Although research has investigated the association between pathological gaming and academic performance in adolescence, the complexity of the relationship has not been thoroughly examined. This short longitudinal study aimed to investigate the interactions between pathological gaming, academic self-efficacy, academic initiative, and academic performance in an adolescent sample, focusing on sex differences. The participants (N = 2853; 50.1% boys) were students in the second and third years of upper secondary school. Their grade point average (GPA) at graduation the same year was obtained. The moderated mediation structural equation model results showed that academic self-efficacy, directly and indirectly through academic initiative, impacted later GPA. There was no direct effect of pathological gaming on academic initiative or GPA. However, academic self-efficacy moderated the impact of pathological gaming on GPA for boys. In other words, boys with increased pathological gaming tended to achieve poorer grades in school if they experienced a strong academic self-efficacy. This study contributes to the understanding of the complex interplay between sex, pathological gaming, academic self-efficacy, academic initiative, and academic performance. We suggest that future research examines confidence or other relevant factors as explanatory mechanisms in the relationships between pathological gaming, academic self-efficacy, and GPA, particularly in male samples.

尽管研究调查了病理性游戏与青春期学业成绩之间的关联，但这种关系的复杂性尚未得到彻底检验。这项简短的纵向研究旨在调查青少年样本中病态游戏、学业自我效能、学业主动性和学业表现之间的相互作用，重点关注性别差异。参与者（N  = 2853；男生占50.1%）是高中二年级和三年级的学生。获得了他们同年毕业时的平均绩点（GPA）。调节中介结构方程模型结果表明，学业自我效能感通过学业主动性直接或间接影响后来的 GPA。病态游戏对学业主动性或 GPA 没有直接影响。然而，学业自我效能感调节了病态游戏对男孩 GPA 的影响。换句话说，如果男孩的学业自我效能感很强，那么病态游戏增多的男孩在学校的成绩往往会较差。这项研究有助于理解性、病态游戏、学业自我效能、学业主动性和学业成绩之间复杂的相互作用。我们建议未来的研究将信心或其他相关因素作为病态博弈、学业自我效能和 GPA 之间关系的解释机制，特别是在男性样本中。