When music matters: how music app use buffers the relationship between boredom proneness, loneliness and Internet Gaming Disorder.

BACKGROUND: Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) is increasingly prevalent among adolescents and has been associated with psychological factors such as boredom proneness and loneliness. However, the role of everyday digital media use, particularly music app use, in these associations remains unclear. This study aimed to examine whether music app use moderates the associations of boredom proneness and loneliness with IGD risk among secondary vocational school students. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 2,341 secondary vocational school students in Shanghai, China, from September to November 2025. Participants completed validated self-report measures assessing demographic characteristics, average daily music app use time, boredom proneness, loneliness, and IGD risk. Pearson correlation analyses were performed to examine bivariate associations. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted to assess the independent associations of boredom proneness, loneliness, and music app use with IGD risk, as well as the moderating effects of music app use. Simple slopes analyses were performed to interpret significant interactions. RESULTS: Boredom proneness (r = 0.465, p < 0.001) and loneliness (r = 0.421, p < 0.001) were positively correlated with IGD risk. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that boredom proneness (B = 0.298, p < 0.001), loneliness (B = 0.581, p < 0.001), and music app use time (B = 0.030, p < 0.001) were independently associated with higher IGD risk. A significant interaction effect was found between loneliness and music app use time (B = -0.0027, p < 0.001), whereas the interaction between boredom proneness and music app use was not significant. Simple slopes analyses indicated that the positive association between loneliness and IGD risk was weaker among adolescents with higher levels of music app use. CONCLUSIONS: Boredom proneness and loneliness represent distinct psychological correlates of IGD risk among secondary vocational school students. Music app use may play a differential moderating role in these pathways by attenuating the association between loneliness and IGD risk, but not the association between boredom proneness and IGD risk. These findings highlight the importance of considering specific patterns of digital media use when developing targeted interventions for adolescent IGD prevention.