little is known about age differences in dispositional optimism especially in late childhood and adolescence. This study examined age differences in dispositional optimism in Chinese children and adolescents ( N = 2738; M age = 12.75 years; SD = 2.53; age range 9–19). Results revealed that the bi-dimensional structure of dispositional optimism (i.e., optimism and pessimism) was similar in each grade. Optimism had a negative linear pattern with age. Pessimism decreased from strongly to weakly, showing a curvilinear pattern with age. Overall optimism (representing the presence of optimism and the lack of pessimism) had a positive linear relationship with age. Moreover, only the development of pessimism was moderated by gender and family socioeconomic status. These findings suggest that dispositional optimism varies by age, and that optimism and pessimism are partially independent.

Research has demonstrated that family socioeconomic status is an important determinant of people's life satisfaction, in that individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds are typically less satisfied with their life than the rich. But little is known about the mediating and moderating mechanisms underlying this relation. The present study examined the mediation effect of adolescents' self-esteem in the association between socioeconomic status and life satisfaction, and whether this mediating process was moderated by optimism. A sample of 668 Chinese adolescents (mean age = 14.53 years, SD = 1.81) completed anonymous questionnaires regarding SES, life satisfaction, self-esteem and optimism. Multiple regression analyses revealed that the association between SES and life satisfaction was mediated by self-esteem. Moreover, the mediating effect of self-esteem was moderated by optimism, with the mediating effect being stronger for individuals with low optimism than for those with high optimism. These findings can be beneficial to our understanding of how and when SES impacts adolescents' well-being. Moreover, the present study highlighted the importance of using the organism-environment interaction to explore potential protective factors for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds. A person cannot choose where he comes from (e.g., low socioeconomic status), but can choose whom he wants to be (e.g., optimist).