Intolerance of uncertainty and mental wellbeing: the mediating and moderating role of doomscrolling

ABSTRACT

Intolerance of uncertainty can adversely affect wellbeing. However, little is known about the role of doomscrolling in this relationship. The main objective of the present study was to investigate the associations between intolerance of uncertainty and mental wellbeing, as well as moderation and mediation analysis included doomscrolling. The sample comprised 432 participants aged between 18 and 55 years. The study data were collected through an online survey that included the Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale, Doomscrolling Scale, and Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Short Form. Mediation and moderation analyses were conducted with the PROCESS macro. The direct effect of intolerance of uncertainty on both doomscrolling and mental wellbeing was significant. Moreover, the direct effect of doomscrolling on mental wellbeing was significant . Also, an indirect effect of doomscrolling between intolerance of uncertainty and mental wellbeing was found. In addition, the moderator analysis showed that intolerance of uncertainty had an inverse impact on mental wellbeing at low and medium ) levels of doomscrolling. . The results of the present study suggest that intolerance of uncertainty is a risk factor for mental wellbeing and that doomscrolling enhances the risk.

KEYWORDS:

• Intolerance of uncertainty
• Mental wellbeing
• Doomscrolling
• Social media use
• Mental wellbeing‌

Acknowledgement

None.

Authors contributions

Study planning: BK; Study plan validation: BK; Project implication: BK; Data collection: BK; Data interpretation: BK; Data analysis: BK; First draft: BK; Review, Rewrite and Edit: MG; Final approval: BK, MG.

Data share statement

Data will be available upon reasonable request from the correspoding author.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Ethical statement

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards and with the Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study. The study permission was obtained from the scientific research ethics committee of Mardin Artuklu University (Doc. No: 96954)

Additional information

Funding

We did not receive any financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.