Relationship between primary school students’ discretionary time and stress levels: mediating effect of communication time with parents and masking effect of time spent using electronic products
XUE Juanjuan1,2, LI Xinying1,2
1. Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; 2. Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
Abstract：Objective To explore the relationship between primary school students’ discretionary time and stress levels, and investigate the mediating roles of their communication time with parents and time spent using electronic products. Methods A questionnaire survey was conducted on students from grades three to five in two primary schools in Beijing, and 427 valid questionnaires were collected. The students’ self-perceived stress levels were measured by the modified Chinese perceived stress scale（CPSS）. The students’ daily discretionary time, communication time with parents, and time spent using electronic products were investigated by a self-designed questionnaire. The relevant data were statistically analyzed. Results Discretionary timedirectly negatively predicted stress levels（β=-1.39, P=0.002）. The mediating effect of communication time with parents between discretionary time and stress levels was significant, with an indirect effect 95% CI of -0.42 to -0.04. The masking effect of time spent using electronic products between discretionary time and stress levels was significant, with an indirect effect 95% CI of 0.16 to 0.72. Conclusion The increase of discretionary time can reduce the stress level of primary school students, but it is influenced by the content of activities. If discretionary time is used to communicate with parents , it will help alleviate stress. If discretionary time is used for electronic products, it will actually increase the stress level.
薛娟娟，李新影. 小学生可自由支配时间与压力水平的关系：与父母交流时间的中介效应和使用电子产品时间的掩蔽效应[J]. 教育生物学杂志, 2025, 13(1): 55-.
XUE Juanjuan, LI Xinying. Relationship between primary school students’ discretionary time and stress levels: mediating effect of communication time with parents and masking effect of time spent using electronic products. JOURNAL OF BIO-EDUCATION, 2025, 13(1): 55-.
