Longitudinal associations between problematic TikTok use and academic performance among Chinese college students: mediation by academic burnout and disordered eating
Yan X, Wang S
Journal of eating disorders · 0 citations
Review labels
Neutral facts our review recorded about how this study was done. They describe method, never whether we like the result.
How it was studied
- Design
- Cohort study (classified by our AI screen)
- Studied in
- People
- Main outcome
- Health markers and function
Who paid for it
- Funding
- Funding not disclosed
Publication
- Published
- 2026-05-12 · J Eat Disord · vol. 14 · issue 1
- Publisher
- BioMed Central
- Cited
- 0 citations · more than 39% of similar papers · 0.0× the field average
- References
- 61 works
- Access
- Open access (journal) · CC-BY
- Research areas
- Eating Disorders and Behaviors · Perfectionism, Procrastination, Anxiety Studies · Impact of Technology on Adolescents
- Keywords
- academic performance, academic burnout, disordered eating, university students, body image, digital overuse, GPA, mediation
2 authors
From CN, GB
- Xiangdong Yan · correspondingShandong University of Science and Technology
- Shishan WangUniversity College London
Abstract
Purpose
Although problematic TikTok use (PTTU) and disordered eating have each been linked to poorer academic outcomes, few studies have examined their interplay-particularly the distinct roles of thinness- versus muscularity-oriented eating-and the contribution of academic burnout. This study tested whether baseline PTTU prospectively predicted subsequent-semester GPA through parallel and sequential pathways involving academic burnout and both eating-pathology orientations among Chinese undergraduates.
Methods
TikTok-using students from three Chinese universities (N = 475; Mage = 19.34, SD = 1.30) completed the Problematic TikTok Use Scale, Academic Burnout Scale, 12-item EDE-QS, and Muscularity-Oriented Eating Test at semester start (September 2024). At the beginning of the following semester (March 2025), official GPA records were retrieved from university academic systems (with consent) for 431 participants from the baseline cohort. Pearson correlations assessed bivariate associations, and a latent-variable mediation model was estimated in R (v4.1.4) using the lavaan package with robust maximum likelihood (MLR) to derive direct and indirect effects.
Results
Baseline PTTU was inversely associated with later GPA (r = - 0.33, p < 0.001). Mediation analyses indicated that academic burnout (β = -0.02, 95% CI [- 0.043, - 0.003]), thinness-oriented disordered eating (β = -0.04, 95% CI [- 0.073, - 0.001]), and muscularity-oriented disordered eating (β = -0.03, 95% CI [- 0.061, - 0.002]) each significantly conveyed portions of the PTTU-GPA association, consistent with parallel indirect effects.
Conclusion
PTTU was associated with lower end-of-semester GPA, in part through academic burnout and dual (thinness- and muscularity-oriented) disordered-eating pathways. Integrated campus strategies addressing digital overuse, body-image pressures, and study-related exhaustion may help safeguard academic achievement.
Abstract via Europe PMC. Copyright remains with the authors or publisher (CC BY).
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