Perceived stress and problematic micro-short viewing among Chinese university students: mediating effects of state boredom and moderating effects of loneliness.

BACKGROUND: Problematic viewing of micro-short dramas has emerged as a significant public health issue among Chinese university students. Based on General Strain Theory and the I-PACE model, this study examined whether state boredom mediates the relationship between perceived stress and problematic viewing, and whether loneliness moderates this mediation pathway. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 781 Chinese college students (M = 21.10 ± 1.56 years; 50.83% female). Participants completed the Perceived Stress Scale-10 (PSS-10), Multidimensional State Boredom Scale (MSBS), UCLA Loneliness Scale Version 3 (ULS-20), and a revised Problematic Micro-Short Drama Viewing Questionnaire. PROCESS Model 7 with 5,000 bootstrap samples was used to test the moderated mediation model. RESULTS: Perceived stress was significantly positively correlated with problematic viewing (rs = 0.352, p < 0.01). State boredom showed a significant indirect association linking perceived stress with problematic viewing, consistent with a partial mediation pattern in the hypothesized model (indirect effect = 0.136, 95% CI [0.080, 0.199], accounting for 15.03% of the total effect). Loneliness significantly moderated the stress-boredom pathway (β = 0.138, p < 0.001): the effect was significant at high loneliness levels (β = 0.327, p < 0.001) but not at low levels (β = 0.051, p = 0.130). The indirect effect was significant for high loneliness (Effect = 0.114, 95% CI [0.085, 0.145]) but not for low loneliness. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that perceived stress is related to problematic micro-short drama viewing through state boredom, with loneliness acting as a "risk amplifier" in the stress-boredom-viewing pathway. Interventions targeting both stress management and social connection may effectively prevent problematic viewing among at-risk students.