Abstract

Growing societal concerns have emerged regarding the potential effects of smartphone dependency on adolescents’ psychosocial development. This study aimed to investigate the influence of smartphone dependency on adolescents’ early sexual intercourse experiences and its underlying mechanisms. An analysis was conducted on data from 52,802 students enrolled in 800 middle and high schools, collected through a nationwide survey by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency in 2023. Using PROCESS Macro Model 14, the analysis revealed that smartphone dependency indirectly influenced sexual intercourse experiences through anxiety (indirect effect = .103, 95% CI [.086, .119]). Notably, the moderated mediation effect of gender showed that the impact of anxiety on sexual intercourse experiences was stronger among female students (B = .483, p < .001) compared to male students (B = .301, p < .001). This study elucidates the complex mechanisms underlying between smartphone dependency and adolescent sexual behavior, and by identifying gender-differential effects, provides practical implications for promoting adolescent mental health and developing sex education programs. The findings suggest that interventions for adolescent smartphone use should focus on promoting psychological well-being rather than merely restricting usage, while incorporating gender-specific approaches and expanding sex education programs to encompass smartphone use and mental health considerations. These results are expected to provide crucial scientific evidence for future youth policy development.