Focused, not lost: the mediating role of Temporal Dissociation and Focused Immersion on the Problematic Internet Use

The internet has become an irreplaceable instrument for people of the 21st century. In light of the Activity Theory, it can be seen as the technological part of the functional organs that augment a human’s opportunities to carry out activities and achieve specific objectives. While acting as a tool, the in-ternet can lead to the risk of an ‘inverse instrumentality’ process in which people lose their sense of self-directedness and experience a passive and un-controlled approach to technology. Past research has stressed the importance of cognitive involvement with technology for a healthy use of the internet. Nevertheless, it is still not clear whether cognitive involvement does protect against the misuse of new media, or whether it is an antecedent of it. In this study two dimensions of the Cognitive Absorption Scale (Focused Immersion and Temporal Dissociation) were used as mediators between antecedents of internet misbehaviors (Self-Control, Mindfulness and Self-Esteem) and Prob-lematic Internet Use. Only Temporal Dissociation was found to act as a me-diator. Furthermore, the scores on the Focused Immersion scale were posi-tively predicted by levels of Self-esteem and Self-control. This suggests that certain ways of experiencing cognitive involvement are more risky than oth-ers. Implications for professionals and future research are discussed.